On Everything #141: Creative Director as Brand Property; Can Chanel Turn Blazy Into Karl Lagerfeld?

A weekly newsletter from Eugene Rabkin, our founder and editor.

Announcements:

On the odd chance you have not yet seen this, my book, Torn: Fashion and Postmodernism is finally available for preorder. More info here. I am lining up media appearances; if you would like to talk, let me know.

September will be a big month, the book will be out and StyleZeitgeist turns 20. We are planning a band tour during all the fashion weeks that month. I am speaking with various parties in NYC, upstate New York (where I live), Dublin, London, Paris, Milan, Antwerp, and Florence. Letting you guys know early in case some of you would like to travel.

Also, we are doing a class with Sruli Recht over at StyleZeitgeist Academy, commencing this Sunday! A few spots are still open. It will be epic.

Main:

Last week Chanel triumphantly announced a return to sales growth for the 2025 fiscal year. Although the growth is modest, only 2% (just for comparison, its 2022 growth was 17%), the company, and the compliant fashion media, trumpeted this as a major win.

I get it, the luxury fashion industry could use a bit of good news. What was more eyebrow-raising was that Chanel attributed this success to its new creative director Matthieu Blazy. This is some seriously magical thinking, considering that his first collection was presented in October, 2025 and hit the shelves in 2026. Clearly, in direct sales terms, his impact on the 2025 numbers stands at 0.