Founder of the Chanel brand famous for simple, feminine designs which were originally based on men's attire.  Opened the House of Chanel in 1910, by 1916 she employed 300 people dedicated to creating simple feminine clothing & hats. Creator of 'the little balck dress' in 1926 which Vogue described as the fashion equivalent of the Ford motorcar.  By 1935 she owned 5 buildings and employed 4000 people and had taken her talents into jewellery, handbag and perfume design.  

Introduced her first perfume, Chanel No. 5, in 1922, it was one of the first perfumes ever to mix natural and artificial essences and has become the highest selling scent in the world.

Considered to be the creator of 'costume' jewelry in the 1920s.

Since 1983, Chanel has been designed by Karl Lagerfeld.

Coco Chanel's business started with her hats and was financed by her lovers, Etienne Balsan and Boy Capel.  

Closed her couture house in 1939 at the outbreak of world war 2 saying "This is no time for fashion". Due to having had an affair with a Nazi officer during the war, she was suspected of collaborating with the German enemy and was arrested at the end of the war.  No charges were brought against her and she spent the following years in obscurity in Swtzerland. She returned to couture design in 1954 at the age of 71.

Brought up in an orphanage from the age of 12 following the death of her mother.  She lived there with her 2 sisters until she was 18 and it was here that she learned how to sew.  She went on to attend the Notre Dame school in moulins where she learned more sewing and then gained employment as a seamstress in a drapers.

She was given the name Coco by her audience when she worked, briefly, as a singer.  Famous for her renditions of  'Ko Ko Ri Ko' and 'Qui qu'a vu Coco?' (a ditty about a lost dog) - Gabrielle became Coco, although she herself denied this story and claimed the nickname came from her father as he never liked the name Gabrielle.

Brought up her nephew, André Palasse, as her own following the death of her sister when he was 6 years old.