The days before the long-awaited Chanel show – which closes the last day of Paris Fashion Week – the tension generated by the general transport strike in Paris kept the entire team of the firm and those attending the show in suspense. “We have to make a resounding strike on March 7, it will be the last line of the legislative review of the reform”, declared Didier Mathis, from UNSA-Ferroviaire, to Le Figaro.

Under the threat of paralyzing France and, with this, preventing the presentation of the fall/winter 2023 Prêt-à-porter collection, the French maison placed itself in the hands of the Gendarmerie Nationale to ensure that everything followed the established order. So it was. The vicinity of Le Grand Palais Éphémère, the exhibition hall that housed the parade, became a perfect fort through which only official cars and the odd curious tourist circulated.

Karl Lagerfeld was known for his appalling lateness, a flaw his right-hand woman Virginie Viard does not seem to have inherited. The successor to the German Kaiser is more of a lover of discretion than of the art of provocation, proof of this are the few interviews she has given so far. But without making much noise, year after year, the company’s global turnover does not stop growing, with economic results in 2021 that are 27.4% higher than the previous year.

A solidity that can also be seen on the catwalk and in the brand’s speech, this time with its eyes set on the actress and Chanel ambassador, Nana Komatsu, and on camellias, an eternal code of the House. Holding a delicate flower, the interpreter is photographed by Inez

Coco Chanel first included a white camellia on her belt in 1913. Interestingly, it is one of the flowers that is most resistant to winter frosts. Her strength, vivacity and style made him a symbol of the house, the same one that the creative has recovered for her new collection.

Overlaying white camellias on classic tweed jackets and jumpers coexist with small shiny appliqués that bloom on jeans and shiny tops. A range of colors that begins with the classic black and white binomial to give way to green and violet tones, until reaching passion red.

A line where glitter plays a very important role in the form of jewel belts that frame the waist or large necklaces that slide down the torso of the models. Camellias also came to life in the form of jewelery bags or crowning the classic slingback court shoe.

Critics and experts in the sector applauded the great casting of models that was seen on the catwalk, proof that the ‘body positive’ movement is also beginning to be noticed in the luxury sector, albeit in small doses.

After Virginie Viard’s display of creativity, the cameras quickly went to a front row with a smiling Penélope Cruz, next to Carlota Casiraghi, who made her last comments before quickly leaving the show. Nor did Nana Komatsu herself want to miss the show, who continued in disbelief looking at the images of her reflected on the walls of the Grand Palais Éphémère.