Chanel’s Rise & STALL: Defects, Difficulties & Deflection (formerly the 19 tote saga thread)

[sjunky13]

Since the topic of cosmetics has come up. I was working with another brand and invited to a Chanel training for the new makeup brushes years ago. This is when Japanese squirrel hair brushes started gaining popularity in the west. Chanel made their brushes to look exactly like a brand called Suqqu which were very good quality brushes.. We asked what animal the brushes were made from. Goat? grey squirrel? Pony? Synthetic? We were all told that Chanel does not share the origins of source materials used. They would like to remain ambiguous as to not upset anyone . It was a good peek into the brain of the brand. Never disclose too much.

Speaking of cosmetics . The Brothers had a huge disagreement regarding manufacturing of powder formulas. There were 2 different factories and formulas for powder products. Blush, shadows ,etc. Outside of the states, you got the baked formula . There were a ton of inconsistencies.

The brothers are huge investors in the beauty sphere. They recently sold off ULTA stock and made a fortune!
Someone asked about Bourjois being made in the same factories? It used to be manufactured in one of the factories when Chanel owned it, but they sold it years ago. The formula was the baked one referenced above .

I once heard from a reputable source that the cost of a Jumbo flap was less than $100 to produce.

I mention these things because it is obvious the brand has hired the absolute best marketing teams throughout the years.
Anyone remember the ceo from gap? I can't recall her name, but she swore the brand would reflect Hermes in pricing and strategy. This was over 10 years ago. They know what they are doing! They reveal just enough info and mystiques
Yes, we pay for branding and marketing. Not materials . I know I wear Rose colored glasses when I buy the brand.
I hope this thread remains open and we can have a good place to share info on leathers and experiences. I for sure want to know what leather I am buying!

 

[Coach Superfan]

This thread should be renamed to something to the fact “chanel history then and now, inside scoop“ and added it to library ha ha.

Lots of great information! And I’m seeing lots of OGs chiming in with their knowledge as well. I keep taking screen shots on all the new things I’m learning about chanel from valuable members. Great work!

100% agree with this! It's like the crash course I never knew I needed. Every morning I looked forward to catching up on what valuable insight OP @TraceySH and the other active posters here have been contributing. This thread has been the most informative, enjoyable, and interesting thread I've come across on tPF in years.

 

[zaraha]

Since the topic of cosmetics has come up. I was working with another brand and invited to a Chanel training for the new makeup brushes years ago. This is when Japanese squirrel hair brushes started gaining popularity in the west. Chanel made their brushes to look exactly like a brand called Suqqu which were very good quality brushes.. We asked what animal the brushes were made from. Goat? grey squirrel? Pony? Synthetic? We were all told that Chanel does not share the origins of source materials used. They would like to remain ambiguous as to not upset anyone . It was a good peek into the brain of the brand. Never disclose too much.

Speaking of cosmetics . The Brothers had a huge disagreement regarding manufacturing of powder formulas. There were 2 different factories and formulas for powder products. Blush, shadows ,etc. Outside of the states, you got the baked formula . There were a ton of inconsistencies.

The brothers are huge investors in the beauty sphere. They recently sold off ULTA stock and made a fortune!
Someone asked about Bourjois being made in the same factories? It used to be manufactured in one of the factories when Chanel owned it, but they sold it years ago. The formula was the baked one referenced above .

I once heard from a reputable source that the cost of a Jumbo flap was less than $100 to produce.

I mention these things because it is obvious the brand has hired the absolute best marketing teams throughout the years.
Anyone remember the ceo from gap? I can't recall her name, but she swore the brand would reflect Hermes in pricing and strategy. This was over 10 years ago. They know what they are doing! They reveal just enough info and mystiques
Yes, we pay for branding and marketing. Not materials . I know I wear Rose colored glasses when I buy the brand.
I hope this thread remains open and we can have a good place to share info on leathers and experiences. I for sure want to know what leather I am buying!

So chanel brushes… I have an old powder brush with silver/black handle - is Bristles meant to be like “Japanese squirrel hair” maybe “sabel” it feels so soft but I can’t tell if it’s synthetic. This brush no longer sold at chanel I think, but I love it and had it for years.
I do not like the new brushes they sell ( all black handle), they feel cheep and bristles feels too synthetic. Thank you for you contribution on make up side.

 

[TraceySH]

100% agree with this! It's like the crash course I never knew I needed. Every morning I looked forward to catching up on what valuable insight OP @TraceySH and the other active posters here have been contributing. This thread has been the most informative, enjoyable, and interesting thread I've come across on tPF in years.

And all of our twists and turns too! It's been a wild ride, but SO incredibly informative!

 

[sjunky13]

So chanel brushes… I have an old powder brush with silver/black handle - is Bristles meant to be like “Japanese squirrel hair” it feels so soft but I can’t tell if it’s synthetic. This brush no longer sold at chanel I think, but I love it and had it for years.
I do not like the new brushes they sell ( all black handle), they feel cheep and bristles feels too synthetic. Thank you for you contribution on make up side.

View attachment 5582000

Hi my fellow rose colored glass wearer! LOL. xoxo.
The older brushes were made in China and I liked them! I have the original gold and black ones as well. I like some of the new ones. The new ones are dyed goat and synthetic! The new cheek brush you have is not a fav. It looks sleek, but the head is meh.
My fav brushes are the old Tom Ford goat brushes before they changed to synthetics. Sonia G as well.
Back to Chanel.. cosmetics costs penny's on the dollar . The Profit is amazingly high.
My first job in cosmetics was with Dior. I remember the training so well. Women will always buy a new lipstick to cheer them self up and even if they can't afford a Dior suit, they will buy into the brand through Beaute!
This is why all celebrities' and brands do beaute. They want the $$$.

 

[sjunky13]

100% agree with this! It's like the crash course I never knew I needed. Every morning I looked forward to catching up on what valuable insight OP @TraceySH and the other active posters here have been contributing. This thread has been the most informative, enjoyable, and interesting thread I've come across on tPF in years.

I love it too. It's great to be informed and brands should apricate the good feedback from their top loyal clients! This forum is free research for them.
In regards to Chanel, they already have a winning formula so the videos and negativity doesn't really affect them badly, Hello advent calendar !

 

[TPFer2015]

Hi my fellow rose colored glass wearer! LOL. xoxo.
The older brushes were made in China and I liked them! I have the original gold and black ones as well. I like some of the new ones. The new ones are dyed goat and synthetic! The new cheek brush you have is not a fav. It looks sleek, but the head is meh.
My fav brushes are the old Tom Ford goat brushes before they changed to synthetics. Sonia G as well.
Back to Chanel.. cosmetics costs penny's on the dollar . The Profit is amazingly high.
My first job in cosmetics was with Dior. I remember the training so well. Women will always buy a new lipstick to cheer them self up and even if they can't afford a Dior suit, they will buy into the brand through Beaute!
This is why all celebrities' and brands do beaute. They want the $$$.

Totally, the ‘Lipstick effect’, ie small ticket luxury / discretionary purchases are surprisingly resilient income through recessions because ppl generally (not including the 1% and millionaires here) are more wary of their spending during a tighter economy, they will still shell out 30 bucks for a fancy lipstick to cheer themselves up.

 

[sjunky13]

Totally, the ‘Lipstick effect’, ie small ticket luxury / discretionary purchases are surprisingly resilient income through recessions because ppl generally (not including the 1% and millionaires here) are more wary of their spending during a tighter economy, they will still shell out 30 bucks for a fancy lipstick to cheer themselves up.

I myself am guilty of this as well. It's so easy!
Small ticket luxury is very profitable.
Costume jewelry.
Slg's
Beauty
water bottles, towels, headbands etc.


Does anyone know about Chanel shoes? I feel they are still made very well. I love the sneakers and ballet flats.

 

[Roie55]

This is one of the best, most informative threads in a long time. Initially I was shocked at the resilience of the 19 and wondered what sorcery was in this bag - but now i'm considering it to be a future purchase due to its indestructability. I'm a vintage buyer so only have a small handful, but with all the talk of the quality of the new lines I think i'll stay vintage for a long time to come.
While the 22 is a weird line for the brand, (I still think it has a dust bag look). I am that person looking on the internet for a padded puffer jacket looking long strap bag to use at the gym - which i now realise closely resembles the 22 style. So there is always a market.

An earlier post mentioned the chinese labour factories in Italy. Wasn't there some articles a few years ago about this, how earlier generations were brought there for labour. It's generations later now and they pride themselves on being skilled artisans, what i'm saying is not so much a slave labour type forced-workforce. (using slave labour as a loose term as i'm not sure how far back the earlier post is nor the term which was used to describe). There might still be many unfairly treated workforces as there always is; but i think the current practice is not like that as in some asiapac regions well known for the bad practices.

 

[bags to die for]

Interesting point about the make-up brushes. I found my chanel brush made of synthetics but amazingly soft and compared to a Japanese brand Hakuhodo (have tried Suqqu but not their brushes) and it's made from blue squirrel and goat (they do use synthetics too). There's very little difference in feel. I'll appreciate my Japanese brushes more!

 

[gail13]

Since the topic of cosmetics has come up. I was working with another brand and invited to a Chanel training for the new makeup brushes years ago. This is when Japanese squirrel hair brushes started gaining popularity in the west. Chanel made their brushes to look exactly like a brand called Suqqu which were very good quality brushes.. We asked what animal the brushes were made from. Goat? grey squirrel? Pony? Synthetic? We were all told that Chanel does not share the origins of source materials used. They would like to remain ambiguous as to not upset anyone . It was a good peek into the brain of the brand. Never disclose too much.

Speaking of cosmetics . The Brothers had a huge disagreement regarding manufacturing of powder formulas. There were 2 different factories and formulas for powder products. Blush, shadows ,etc. Outside of the states, you got the baked formula . There were a ton of inconsistencies.

The brothers are huge investors in the beauty sphere. They recently sold off ULTA stock and made a fortune!
Someone asked about Bourjois being made in the same factories? It used to be manufactured in one of the factories when Chanel owned it, but they sold it years ago. The formula was the baked one referenced above .

I once heard from a reputable source that the cost of a Jumbo flap was less than $100 to produce.

I mention these things because it is obvious the brand has hired the absolute best marketing teams throughout the years.
Anyone remember the ceo from gap? I can't recall her name, but she swore the brand would reflect Hermes in pricing and strategy. This was over 10 years ago. They know what they are doing! They reveal just enough info and mystiques
Yes, we pay for branding and marketing. Not materials . I know I wear Rose colored glasses when I buy the brand.
I hope this thread remains open and we can have a good place to share info on leathers and experiences. I for sure want to know what leather I am buying!

Great info! As someone else said here, " You can't pull the tweed over our eyes."

 

[gail13]

I love it too. It's great to be informed and brands should apricate the good feedback from their top loyal clients! This forum is free research for them.
In regards to Chanel, they already have a winning formula so the videos and negativity doesn't really affect them badly, Hello advent calendar !

That Advent calendar says everything about Chanel and the image they want to portray.
1. They don't care what we want.
2. They will tell us what we are to purchase, not the other way around.
3. Quality of materials is not important, but the outside look is.
Im sure it says more but those are the three I come up with.

 

[gail13]

Hi my fellow rose colored glass wearer! LOL. xoxo.
The older brushes were made in China and I liked them! I have the original gold and black ones as well. I like some of the new ones. The new ones are dyed goat and synthetic! The new cheek brush you have is not a fav. It looks sleek, but the head is meh.
My fav brushes are the old Tom Ford goat brushes before they changed to synthetics. Sonia G as well.
Back to Chanel.. cosmetics costs penny's on the dollar . The Profit is amazingly high.
My first job in cosmetics was with Dior. I remember the training so well. Women will always buy a new lipstick to cheer them self up and even if they can't afford a Dior suit, they will buy into the brand through Beaute!
This is why all celebrities' and brands do beaute. They want the $$$.

Are there any CC cosmetics or brushes etc you think are really well made and good purchases?

 

[tulipfield]

When Chanel died in 1971, they bought her (then quite tired looking - I have a bag from then) business and have been owning/running it ever since.

@papertiger I am intrigued, do you have a picture anywhere of this vintage bag?

Does anyone know about Chanel shoes? I feel they are still made very well. I love the sneakers and ballet flats.

I’ve had a good experience too—multiple pairs of ballerinas and slingbacks and a pair of Mary Janes. I mentioned upthread I gave up on Chanel bc of two faulty pairs of platforms a few seasons ago, but if it hadn’t been for all the swirling complaints about quality in their other items, I might have thought it was just that particular SKU. Some YouTubers have postulated the decline in bag quality is bc they can’t keep up with demand, so maybe there just isn’t that same demand for shoes?

Thanks everyone here for their contributions, I haven’t been this invested in a tpf thread in years.

 

[gail13]

Does anyone know about Chanel shoes? I feel they are still made very well. I love the sneakers and ballet flats.

Some of the shoes look beautifully made and come from small factories they collaborate with/have acquired in Italy. I found info on three shoe makers in Italy that Chanel collaborates with and these shoe makers also work with other luxury brands. Check out Ballin, Gensi for sneakers/sport shoes, and Roveda.


This website was nicely done and you can see the CC's.

https://www.instagram.com/roveda1955/?hl=en

I also see that occasionally you can find shoes by these manufactures on Yoox or other sites.