A Wren Says

Writing about Chanel yesterday made me curious, what actually is the vision of the company. Given the long tenure of their previous artistic directors, I had a hunch that this wasn’t a fluke but tied to their mission and vision. I came across their “Report to Society” from 2018. In it, they write that because they are an independent company, they have the freedom to do things differently. There are no shareholders rushing them. They can make progress on their own terms and in their chosen direction.

For Chanel, at least according to the report, that means taking things slowly to ensure longevity. They used the phrase “long-term” multiple times. 42 times in a 76 page report is enough for a researcher to take note that see more there.

“Chanel is first and foremost about creation. It’s also about being a profoundly human-driven company committed to creating long-term value for the brand and for society.”

– Chanel, 2018 Report to Society

Human-driven. Those words are sticking with me. There is the support for innovation, but there is also support for the people who make that innovation happen. Be they within the company, the supply chain, or marginally affected in the world, they get the focus. That is part of the long-term strategy. Humans. It’s strange that seems novel to me.

Because the report is 76 pages, I have not yet reviewed it in full. However, I want to know more about what it contains to learn more about their strategy overall.