Chanel

History of the house

Chanel's perfume activity began in 1921 in Paris (France), with the launch of Chanel No 5, the first fragrance commissioned by Gabrielle Chanel. The composition was entrusted to Ernest Beaux, a French perfumer born in Moscow and trained at the Russian house Rallet, who had been introduced to Gabrielle Chanel by Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich during her years in the Russian emigre circles of the early 1920s. The perfume was first sold from the couture boutique at 31 rue Cambon, in the 1st arrondissement of Paris (Wikipedia EN Chanel No 5 entry, chanel.com archive, accessed 2026-05-22).

In 1924, the dedicated company Les Parfums Chanel was created to manufacture and distribute the house's perfumes and cosmetics. The capital was divided between Pierre Wertheimer, owner of the cosmetics company Bourjois with 70 percent, Théophile Bader, founder of Galeries Lafayette with 20 percent, and Gabrielle Chanel with 10 percent. That legal structure, separate from the couture house, has anchored the perfume activity ever since (Wikipedia EN Pierre Wertheimer entry, WWD ownership coverage).

Ernest Beaux signed several historic compositions for Chanel in the decade after No 5, including No 22 in 1922, Cuir de Russie in 1924 and Bois des Iles in 1926 according to the house's official chronology. He remained the in-house perfumer until his retirement. He was succeeded by Henri Robert, a French perfumer formerly at Coty, who took the role in the 1950s and signed Pour Monsieur in 1955 and Chanel No 19, created in 1970 for Gabrielle Chanel personally and released to the public in 1971 (chanel.com timeline, Fragrantica designer page).

In 1978, Jacques Polge, a French perfumer trained at Roure, succeeded Henri Robert as in-house perfumer. He held the role for thirty-seven years, until the end of 2014. For the house he signed Antaeus in 1981, Coco in 1984, Egoiste in 1990, Allure in 1996, Chance in 2002 and the confidential collection Les Exclusifs de Chanel launched in 2007 (Wikipedia EN Jacques Polge entry, Fragrantica). Two of its best known entries, Coromandel and 28 La Pausa, both appeared in 2007. Christopher Sheldrake joined Chanel as Director of Research and Development in 2005, and has co-signed several Exclusifs alongside the Polge family.

In 2013, Olivier Polge, son of Jacques Polge and a perfumer formerly at International Flavors and Fragrances, joined Les Parfums Chanel to prepare the transition. He took over as Director of Perfume Creation in early 2015. He signed Misia in 2015 and Boy in 2016 within Les Exclusifs, then Gabrielle Chanel in 2017, the first new feminine pillar of the house since Chance. Chanel is owned by Alain and Gerard Wertheimer, grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer, through the holding company Chanel Limited registered in London (United Kingdom) in 2018. The house is not listed on any stock exchange (Wikipedia EN Olivier Polge, WWD, accessed 2026-05-22).

Notable perfumes

The Chanel perfume catalogue spans more than a century and includes the mainline pillars, the masculines, and the confidential Les Exclusifs de Chanel collection launched in 2007. The eleven compositions below are historical anchors of the house, attributed to its four in-house perfumers across the period.

Chanel No 5 (1921) remains the most cited composition of the house and a foundational reference for twentieth century perfumery, built around a dose of aldehydes unprecedented at the time, layered over a Grasse jasmine and may rose core. Chanel No 19 (1971), a cool green floral with prominent iris and galbanum, was named after Gabrielle Chanel's birthday and signed by Henri Robert. Coco (1984) opened the spicy oriental era of the Jacques Polge years. Coromandel (2007), co-signed with Christopher Sheldrake within Les Exclusifs, set a patchouli oriental reading that became one of the most copied accords of the late 2000s. Gabrielle Chanel (2017), signed by Olivier Polge, is the first new feminine pillar since Chance (2002).

Olfactive signature

The olfactive signature of Chanel is historically defined by the use of aldehydes, synthetic molecules with a metallic and soapy character, dosed at unprecedented levels in Chanel No 5 from 1921. Ernest Beaux structured the composition with the C-10, C-11 and C-12 aldehydes as load-bearing pillars rather than discreet effects, which set the perfume apart from the figurative florals dominant at the time. The aldehydic gesture returned in No 22 and No 19, and remains a recognizable marker of the catalogue (Wikipedia EN Chanel No 5 entry, Fragrantica, Now Smell This).

Beyond the aldehydes, several material choices recur across a century of Chanel composition. Grasse jasmine and may rose hold a central place, with a long-term sourcing arrangement with the Mul family in Grasse (France) secured by the house since the 1980s according to chanel.com. Iris, an expensive material, structures the powdery floral compositions such as No 19 and the Exclusif 28 La Pausa. The white floral bouquet, prominent in Gabrielle Chanel from 2017, remains a recurring territory of work for the in-house team.

Within the cartography of perfumery traditions, Chanel belongs to French perfumery and figures among the houses that fixed the floral aldehydic genre at the beginning of the twentieth century. The Les Exclusifs de Chanel collection, launched in 2007, extends that work in a confidential format distributed only through Chanel's own boutiques and selected channels. Christopher Sheldrake, R&D Director since 2005, has played a structural role in the technical research that supports the collection (Persolaise reviews, Bois de Jasmin coverage, accessed 2026-05-22).

Chanel structured the floral aldehydic genre with No 5 in 1921 and has held a single in-house perfumer line, from Ernest Beaux to Olivier Polge, across a century.

Key characteristics

Frequently asked questions

See also