Chanel

Chanel is, of course, the No. 5 fragrance, the little black dress and the 2.55 quilted bag, all of which retain iconic status to this day. It is the famous tweed suits that star in every collection. More recently, it was synonymous with Karl Lagerfeld, the label’s charismatic creative director from 1983 until his death in 2019.

But Chanel is also a landmark, embodied by the famous mirror-lined staircase at this historic address, where Coco Chanel (1883-1971) would have models strut up and down to show off her latest iconoclastic creations. The free-spirited, unclassifiable designer quite simply revolutionised women’s fashion in the early 20th century – and with it social mores – liberating women from the corsets and other furbelows that had shackled them until then. A fan of simplicity and practicality, she redefined elegance à la française and perhaps distilled its very essence: a taste for the understated, with luxury hidden in the details. Her brand, with its double-C logo, is a national institution.

With a boutique on one of the most famous Parisian arteries, take advantage for a luxury shopping on the Avenue Montaigne.

Depending on your tastes, your budget or your desires, the shopping districts of Paris reveal all their secrets.