Assignment 13A-Reading Reflection No. 1

            For this assignment I chose to read Coco Chanel by Lisa Chaney. Of course we’re all familiar with the Chanel brand but this autobiography allowed me to learn more about the woman who started it all. While reading I was surprised at the fact that she came from such a terrible childhood yet was able to create this amazing brand. Often times when we see designers that become very famous or well-known, they come from a good family and have a background in art and have attended prestigious schools, but Gabrielle is the complete opposite. What I admired most is how she was able to surround herself with such interesting people from politicians to artists to authors. She was a sort of socialite and lived the kind of life many dreamed of. But on the other hand, the one thing I least admired was her involvement in WWII and how she had so many ties with the Germans. I also felt that she acted selfishly by closing her shops and putting thousands of people out of work.  I think that Gabrielle did experience a lot of adversity being a woman trying to create a brand in the twentieth century as well as overcoming her tough childhood.

            Looking at Gabrielle as an entrepreneur and not just a clothing designer I noticed that she did the most important thing which is find an unmet need. Being a woman herself she saw the need for comfortable yet fashionable clothing for woman especially because your clothes play a huge role in your appearance. I also found her to be very innovative considering it was a war time and she many common materials were sparse. One thing that I found a bit confusing was the discussion about her personal relationships with women. Chaney introduced some letters from Gabrielle’s male lovers but to me this in a way casts a shadow over the possibility of her being a lesbian and having female lovers. If I could ask her two questions they would be: How did you begin designing clothes when you had no real artistic background? How were you able to introduce this idea of comfortable casual clothing for women in an era when this concept did not exist yet? I think that as an entrepreneur Gabrielle sought the need for hard work an innovation as well as relationships. If you look at many of the people who she kept in her circle they were well-known people who helped her to create this image we all know which I too think these are all essential to create such an iconic brand.