PARIS — Coco Chanel had her own view of luck, famously crystalized in the phrase: “I saw an opportunity, and I took it.” Now, the fashion house is delving deeper into its corporate heritage by launching the fifth Chance fragrance, called Eau Splendide, on April 15.
Developed by in-house perfumer-creator Olivier Polge, it is the first fragrance to come out under Simona Cattaneo, president of Chanel Fragrance and Beauty.
“I feel very honored and privileged to have joined such an iconic house that I have been looking at with a lot of respect for all of my career,” said Cattaneo, in her first interview since joining Chanel in September 2024. “I am still in the learning mode.”
Cattaneo described the house’s approach to fragrance as distinctive.
“At Chanel, the creation is really at the heart of everything,” she said. “We have in-house creators, for all our categories. What is remarkable is that they have true creative freedom.
“From the very beginning, since the creation of No.5 in 1921, the brief that Gabrielle Chanel gave to Ernest Beaux was that she wanted a woman’s perfume with a woman’s scent,” continued Cattaneo.
At the time, the perfume industry was full of recognizable single-flower fragrances.
“She wanted the kind of abstract perfume with an undefinable scent,” said Cattaneo. “So this vision that fragrance is a state of mind, a kind of allure — is a very important concept for Chanel.”
She added: “Chanel perfumes express a stye and idea. It’s more about the vision. Our fragrances, our perfumes, should give people the power to become who they want to be. This is a vision that is not at all a stereotype. This angle is quite unique in perfumery.”
Simona Cattaneo
Courtesy of Chanel
Cattaneo has also been struck by Chanel’s ability to be consistent with its approach to fragrance for more than a century, during which time it has had just four perfumers conceiving its scents.
“The second point of distinction for Chanel fragrances is this fact that the house has total control over a completely integrated value chain,” she said. “This is a dream when you work in fragrance.”
Chanel has a development laboratory, as well as the ability to manufacture its own perfumes.
“We own our formulas and control the composition,” she said. “Chanel, for instance, grows a large portion of the jasmine flowers and roses in our fields in Grasse.”
That gives control of the entire value chain, including perfume ingredients’ quality and traceability.
“This kind of mastery is completely unique in the sector,” claimed Cattaneo.
The first Chance perfume was launched in 2003.
“Since then, it has become one of the leading fragrance collections in the market,” said Cattaneo, explaining this is true in all parts of the world.
She did not discuss rankings, but according to Statista, Chance placed fourth in the United States, sixth in Brazil and 10th in France, among the most popular women’s fragrances in 2023.
Chance joins a constellation of other Chanel fragrance franchises.
“No.5 is the unapologetic feminine force. Coco Mademoiselle is the freedom to become who you want to be,” said Cattaneo. “Bleu de Chanel is the expression of mystery and complexity. But Chance is different — it’s bright, joyful, optimistic. And it is a collection of perfumes.
“When it comes to our vision of luxury, Chance brings something different — an expression of effortless luxury,” she explained. “Chance embodies sophisticated lightness and luminosity. It’s a luminous collection.”
Chance Eau Splendide joins the Chance lineup, which could be considered an olfactive interpretation of luck.
“It brings something new to the collection, with a very special facet,” said Cattaneo, explaining Eau Splendide is the first fruity floral fragrance for Chanel. “It’s a new olfactive territory for us.”
Chanel executives would not discuss sales projections, but industry sources estimate Eau Splendide will generate 100 million euros in first-year retail sales.
“Sometimes I’m asked what is the link between each of those Chance [fragrances],” said Polge. “Of course, you could always find the raw material, but I think it’s more correct to describe it as a state of mind.”
Olivier Polge
Courtesy of Chanel
There’s a floral element, but also a feeling and impression, according to him.
“There is something direct, which I like, about Chance,” said Polge, calling its fragrances also bright and colorful. Each Chance fragrance is fresh, with a striking olfactive opening. For Eau Splendide’s top notes, he looked into different types of fruits.
“I ended up being interested in one accord that smells like raspberry,” he said. “I showcased it in an accord because aside from the red fruit and this peach somehow that it brings, it differentiates itself from the other berries, because it has already the start of a violet undertone, a rosy undertone. I thought: ‘Ah, that’s the start of the perfume.’”
The scent was developed with a pure extract of geranium rosat leaf, partly grown in Chanel’s fields.
“It has this rosy, very natural impression,” said Polge, who added notes of musks and cedarwood in Eau Splendide’s base.
“It’s a cedarwood that we have redistilled, slightly cleaned of any type of darker tones to support the scent in the brightest way,” he said.
Eau Splendide comes in a circular bottle, similar to the other Chance scents, but with a violet juice. Chance is golden, Eau Fraîche from 2007 is mint green, Eau Tendre from 2010 is pink and Eau Vive from 2015 is peach-colored.
Eau Splendide will be priced in France at about 122 euros for a 50-ml. eau de parfum and 168 euros for a 100-ml. edp.
“Luck, in a way, has its part to play in happiness, but it takes a lot of work to summon it,” said Cattaneo. “It’s not a passive state, but it is a result of an action. This is what Gabrielle Chanel thought and what Chanel today wants for women — this idea of luck that’s more about them seizing their destiny and every opportunity that presents itself.
“This is also the claim of the collection — ‘take your chance,’” said Cattaneo. “That is intentional in the world of Chanel.”
