The women behind Chanel on how the ghost of Gabrielle influences their work.

If behind every great man is a great woman, Karl Lagerfeld’s status as the most powerful man in fashion is secure. Because behind, beside and around him is a team of women who keep the Chanel powerhouse running smoothly. And none more so than fashion studio director Virginie Viard, who, over the course of a 30-year career at his side, has earned herself the title "Karl’s right-hand woman".

Looking at her kohl-rimmed eyes, porcelain complexion and skinny jeans, it’s hard to believe that Viard has racked up three decades in the industry. She joined Chanel as an intern in haute-couture embroidery in 1987 – four years after Lagerfeld – on the recommendation of a neighbour of her parents who happened to be Prince Rainier of Monaco’s chamberlain.

Since then, bar a five-year stint in the mid-1990s when Lagerfeld took her with him to Chloé, she has charted the house’s return to the peak of high fashion, and now oversees eight collections a year, including ready-to-wear, cruise, Métiers d’Art and couture.

Full story at Telegraph.

By Sarah Royce-Greensill.