Matthieu Blazy Returns to Chanel's Roots With the Cruise 2027 Collection in Biarritz
Reimagining the house’s genesis, the Creative Director presented a masterful ode to liberation and sporty elegance at Le Casino Municipal.
Summary
- Chanel presented its highly anticipated Cruise 2027 collection today in the historic coastal town of Biarritz, France
- The spectacular show marks the very first time Chanel has staged a runway presentation in the city where Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel opened her inaugural couture house in 1915
- Under the creative direction of Matthieu Blazy, the collection reimagined the sporty elegance, flowing twead skirts, and clean lines that defined the brand’s liberating origins
“Far from the Paris salon, Chanel found in Biarritz different ways of being and seeing, of movement and freedom.” With these words, Creative Director Matthieu Blazy officially brought Chanel back to the place where it all began. In 1915, Gabrielle Chanel took a bold step that would forever alter the course of fashion history. Encouraged by Boy Capel—the polo player who became the love of her life—she expanded her business beyond her Deauville boutique and opened her very first couture house at the 19th-century Villa Larralde in Biarritz. Positioned strategically near the beach, luxury hotels, and the casino, this move not only attracted an international clientele of élégantes but granted Chanel her ultimate victory: true financial independence as a formidable businesswoman. Now, over a century later, Chanel has finally returned to the place where the genesis of its timeless aesthetic began.
Over a century later, Chanel staged its first-ever runway show in the Basque coastal city at Le Casino Municipal, delivering a Cruise 2027 collection that perfectly captured the house’s enduring spirit of liberation. Despite its rich history as a turning point for the brand—and the location where Gabrielle Chanel first met perfumer Ernest Beaux, leading to the creation of the legendary Chanel N°5—this event marked the first time the fashion house has ever hosted a runway show in Biarritz.
For Blazy, the location held profound personal and creative significance. Having grown up visiting the Basque Country, Blazy understands intimately what the coastal town represents to both him and the house: absolute freedom. Proving that a classic is often born from rebellion, Blazy opened the show with a direct homage to Gabrielle Chanel’s 1926 black dress. Noting that “much is said about the ‘revenge dress’ – this might be considered the original one,” Blazy returned to the original archival sketches. While Vogue famously dubbed the simple, unadorned garment Chanel’s “Ford,” Blazy highlighted a detail omitted from those early public drawings: a large bow on the back, which he cleverly transposed into a clutch bag for Look One.
By making grand ladies want to dress like the working women of the era, Chanel blurred societal hierarchies. Blazy continued this tradition throughout the Cruise collection, elevating French workwear staples like the sailor’s marinière, the traditional bleu de travail, and washed cotton canvas suiting into the realm of peerless luxury. Guided by the theme of aligning the timeless natural world with the modern one, Blazy dispensed with strict clothing codes, allowing the salon to effortlessly slip onto the beach. The Basque stripe acted as a linking line throughout a highly tactile lineup. Emphasizing the essential joy of dressing and undressing (with the bathing suit playing a key role), the runway was in constant motion. Models drifted by in fluttering silk foulard ensembles, rustling raffia skirts, springy tweeds, soft beaded knits, and shimmering fish-scale paillettes that leaned into the “fiction of the mermaid.” Even the iconic Double C logo was reimagined, utilized not as an exercise in branding, but as an elemental architectural component of the garments.
The accessories reinforced the collection’s playful straddling of environments. Bags ranged from small valises and waterproof flaps to giant striped beach paniers and even traditional Basque pala carriers. The footwear allowed the wearer to traverse from the ballroom to the sand, featuring everything from elegant Art Deco heels to innovative barefoot “heel caps.” Jewelry echoed both the city’s architecture and its aquatic life, with shell earrings and the spiritual homecoming of the signature Chanel pearl.
Leaning into that ethos, Blazy’s Cruise 2027 collection beautifully reimagined the sporty elegance that Chanel originally championed on the Atlantic coast. The runway was alive with modern interpretations of her revolutionary clean lines, flowing skirts, and unrestrictive silhouettes. It was a direct nod to Chanel’s original determination to liberate women from the constraints of early 20th-century clothing, allowing them to dance, swim, love, and soak in the sun unbothered by the opinions of others.
The atmosphere at Le Casino Municipal perfectly merged the laid-back opulence of the French seaside with the gravity of a major fashion milestone. An exclusive front row gathered to witness Blazy’s triumphant tribute to the house’s roots, featuring high-profile guests such as A$AP Rocky, Nicole Kidman, Sofia Coppola, and Tilda Swinton.
By seamlessly blending the heritage of 1915 with his contemporary vision, Matthieu Blazy proved that the liberating spirit of Biarritz is still very much alive within the house of Chanel. The Cruise 2027 collection was more than just a nod to the past; it was a celebration of freedom, comfort, and the enduring legacy of a designer who dared to change the world.
