Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel debut fuels China expansion despite luxury slowdown

Chanel is opening new stores in China as it bets that renewed “vibrancy” in the world’s second-biggest economy and the buzz around star designer Matthieu Blazy will revitalise the French luxury brand.

Matthieu Blazy’s Chanel debut fuels China expansion despite luxury slowdown. Chanel is opening new stores in China as it bets that renewed “vibrancy” in the world’s second-biggest economy and the buzz around star designer Matthieu Blazy will revitalise the French luxury brand. Blazy’s products only began landing in stores in the second half of March 2026, but enthusiasm on social media and in boutiques for his first collections has been dubbed “Blazy mania”. The reception marks a rare bright spot for a major luxury brand amid a multiyear industry slowdown. Chanel’s sales accelerated in the second half of 2025 to “high single digit growth”, the company said on Tuesday (May 19), a momentum that has carried through into 2026. “It’s early to talk about holistic numbers . . . but the indicators [on Blazy] are strong. Clients are excited, new a...