Chanel No 5 at 90

This BBC World Service programme highlights the story of Chanel No 5 is one of the most famous perfumes developed 90 years ago.

Coco Chanel is associated with fashion and perfume since 1920.

Memories of fresh scrubbed skin and soap encouraged her to visit Grasse in Provence, played a part in her search for a distinctive perfume suitable for wives and mistresses.

The BBC article on Coco Chanel and Chanel No 5 illustrates the importance of creation myths for companies, which form an essential part of the corporate culture.

“She invited Beaux and friends to a popular upmarket restaurant on the Riviera to celebrate and decided to spray the perfume around the table. Each woman that passed stopped and asked what the fragrance was and where it came from…. That was the first moment that anybody in the public smelled Chanel No 5 and it literally stopped them in their tracks.”

This simple act helped test the market, and encourage Coco Chanel to launch No 5 with its distinctive decanter shaped bottles.

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