A gazdasági válság a Chanel divatházat se kímélte. Elbocsátott 200 embert a nagy múltú divatvállalkozás. Mindazonáltal Karl Lagerfeld szerint a gazdasági világválság "megtisztulást" hoz és jó írányba tereli végre a világot. Véleménye szerint már rossz úton haladtunk és ennek egy drasztikusabb módon (szegény emberek sínylik meg világszerte), de véget kellett vetni. Eljön egy szerény korszak, ami később hasznunkra válik. A recesszió a divatra is épp oly befolyással van és ezt úgymond "értékelnünk" kell."Ez az egész válság olyan, mint egy nagy tavaszi nagytakarítás - erkölcsi és testi."
The veteran German fashion designer and Chanel boss has prophesised that the ensuing era will be one of "new modest".
While millions are losing their jobs around the world as leading economies slide into recession, he alikened the fall-out from the economic crisis to a spring-clean.
Lagerfeld said: "This whole crisis is like a big spring house-cleaning - both moral and physical.
"There is no creative evolution if you don't have dramatic moments like this. Bling is over. Red carpetry covered with rhine-stones is out. I call it 'the new modesty'."
Bling is a type of ostentatious fashion. The word was coined by hip hop stars to mean flashy, in a good way, but has come to be used in wider culture as a general term for the overt demonstration of wealth.
His comments follow those he made earlier this month to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, when he said he believed the recession was more like "a cleaning out".
"It was too rotten anyway," he said.
He thought the recession could affect fashion and design "in a good way".
"I do not think we were on the best way," he said. "I think it's a difficult moment for a lot of people and a lot of things, but in the end it was really needed, because it was really gone too far."
He concluded: "I see it like a healthy thing, a horrible but healthy thing. It's a medical treatment of the world, I see it like this."
He down played the effect that it would have on Chanel as a business, saying: "The business in the last years increased so much in the last year that if suddenly there's 25 per cent less (sales), that will be exactly the same point we were three years ago, or something like that. We were not poor then."
Last month Chanel laid off 200 staff, prompting concern about luxury French brand.
However, its Paris-Moscow collection in December brought in 17 per cent more in sales than the Paris-London show in 2007.
source: Telegraph
