Now that luxury label Chloe has introduced its first-ever physical boutique in the Philippines at Greenbelt 4 in Makati City recently, we feel like reminding Filipino clientele about what fashionistas love best about the French luxury ready-to-wear house.
1.Feminine-Masculine Energy
Chloe has been known for its flawless feminine-masculine sensibilities, bohemian ease and a whole lot of wearable yet timeless sophistication as the brand’s ethos, honed from years of evolution since its conception in 1952 by founder Gaby Aghion.
Aghion eliminated the long wait caused by haute couture houses at the time by offering high fashion yet youthful off-the-rack clothing items initially for her friends. So much so that Gaby was believed to be the first one to use the term prêt-à-porter (ready-to-wear) in the style business.
Many fashion greats had since held the creative directorship at Chloe, including the Karl Lagerfeld from 1959 to 1978 and then from 1992 to 1997 with his youthful flair through fragile blouses and high-waisted fluid print dresses; Martine Sitbon who introduced a series of masculine tailored suits for women from the early 1980s to 1992; and Stella McCartney from 1992 to 2001 with her edgy mix of sharp tailored jackets teamed with flirty vintage lingerie.
Phoebe Philo’s creative leadership at Chloe from 2001 to 2006 was also legendary, with her streetwise edge, witty baby-girl tunic dresses, her wedge-heeled shoe designs, and her iconic handbag designs like the Bracelet bag, the Silverado bag, and of course, the Paddington bag.
2.First-Ever ‘It-Bag’: The Chloe Paddington
The first Chloe Paddington bag designed by then-director Phoebe Philo was considered one of the few first ‘it-bags’ ever. In fact, the bag was sold out before it ever reached stores in 2005, giving Chloe a global visibility. Introduced in 2004 for the premiere handbag collection of Chloe, the Paddington has been revered as the first bag to incorporate hardware into its design, with its very distinctive padlock closure in front. It surely kicked off the metalware trend in handbags, inspiring a lot of modern purse designs through the years.
Its rounded silhouette made of soft leather yet accessorized with metalware padlock perfectly exude the feminine-masculine aesthetic of Chloe. It was a real it-girl staple in the mid-2000s. More than anything, the Chloe Paddington helped introduce a new era of handbag design called the hardware handbags which is well-loved to this day, with its merging aspects of femininity and masculinity, boldness, and practicality.
In 2019, the Paddington was reinvented with the Aby bag by Chloé’s then-creative director Natacha Ramsay-Levi.
3. Updated Chloe Legacy With Chemena Kamali
In October 2023, German-Uruguayan designer Chemena Kamali was named the new creative director of Chloe, taking over the brand from Gabriela Hearst. This was pretty iconic as Chemena worked under Phoebe Philo during her history-making stint at the French label in the early-to-mid 2000s. Kamali’s comeback at Chloe in 2023 came after her work as women’s ready-to-wear design director for Anthony Vaccarello at Saint Laurent from 2016 onward.
“I am extremely honoured to be taking on this role and to be building on the vision that Gaby Aghion and Karl Lagerfeld defined early in the maison’s history … My heart has always been at Chloé’s,” Chemena shared in a statement.
Kamali showcased her first pre-collection for Chloé in Paris in January 2024, followed by a fall-winter 2024 collection during Paris Fashion Week in February 2024, as well as a spring-summer 2025 collection for Paris Fashion Week in September 2024.
The spring-summer 2025 collection was a celebration of Chloé’s hippy-chic aesthetic, with a focus on femininity, lightness, and a sense of nostalgia. The collection featured billowing dresses, lace, sun-bleached flower prints, and lingerie touches.
The Chloe Spring 2025 collection is now available in the Philippines at the Chloe Greenbelt 4 boutique in Makati City.
This marks the growing easy access of Filipino fashionistas to French luxury prêt-à-porter fashion in the country.
“This boutique is an important step for Chloé in the Philippines,” Laurent Malecaze, Chloé’s President and CEO, shared. “We’re excited to connect with our customers here and showcase Chemena Kamali’s creative direction.”
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Filipina actress and singer Lovi Poe stars in our current cover story here, as she talks about her upcoming Hollywood movies alongside William Scott, Johnny Simmons and more, and her new beauty business with makeup brand Ready Set Glow.
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