Chanel & Moi - Les Ateliers in Seoul
It’s fascinating to see the diverse type of customer-centric experiences luxury brands have been designing for their audiences. This time it’s Chanel’s repair center – Chanel & Moi - Les Ateliers – that has opened in Seoul, the brand’s fifth location after Hong Kong, London, Tokyo and Osaka.
I made the reservation – stating that I will be visiting for the brand experience rather than repair and alteration, and was given a tour of the three floors the space was spread out on.
The first floor was had an alteration & repair studio on the right side and on the left a large seating section with two coffee tables adorned with Chanel’s signature camelias and bag chains as well as a wall displaying the different fabrics, metal elements that go into each of their signature bags.
There is also a table with multiple drawers containing deconstructed leather goods such as wallets, and everything was meant to be touched to get a better understanding of the quality of the finish
The second floor hosted the Ready-to-Wear atelier with private fitting rooms, an alteration & repair studio, shelves with stacked textiles and jars full of buttons and pearls, and a central wall showcasing a classic Chanel jacket and the different elements that go into the making of one of such pieces
Everything was prepared with much attention to detail, using Chanel’s signature textiles for sofa and chair upholstery, cushions, further immersing the visitors in the brand’s universe
The space is adorned with pictures of artisans from le19M - a new hub in Paris devoted to protecting its heritage of craftsmanship that Chanel founded (and which I visited in person with SDA Bocconi's Executive Master in Luxury Management program I’m attending)
Fun fact - two of the five master tailors employed by Chanel currently are in fact Korean
The third floor hosts the Watches & Fine Jewelry Atelier, with a lounge section, private consultation rooms, the actual studio where the repairs are being carried out
The immersive section has a mockup of a working station of a High Jewelry designer and also a central wall piece where four Chanel wrist watches are dissected to showcase all of the elements that they consist of, as well as the available strap options
From what I’ve heard, until now it was extremely difficult and time consuming to have Chanel service its products and any repairs and alterations placed with third party providers were exuberantly expensive. It’s a smart move from the brand to not only provide the Korean audience with an option of having their belongings taken care of directly by the brand, for a more reasonable price and in a much faster manner. Chanel is one of the three brands in Korea whose revenues passed the 1 trillion won treshold (approx. USD 730m) – along Louis Vuitton and Dior, and showing commitment to their Korean customers this way is a much welcomed gesture.
