The Enduring Appeal of ’90s Chanel

As designer Matthieu Blazy gears up for his debut as Chanel’s new creative director, it’s no stretch to say he’s got big shoes to fill. He’s taking over for Virginie Viard, who worked closely with Karl Lagerfeld during his 36-year tenure—a time that cemented the French label as a creative powerhouse not seen since Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel launched her brand in 1910. Now, Lagerfeld’s designers are relevant as ever, just six years after his death.

From red carpets to the big screen, archival Chanel has been everywhere lately. Keke Palmer modeled a spring 1993 couture look at the BET Awards in June, while Margot Robbie’s 2023 Barbie press tour was studded with iconic Lagerfeld-era pieces; Kylie Jenner recently flaunted her spangled spring ’95 bikini on Instagram (to the tune of over three million likes), and Sofia Richie Grainge wedded Elliot Grainge in a minidress evoking Claudia Schiffer’s fall ‘93 couture bride.

Of course, the nostalgia factor is a potent reason for this resurgence in ’90s Chanel. One needn’t scroll through TikTok to find that Millennials and Gen Z are obsessed with 1990s fashion, and in particular, recreating looks from that era. Influencer Veronika Molnar pioneered the viral “How to Dress Like a Chanel Model From the ’90s” trend, and designer vintage dealers like Erika Tsuverkalova have seen a higher demand for Chanel pieces from this time period.

“Many of my clients grew up seeing those runway looks—or discovering them later through social media and editorials—and there’s an emotional pull,” explains Tsuverkalova, who is the owner of Vintage Heritage. “The clothes are instantly recognizable but still rare. They hold value not just as fashion, but as cultural artifacts.”

Tsuverkalova can relate: although she began collecting archival Chanel pieces (mostly from the 1990s) back in 2015, her love for Lagerfeld’s designs began in childhood.

“I remember trading magazines with other kids for toys and candy,” she says. “Imagine being four years old and seeing Claudia Schiffer in that pink Chanel suit from 1995. It’s a moment you never forget. I tried to recreate her outfits on my dolls, searching for the right materials, even cutting up pieces of fabric from my mom’s clothes.”

Tsuverkalova hesitates to call Vintage Heritage a business—she considers it a passion project—though her sourcing has caught the attention of celebrities including Palmer, Kim Kardashian, and Ariana Greenblatt, who have all been spotted in ’90s Chanel clothing from her catalog.

Even the house itself seems to understand the appeal of recreating iconic fashion moments.

Months after Lagerfeld’s passing in 2019, Chanel sent second-generation muse Lily-Rose Depp down the Met Gala red carpet in a 1992 spring couture dress first modeled by Christy Turlington. Fellow spokesmodel Penélope Cruz wore the same chain-draped look in Pedro Almodóvar’s Broken Embraces (2009) and more recently, Chanel reworked it into a crystallized bodysuit for another brand ambassador, Dua Lipa, for her Radical Optimism tour.

A representative from Chanel confirms that the house has increasingly poured resources into reviving its archives: Lupita Nyong’o, Cruz and Depp all sported ’90s-inspired recreations at the Oscars this year rather than fresh-off-the-runway frocks.

Plus, there’s a viral element that’s undeniably beneficial—Taylor Russell and Lipa generated tons of press for the brand by wearing Chanel gowns affiliated with one of Lagerfeld’s favorite Supers, Schiffer. When Robbie revived a Cindy Crawford runway look at the 2023 Met Gala (which paid homage to Lagerfeld), even the model’s response made headlines.

The 1990s were known as a decade of experimentation within fashion. Designs that were considered unconventional and quirky by industry standards went mainstream thanks to up-and-comers such as Jean Paul Gaultier, Alexander McQueen, and John Galliano. Lagerfeld, although already well-known by this time, broke the mold by tapping into unexpected sources of inspiration. His fall 1991 ready-to-wear collection riffed on rappers and hip-hop street style; he incorporated trendy textiles that Chanel wasn’t typically associated with, including PVC, velour, and spandex.

This period also ushered in the Supermodels, marking the first time that catwalkers like Schiffer, Turlington, Crawford, and Naomi Campbell became household names. Their emergence coincided with third-wave feminism, a movement that emphasized empowerment through individuality, principles that these Supers—and Lagerfeld himself—personified.

His spring 1995 collection famously liberated the Chanel skirt suit, transforming the once-stuffy staple into a modern must-have courtesy of candy-coated hues, crops, and shorter hemlines.

Rita Watnick, who has sold vintage luxury fashion for over 40 years through her boutique Lily et Cie, believes the recent admiration for archival Chanel has less to do with the 1990s and more to do with Lagerfeld’s legacy as a whole.

“They have a quality, they have a style, they have an identity,” Watnick says of Lagerfeld’s designs. “There are few people who are really driving forces that totally define what young people want from high-quality fashion.”

It’s true that his creations from different decades have reemerged, too: Palmer and Ariana Grande selected 1980s Chanel looks for events this year, while Rihanna showed up to the Smurfs premiere in Belgium wearing a customized version of a 2003 couture skirt set (which Kate Hudson also wore while heavily pregnant).

Palmer and Grande are just two customers who purchased vintage Chanel from Watnick in recent months, though she verifies that her clientele’s interest in Lagerfeld pieces has generally increased since his death.

The German-born couturier spared no time reinventing Chanel when he joined in the 1980s. He revived the brand after it struggled financially, turning into a cash cow and putting a youthful spin on classics like quilted flap bags and double “Cs” in the process. Grande’s 1986 couture number, for example, was Lagerfeld’s prom-ready take on Coco’s little black dress.

“The way Karl was designing through the lens of Chanel has made it timeless,” Ryan McMahon, owner of the Instagram account @chanel_archives, tells W. “He took the elegant way of dressing, the house codes, and minced them up with a kitschy edge.”

Since launching his virtual catalog in 2014, McMahon has amassed over 150,000 followers, including star stylists like Andrew Mukamal and Jahleel Weaver, who have collaborated with Chanel on retro recreations for their clients Robbie, Rihanna, and Russell.

Perhaps more than anything, Karl’s clothes evoke something intangible.

“In terms of the 1996 Chanel couture look…I knew she felt good in that dress,” stylist Law Roach told British Vogue of Campbell’s 2024 Cannes gown. “I knew she felt beautiful. And I knew that dress would make her feel joyful again.”

Watnick agrees: “Keke said something that I really loved about that dress that she bought,” she says, referencing Palmer’s BET Awards shift. “She said it made her feel like Keke.”