“Luck is a way of being.” Gabrielle ‘Coco’ Chanel was a big believer in luck, but more specifically the kind of luck you make for yourself. She believed in talismans, magic numbers, fateful encounters and astrology. She also believed in taking a chance.
This state of mind is what inspired the CHANEL Chance fragrance collection, including the latest Chance Eau Splendide.
Eau Splendide is the fifth scent within the line, joining Chance, Eau Fraiche, Eau Tendre and Eau Vive. Created by in-house perfumer Olivier Polge, Eau Splendide is a sparkling mix of wood and fruit, with airy notes of raspberry accord, rose geranium from Grasse, cedar and musk. The launch also accompanies the announcement of Belgian singer, songwriter and composer Angèle as the face.
Boldness and risk-taking is ingrained in CHANEL’s DNA. Coco grew up in an orphanage, but went on to be a pioneer in fashion. She refuted trends of the time, instead designing clothing that was elegant but functional. She was also the first figure within the beauty canon to position fragrance as an extension of personal style. Coco was uninterested in singular florals, instead commissioning No. 5 — a dynamic blend of aldehydes made to smell ‘like a woman and not a rose’. CHANEL’s fragrance universe has slowly expanded since — the Chance collection, a vibrant tribute to youthful optimism, was officially launched in 2002.
When dreaming up Eau Splendide, Polge turned to red berries, but one in particular. “The first stage was to define new territory within the Chance collection,” Polge tells RUSSH exclusively. “I think the key with Chance is in the top notes, they are all very distinctive — pink pepper, blood orange, citron accords… I wanted a first impression that grasped you right away. I was looking at fruits, and realised raspberry was both immediately interesting and wonderful.”
The fruitiness of Eau Splendide is tempered with geranium grown exclusively by CHANEL in Grasse. “We have our own fields of flowers in South of France, where we cultivate certain unique raw materials,” Polge explains. “We have many different species, but I selected geranium rosa specifically, it smells like rose but very fresh. It’s green and slightly minty.”
The base — cedar and musk — is creamy but soft. “The base is what holds a fragrance,” shares Polge. “We use technology when extracting raw materials to distil certain facets of the oil; in this case, it’s as if the wood is clean or without dark elements. I composed this formula to stay bright — there’s no shade in Eau Splendide.”
This sense of illumination is made even brighter by Angèle, a Belgian singer and songwriter who has been a friend of the house since 2020. Her appointment as the face of Eau Splendide feels like fate. “The first time I smelled the fragrance, I was excited. I understood that something beautiful was going to happen,” Angèle tells RUSSH. Not only did she lend her face, but also her creativity in co-producing the campaign with director Jean-Pierre Jeunet, as well as composing the original soundtrack. “I feel very proud and very lucky to have worked on this, it was a true collaboration. Making the music was one of the most exciting projects of my career.”
Of course, Angèle is enamoured with perfume. “Fragrance reminds me of my mother, I can remember exactly how she smelled when I was young. There is so much power in our senses. I notice it in scent and sound — probably because I am a musician. When I smell or hear something familiar, it takes me someplace. It brings me to a memory or an emotion — often one I don’t expect.”
The campaign, starring Angèle, is set in a lavender-tinted CHANEL ‘mirror maze’ with endless reflections and illusions. It’s set to ‘A Little More‘, an original track by Angèle that muses on spontaneity, liberation and the good fortune that comes with it. While every CHANEL Chance fragrance is wildly different, they embody the same state of mind; it’s about about brief encounters, sliding door moments and the magic of unpredictability. Splendide captures this in through the composition of vibrant fruit and delicate woods — a young, undeniably fun fragrance from CHANEL. A scented lucky charm.
Chance Eau Splendide is available from April 15 online and in CHANEL beauty boutiques, as well as selected retailers.
CHANEL CHANCE EAU SPLENDIDE
