Hi! Since I live near Paris, it’s impossible for me not to talk about fashion since Paris is considered a fashion capital like Milan, London, or New York.
The French fashion industry is well known around the world since a part of all the luxury brands are French such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, or Dior; or even jewellery brands like Cartier and perfume brands such as Guerlain.
Even though the fashion industry has been going on for centuries, it was really developed at the beginning of the 20th century and most of all by Gabrielle Chanel, better known as Coco Chanel. She made a revolution in the female’s clothing creating simpler and more practical clothes. She also created new horse riding outfits, including jodhpurs, that were more practical, since, at that time, women used dresses that obliged them to ride sidesaddle. Chanel also created the typical French shirt: the “marinière” which is a white t-shirt striped with usually navy stripes. She also created the Chanel “little black dress” and the famous perfume “number 5”.
Today, Paris is one of the most important cities for the fashion industry since the most important brands of French and international fashion have shops in Paris and on the “Champs Élysées” for the richest brands. In Paris also takes place some of the fashion shows of many “haute couture” houses such as Fendi, Gaultier, Valentino, and Givenchy.
In conclusion, fashion is an aspect of the French culture that is well known internationally, proving that French culture influences a lot of other cultures too like, in this case, in the way they dress and look.
- Ines Latrille - France (near Paris)
