Luxury fashion brand Chanel acquires a majority stake in Grey Mer, its long-standing Italian partner based in Romagna and specialising in the manufacture of shoes. Chanel will own 70 percent of Grey Mer, while the family of its founder, Italian entrepreneur Luciano Alessandri, will keep 30 percent.

Based in San Mauro Pascoli, in the Rubicone district of Italy, and specialising in luxury shoes, Grey Mer has been collaborating with Chanel since thirteen years to produce shoes for the collections created by Studio Chanel. 

Per a company report on the Grey Mer website, “Throughout our history, we have set the trend for collaborating closely with artisans whose exceptional craft skills have been honed and inherited over many decades. By acquiring and investing in houses of traditional expertise, and forming partnerships, we are helping safeguard this cultural heritage in our supply chains… preserving and developing savoir faire for future generations.”

Chanel has invested steadily in the Maisons d’Art, building a portfolio of companies, under Paraffection, which means “for the love of.” By acquiring and investing in businesses, Chanel provides the cash flow and managerial support for the small companies to innovate new techniques and enables them to recruit and train skilled artisans. At the same time, Chanel is directly connected to the source of craftsmanship.

Before acquiring Grey Mer, the maison’s last investment was the purchase of a 20 percent stake in Leo France, a Florence-based company specialising in the production of metal accessories.

Grey Mer

Founded forty-five years ago by Luciano Alessandri, Grey Mer is helmed by his daughter Perla, as CEO. Her sisters, Margherita and Antonia, look after the production and communications, respectively. The team believes that each creation tells two stories — the story of the person who creates something unique with passion and the story of someone who wants a special accessory.

Per the Grey Mer website: “We look ahead every day: day by day we bring more innovation to our products, through know-how and stylistic, industrial and organisational skills. Our facilities have also become a better mirror of the external environment, growing to a headquarter of more than 2.000 sq-m, where our prototyping, manufacturing and logistic activities are carried out… while we internally own a cutting line that operates with cutting-edge machinery, we also rely on the cooperation with external Italian and international craft laboratories, specialised in hemming and upper enrichment.”

Chanel: protects artisanal craft from extinction 

Coco Chanel recognised the importance of acquiring and investing in artisanal businesses while maintaining their independence and ability to work with other brands. The aim was to financially support the artisan workshops to save age-old artisan crafts from potential extinction, also ensuring that the luxury fashion industry has access to the fine craft skills on which their business depends.

A prime illustration of this initiative is Maison Lesage, which became part of the House of Chanel in 2002, and is recognised worldwide as the guardian of embroidery art. Since 1992, Maison Lesage has been imparting its knowledge and techniques through its prestigious Parisian school. On an average, each year the school offers four hundred students the opportunity to discover a unique craft, which involves learning embroidery techniques and leveraging their skills to be used in Haute Couture. 

Per a company report: “We don’t intend to fund our acquisition forever. Our aim is to help the Maisons d’Art build economic resilience over time, so they eventually develop into sustainable, fully independent businesses with strong long- term potential. This is all part of the unique perspective we bring and our desire to create a virtuous circle: one that benefits the artisans, their communities.”

Métiers d’Art brings together the twenty-six artisanal maisons now owned by Chanel, including Lemarié: feather and flower maker; Maison Michel: hat-maker; Massaro: shoemaker; Lesage: embroiderer; Desrues (costume jewellery and buttons), Barrie (cashmere), Goossens: goldsmith; Atelier Montex: embroiderer; Causse: glove maker; Lognon: pleater; and A.c.t. 3: tweed producer. Their savoir-faire are at the heart of the Métiers d’Art collection held in a different city each year.