One Of The Few Female Luxury CEO´s Exits Chanel

Chanel Global CEO Maureen Chiquet, one of the few women at the helm of an international fashion house, has left her position after nine years. Her departure - just 24 hours after Karl Lagerfeld presented his latest collection for the house at Couture Fashion Week in Paris - came as a surprise to many industry insiders thanks to the great success the label enjoyed during her tenure.

Rather than glossing over any differences with platitudes, Chanel admitted that Chiquet was departing "due to differences of opinion about the strategic direction of the company", WWD reports, but was careful to acknowledge the debt owed to the New York executive for the French house's very positive current position: "Chanel is grateful for what Maureen has done to bring Chanel into a new era of its development, in close collaboration with the leadership team, and wishes her continued success."

"The board of Chanel has decided not to replace Maureen but to entrust me once again with full responsibility for the leadership of the company," he wrote to company employees. "I am confident in this role because of the great teams that are in place and the excellent condition of the company."

Lagerfeld - whose close relationship with Bruno Pavlovsky, the president of the company's fashion division, has been well-documented - admitted yesterday that he probably wouldn't miss Chiquet since the two had very few dealings with one another.

Chiquet - who was an executive at Gap prior to joining Chanel - has not yet spoken about the decision or what her next move might be. Among the world's largest luxury brands, only a handful - Donna Karan, Loewe, Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent and Lanvin - have female CEOs.