Chanel has a deep love for Miami. From beautiful beaches to art deco-inspired architecture to the newly redeveloped Design District, there are plenty of reasons the French fashion house chose to showcase their replica cruise show in the Magic City. Using the Atlantic Ocean as the backdrop on the beach of the Faena Hotel, the beloved brand recently held two shows to spotlight their cruise collection, sending models down a boardwalk turned runway. 

“It is the best way to celebrate our customers. We cannot invite all of them to Paris or in Monaco or wherever. And it is quite important for us to be able to take the collection to better engage them and connect them with the collection,” Bruno Pavlovsky, President of Chanel’s Fashion Activities and President of SAS, tells Vanity Fair. 

Available in boutiques later this month, the collections were displayed on a set designed by director Baz Luhrmann and costume designer Catherine Martin. Guests took in the assortment of styles from cozy cabanas with two-tone red and white striped parasols and red deck chairs that were inspired by motor racing, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, the casino and the French Riviera. “Because of the colors, the energy, here in Miami it is perfect. You forget Monaco and you can imagine that this collection was designed for Miami,” Pavlovsky shares. 

Attendees included a mix of customers, press and VIP guests. Caroline De Maigret, Pharrell Williams, Lily-Rose Depp, Marion Cotillard, Nile Rogers, Arden Cho, and Ella Balinska. De Maigret, a long time ambassador for the brand, attended both shows in Monaco and now Miami and commented that the city worked perfectly for the collection’s fun, fresh, and sporty vibes. “[In] Monaco you have the story of Gabrielle Chanel [who] used to go there and then Karl Lagerfeld used to go there, so there was a special emotion of just the history of the house that was very moving. But you know the history continues and it’s fun to be here too!” she says.

After the show guests enjoyed a casual soirée on the sand with tunes from DJ Allie Teilz and a special performance by Nile Rodgers and CHIC. Rogers took the audience through this catalogue of hits including “Le Freak,” “Good Times,” “I Want Your Love,” and many more, and then continued on detailing a list of tunes he wrote for other people from Diana Ross, Sister Sledge, Madonna, and David Bowie. The night didn’t end there – soon Pharrell Williams joined the stage to perform their wildly popular song, “Get Lucky.”

Speaking with Williams about his earliest memory of Chanel, he immediately replied, “Biggie!” before reciting a verse from Notorious B.I.G.’s “One More Chance,” “...bags from Chanel baby Benz traded in your Hyundai Excel...” 

The next day the brand welcomed 190 students from local universities for a master class by Pavlovsky, moderated by Tyler Brule, Chairman and Editor-in-Chief of Monocle magazine, which also included Williams and de Maigret. During the discussion of le19M, the cultural center dedicated to the Fashion Métiers d’art in Paris, Pavlovsky and Williams spoke about Chanel’s next Metiers d’art show, a three-day festival which will take place in Dakar next month. The two emphasized Dakar as an influential artistic capital on the international scene where areas of fashion, film, dance, music, and art reign supreme.