Style Edit: Purple meets paradox in Chanel Chance Eau Splendide, the new fragrance expressing both sparkle and rootedness, with a campaign starring Belgian singer-songwriter Angèle

Apr 15 , 2025

Belgian singer/songwriter and Chanel ambassador Angèle exudes joy and a carefree state of mind in the campaign film for the launch of Chance Eau Splendide. Photo: Handout

With foregrounding notes of rose geranium and raspberry, the luminous fragrance from Olivier Polge embodies Coco Chanel’s ‘Luck is my soul’ philosophy, and comes with a playful film by Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Chanel’s Chance perfumes have always reflected Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel’s philosophy that “Luck is my soul” – a belief that favours those with the courage to seize opportunities. The latest addition to this line is a luminous, captivating fragrance that continues in this tradition.

Chance Eau Splendide introduces the colour purple to the collection’s palette, a tone associated with mystery and nobility. This new creation by Olivier Polge, Chanel’s in-house perfumer-creator since 2015, embodies the spirit of paradox, combining sparkle with rootedness. The nose inherited his passion – and the Chance mantle – from his father, Jacques Polge, the maison’s previous perfumer-creator.

The nose behind Chance Eau Splendide: Olivier Polge, Chanel’s in-house perfumer-creator since 2015. Photo: Handout

“At Chanel, fragrance is above all a state of mind,” says Olivier Polge, adding that the creation of Chance Eau Splendide began with a playful, carefree state of mind. His aim was to express a feeling of freshness and optimism in olfactory form using new ingredients, while drawing inspiration from previous Chance fragrances.

Polge chose rose geranium as the key ingredient for Chance Eau Splendide, in line with the luminosity of the new scent. Partly grown in the Chanel fields in Grasse, the flower brings elegance and contrast, making the fragrance fruity but not overly sweet. Polge used it to balance the scent’s raspberry accord (blend), with its rose and violet facets, ensuring the perfume is enveloping while remaining fresh.

Chanel ambassador Angèle is the face of Chance Eau Splendide. Photo: Handout

He says the colour purple came to mind naturally, almost instinctively, after completing the formula. The shade conveys the fresh, fruitiness of the raspberry accord, while expressing Chance Eau Splendide’s more mysterious, complex floral aspects. As Polge notes: “Chance is a way of seeing the world … a state of mind that allows a certain sensitivity to good omens and coincidences.”

Chanel’s Chance Eau Splendide. Photo: Handout

Chanel has chosen 29-year-old Belgian singer-songwriter and actress Angèle, its ambassador since 2020, to be the face of Chance Eau Splendide. “The joy and hope that emanate from this fragrance resonated with me immediately,” she says. “I also identify with the paradox of its fabrication – the combination of rigour and lightness.”