Wiring Chanel

From beauty to runway, Chanel has forged a legacy out of its instantly recognizable signatures. The chained strap hanging from Princess Diana’s shoulder. Lily’s nude, overlined pout via Le Crayon Lèvres. And, of course, Marilyn Monroe’s N°5. In the house’s new all-purpose product, the Premiére Sound, each plays a role. At once a sautoir necklace, watch, and pair of headphones, the Première Sound reinterprets its 1987 predecessor, the Première Édition Originale watch, turning its supple chain bracelet interlaced with leather into a necklace, and repositioning the black-lacquered dial with golden hands, sans numerals.

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In the campaign, ambassador and longtime muse Lily-Rose Depp sports the accessory on the streets of Paris. The necklace’s chain echoes the strap of the bag over her shoulder, and she laces her fingers in between the two 18K chains that fuse at the watch’s minimal face. A matte black audio cable weaves through the chain, leading to earbuds that are emblazoned with a yellow-gold Chanel insignia, which matches Depp’s hair.

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In its first venture into tech—a move that follows in the footsteps of Balenciaga and Gucci—the luxury label achieves modernization while maintaining its iconic signifiers. For one, the accessory comes with an octagonal case inspired by the Chanel N°5 bottle stopper. In effect, the luxury label has created an everyday product that’s not so everyday, an everything for the not-so-every girl.