it's an amazing thing when you show generosity of spirit to someone. and you want people to be saved and to have a better life, then you don't stop. the idea that we have saved five million people's lives, it's overwhelming. it's everything. leena: you always look different, because you are the first woman, the first brown person, the asian, the first first indian, the first person of colour to lead a global

luxury brand. you're always the first. you're always underestimated. people don't know exactly what to expect. francine: leena nair is in charge of one of the most exclusive luxury brands in the world, chenal, the french fashion house known for its iconic designs and fragrances, made the avant garde move to appoint her in the top job. previously a human resources veteran, she spent three decades at unilever before switching from the world of fast-moving consumer goods, to haute couture and beauty. the firm's history is legendary. from its founder, gabriel okechukwu, to its fans, including marilyn monroe. for the manager, it's a chance to make history. >> i want to change the world but look good while doing it. francine: on this episode of "leaders with lacqua," i speak to lena nayar about her professional and personal journey, how it defines her leadership style and her unique approach at the top of luxury. thank you so much for joining us here on bloomberg. leena: delighted to be here.

francine: what is it like being a chanel chief executive? leena: it's a great place to be. it's the best job in the world. it's creative. it's energetic. it's vibrant. the sector is doing well. it's a great place to be. francine: so what kind of difference do you want to make at chanel? is it on the business? is it longevity? is it what it stands for? is it sustainability? leena: you know, i want to lead chanel into the future along with my team and lead chanel into the future by protecting what's cool to us, by protecting our differentiation, protecting what's unique about us, and by evolving as a scaled, iconic business and brand. you know, it's always important to understand the context we operate in. the context we have externally is very dynamic -- geopolitical uncertainties macroeconomic , challenges, inflation and complete fragmentation, media channels, ecosystems. i mean, winning hearts and minds of people is so difficult in today's day and age. so we see all of that externally. ai, i mean there is not a leak

that you don't hear about ai. all of this is happening externally. internally, there has been a phase of rapid growth. in the last 10 years, we have more than doubled our revenue. we more than double the number of people who work for us. we've more than doubled our distribution presence. we've more than doubled the number of countries we have presence in. so that's a lot of growth. so my role, along with my leadership team, is to ensure that we make coherent these changes, that we make sense of these changes. and we are constantly shaping what is next. francine: as far as i can remember, chanel was beautiful, high end luxury. everybody wanted the products, but it was always quite secretive. and then there's been an opening in the last couple of years through cultural events, podcasts. why is that? can a high-end luxury company no longer be secretive in 2024? leena: for me never having been

, in the world of luxury or sophistication or refinement, i didn't know what to expect when it came to chanel two and a half years ago. but it is a very humble company. people are truly humble. and you have met many of my teammates. it comes from a sense of we don't see things unless we really have done them. it is high-integrity. we would rather do things before we speak about them. so some of the shyness has been to do with that. part of the opening up is also as we've grown larger and i explained some of the internal context, we've been to rapid -- through rapid growth being in so many markets, having so many people work for us, it becomes important to be clearer and more open about who we are and who we stand for. it is a hundred year old company. it's important to have been a beacon of inspiration for all these years and to continue to be a beacon of inspiration for the next hundred years. francine: is that because we are buying luxury differently, so clients and customers now want more of a story than they maybe did ten, 15 years ago?

leena: i think there is no typical client. we see all kinds of clients, people who are longtime fans of chanel. people who are dedicated buyers of couture, people for first time buyers. in fact, first time buyers are 30% of our clients, which is a lot. we see a lot of gen-z and alpha. 35% of luxury consumers by 2030 are going to be gen z and alpha. it's hard to believe. the vitality is huge. for each of those clients, there is a different set of reasons for why they engage with us. for gen z and alpha, they buy because they want to buy less and buy better. they want to buy because they see it's a financially wise investment. everybody buys for a different reason. for me, it's part of continuing to build our brand, our reputation, our company, and telling our story in engaging ways to all sorts of clients. francine: you speak differently to the younger generation?

leena: not really. our story of savoir faire, our story of craftsmanship. our story of how many hours goes into making this jacket -- like 100 hours, all handmade -- it is still the core of our story. our craftsmanship. it is still the way people engage with luxury, the quality and beauty of it. a thing of beauty gives us all joy. so that is still a very, very big reason how people look at luxury, the quality, the savoir faire being part of that, and the story of people at chanel. the story of our dna. what it means for us. our spirit of constantly innovating in radical ways. because when she designed clothes, it was about the freedom of movement. it was about anticipating the needs of the modern woman. it was about creating trousers cross-body bags so that women , could ride bikes, ride horses. it was about supporting women to be and become whatever they wanted to be.

it was about being on this journey of self-discovery with women. that core part of our story doesn't change. it is the story of being , supporting women to be and become the best version of themselves. to discover themselves. that story still engages no matter what age you are. the core of the story doesn't change. how we say it might change, there are more channels than you and i can count today. there's all sorts of things instagram, tiktok. the media channels might change, the ecosystem and how we engage might change. but the core of our story is still very much who we are as chanel. francine: chanel is like a pioneer, and i feel like when you talk about her, it may be telling a little bit of your story. you have a unique story. you grew up in india were not many -- where not many females

were educated to a higher level. what was the journey like? leena: it was a long journey. i grew up in a small town in the southwest of india, and the world of luxury, refinement and sophistication was far from where i grew up. it was a small town like many other. most of my memories of me running barefoot in the town or having my little bike and being around. women being ambitious was not not the norm. in fact, i remember my mother constantly telling me, who will marry you? you are so ambitious. do you really know what you're going to do with your life? [laughs] very limited access to role models, to opportunities. i did engineering after sort of convincing everybody in my family that engineering was good for girls, which is great. it was electronics and communications and i quite enjoyed, again, being in the minority, but learning more about the world of technology which we all are now part of. then i did management studies and worked all over the country as part of hindustan unilever. i worked, i had an all around

experience, a hands on experience, worked on the shop floor, worked in front line sales, drove trucks in the morning, going to the trade, selling tea. so it was a fun experience. an adventure. it meant being constantly underestimated. it meant that you always looked different because you were the first woman and the first brown person, the first asian, the first indian, the first person of color to lead a global luxury brand. you're always the first. you're always underestimated. people don't know exactly what to expect. they are suspicious of what your agenda might be. and along with it comes the responsibility of making it easier for those who come after you. so i feel a tremendous privilege from a tremendous sense of responsibility to make it easier , which means questioning norms, being a role model, mentoring as many people as i can, trying to make it easier for others, constantly championing a more equal world. francine: is like a challenge. is there ever a challenge you actually shy away from? leena: [laughter]

you know, every single thing i have done, everybody has said it can't be done. i remember i was in a factory and i said, i want to go in the nightshift. and they said, no, we don't put women in the nightshift. i said, how will i be a successful production manager, personnel manager of a factory if i never went into a nightshift and knew how a third of my people worked? so, in some ways, it has fueled some of my determination, some of my, ok, i am going to get on and do it. it also gives me courage because i feel that i am not doing it just for me, i am doing it for everybody else who comes after me. so a few of my determination, -- so it fuels my determination, fuels my courage. but as i don't shy away from challenges and i always tell the men who ask me for advice saying, put your hand up for the most difficult job, put your hands up for the things that are challenging. fleeing into things that are difficult and challenging because that's is what gives you the greatest credibility and respect and reputation as you build your career. francine: coming up, chanel's

leena nair on the long-term outlook for luxury, and the changing role of what it means to be a chief executive.

francine: chanel is behind some of the most recognisable designs and fragrances in modern fashion. the french luxury house is still privately held by everyone in your family involved with the company over the past century. i continue my rare interview with the firm's chief executive, leena nair. do you see that the high-end luxury, does that go higher in luxury, that actually there is a lot of players in the fashion world right now in luxury world. and it's really the ones that are very high that that will do well. and does that also justify some of the price increases we have seen at chanel? leena: prices are related to our cost prices. these exquisite raw materials. send our production, as you know, is very rigorous,

laborious, handmade. so, we raise our prices according to the inflation that we see. it is really linked to the cost price. we have also made a commitment to price harmonization across the world, which means a client should not experience excessive price differentials. no matter where they buy. francine: and the secondhand market is also something we are seeing more and more in the last four to five years. what does that mean for a company like chanel? leena: we have famously not been on e-commerce. we've always said we want our clients to buy from our beautiful stores. because we believe clients must enjoy the immersive experience. immersive physical experience where they can build a relationship with the fashion advisor, the beauty advisor, the boutique assistant, which is so magical and so core to the chanel story. francine: and how do you see the china market right now compared to the u.s. market?

it's not that volatile, actually, you kind of have like a base that stays for quite some time? leena: china is a very central market for the luxury ecosystem because of the fast adoption of luxury, because of the appreciation of refinement and sophistication. so it is a very important and essential market for us. i came back recently from china and i was really happy to see the energy and vibrancy in the market. so we continue to run our business for the long term and continue to invest in china for the long term. similarly the u.s., i see the u.s. as a long-term market for luxury. it always has been. all markets see a bit of ebbs and flows. but if you keep a long term perspective, we continue to invest. i mean, we just opened our beautiful watches and fine jewelry store on fifth avenue. it is absolutely breathtaking. designed by peter marino. with everything that you would expect in the chanel boutique. great personalization. intimacy, beauty, think that uplift you. so we we believe in both these

markets and they're important to us. francine: it is probably tougher being a chief executive into 2025 than it was the last 20 years because of the constant change. and we don't really know what ai brings either. leena: it is definitely challenging. one of my principles as a leader is about tapping into collective intelligence, because i truly believe the days of the superhero leader are well and truly behind us. the world is so complex. there are crises on multiple levels. no chance -- to imagine one individual no matter how bright , they are, how experienced they are, can have answers to all the questions. no chance. that's why i believe in collective intelligence. diverse perspectives. go around the room and listened to every voice. francine: is that why you always lead by empathy? you always say that you lead and lift. which is not always easy. leena: leena: i remember in my early days in my career at

unilever, when i was going to a place in a factory. i felt it wasn't unsafe for women. i would go back and fight the battle to make sure it was made safer for women who came after me. it was always questioning the norms, challenging what was happening so i could make it easier for others to come after me. it is beautiful in chanel. we have 76% women. 60% of my management team are women. it is easier to set into place everything to support the development and career of all these talented women and create a more equal world. francine: would you ever go into menswear with chanel? [laughter] leena: it is a rare time in our history where we have a female founder, a female ceo, female creative director of fashion. so it's a rare time, and i think we support women everywhere in such a beautiful way. we do make things from men. bleu is one of the largest-7

selling perfume for men, and i hope it stays that way. we really are by women for women support women, and we hope to empower and support women on the journey of becoming. francine: you are right. the perfume. i forgot the perfumes. [laughter] talk to me a bit, there are things that people don't understand about chanel. we talk about the foundation because actually for so long it was all kept, you know, in-house. how do you see all of these other brands working together? leena: we are the world leader in many categories. there is fashion which is well known. we are in fragrances and beauty. in skincare. one of the things with my leadership team, which we started working on what we call a beacon of inspiration for the next one hundred years, what we called the 100-year plan, you know, constantly thinking ahead. we started building blocks of it , which is having a positive impact on the road. sustainability, environmental, social sustainability, and the

whole idea of women's empowerment and girls. so we are one of the largest philanthropic organization dedicated to women empowerment and girls. francine: it's amazing because not many people know that. leena: 125 million this year. we have increased to that. we are truly one of the largest organizations in the world. we work with 200 37 partners in 50 plus countries on beautiful programs that support women to be free to shape their destiny. francine: coming up, leena nair, on how chanel is trying to change luxury, and how her background in hr is helping to shape her mindset of the chief executive. ♪

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get started today at constantcontact.com constant contact. helping the small stand tall. francine: leena nair is used to breaking convention and changing norms in the workplace, including her transition from unilever and human resources to becoming the chief executive of one of the most prestigious names in luxury. she tells me how chanel is positioning for the future of fashion, and what it means for her legacy at the iconic firm. how difficult is it for a big luxury company to be sustainable? you have ambitious goals? leena: i would like us to set the bar for luxury. i would like other luxury players to be inspired by what chanel does every day. we are one of the few luxury players that has now publicly set a goal of net zero by 2040. we want to really reduce our carbon emissions.

in carbon emissions, we are reducing our logistics, transport and carbon footprint to do with digital. chanel.com saw an increase in traffic of 30%, but a 16% reduction in carbon footprint. francine: how much of this comes from the heart, trying to do good, and how much does this also play with consumers, because in five or 10 years, there will be even more focus on this? leena: you know, i think clients believe luxury is sustainable because they know we make few things and we make them beautifully and we make them with hand. and a genuine desire by clients to see us continue to be sustainable is only going to go up. i mentioned that more gen z and l4 are buying. they buy because they want to buy less and buy better, which is the right mindset to engage with luxury. so it will be increasingly important. francine: in sustainability, do you need to be a risk taker? the idea that as a chief

executive, i guess you need to be careful, but is there anything coming that will challenge, i guess, your risk-taking? leena: i think for all of us, the world today is so complex and moving fast, that you are constantly adjusting. for me, we are a courageous brand because we walk in the footsteps of a courageous woman. gabrielle chanel lived the life she wanted, courageously, fortunately made the choices permit one of the values is the death of firmly on so important. you call it risk-taking, i prefer audacity. francine: i actually prefer audacity. it has a certain thing that gabrielle chanel would have loved. what have you learned about yourself as chief executive? you unilever. were in charge of hr at it's a

-- at unilever. it's a massive company, hundreds, thousands of employees. is it different actually being in charge of a company than being in leena nair on transition from unilever to chanel? leena: when i was moved into chanel, a mentor told me you're doing a quadruple jump start. it's a change on so many dimensions. public to private. anglo-dutch to french heritage. i have weekly french classes. it has been a change on all dimensions. luxury is so different, all the preciousness, the rarity. it's not available everywhere, every time. it is the balance between timeless, a quest for new. it is all of that. to me, the principles of business and the principles of leadership are transferable across sectors. how to run business across multiple countries, multiple

product categories, multiple geographies, multiple cultures how to galvanize and inspire teams across again, multiple cultures, there are principles which hold you at good stead. because people are people at the end of the day. they have motivations, dreams, aspirations. they want to engage in a particular way. i must say being in chanel has , taught me to be more patient, more long term. the treadmill of quarterly results, etc. it is a different world. so it has taught me to be more patient. it has taught me to appreciate a lot more. and i want to change the world, but look good while doing it. [laughter] francine: i love that. do you think about your legacy? leena: yes, i do. for me, i hope people see that i'm a purpose-led visionary leader, which means you spend a lot of time thinking about what are you doing, what are you giving back? what will be the difference you make? i think for me, the biggest thing is if 100 years from now,

people look back and say that we at chanel did stuff today that inspires them, that helped them question norms about what they're doing, audacious things that have redefined the norms and supported women everywhere to feel like they can be the best version of themselves. that would be something i would feel good about. if i have made a few women in the world dream a little bit more about what they could achieve in their lives, i would feel very fulfilled in my life and career. francine: do you think you will ipo chanel? leena: no. [laughs] an ipo is not on the table. we love the privilege of being an independent company, being able to make long term decisions 20, 30, 100 years on. francine: best piece of advice and worst piece of advice

you have ever been given. leena: the best piece of advice -- i am actually going to do two. fall in love with the life and the job you have. don't wait for the perfect job. fall in love with the job you have, and make it the most perfect job in the world. and the other is, which my husband always tells me a lot, enjoy the journey as much as you enjoy the destination. we are always in a hurry. you are thinking the next promotion. no, no, no. breathe a bit and enjoy the journey as much as the destination. worst piece of advice? hmm. i think most often when you get the worst piece of advice, you just ignore it and forget about it. [laughs] i have received advice like, you know, when i was in many rooms, the only woman in the room, so many times in my career, i have received advice like, you know, stay quiet for as long as you can and try and blend in. and, you know, you're already standing out because you look different from the rest. i think that's terrible advice.

i think it is really important to feel safe to be who you are. and it takes courage to be who you are. if you are. francine: leena nair, thank you so much for joining us today. ♪ and they're all coming? those who are still with us, yes. grandpa! what's this? your wings. light 'em up! gentlemen, it's a beautiful... ...day to fly.

emma: i don't want my daughters wasting time thinking about how much they weigh, what they look like. and i think fashion has done a terrible job reinforcing an unrealistic beauty idea. ♪ francine: the entrepreneur