Virginie Viard After Leaving Chanel: When a Company No Longer Needs You, What Do We Have Left Besides Work?

Have you ever poured your entire life—nearly all your time and energy—into one company or boss?

Former Chanel artistic director Virginie Viard recently released her new book, “Un regard: Une vie chez Chanel.” It’s more than just a fashion-world memoir; it’s an earnest message to every woman in the workforce. It lays bare a reality we all prefer to ignore: no matter how many years you give a company, the day they no longer need you, you can instantly become a nobody.

So, when the career is stripped away, what exactly do we have left?

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When 30 years of your life is just an “intermission” to everyone else

Virginie Viard’s departure came abruptly. In her book, she recalls a June 2024 lunch where her boss told her in an almost apologetic tone, “I wanted to come and tell you personally…” Just like that, it was over. The next day, her personal belongings were packed into boxes and sent back to her; three weeks later, at the Haute Couture show, her name was completely erased, as if she had never existed.

But what hurt her most were the reviews. She mentions reading an article that divided the history of Chanel into three phases: the creation by Gabrielle Chanel, the brilliance of Karl Lagerfeld, and the future under Matthieu Blazy. Her five years at the helm were dismissed as a mere “intermission.”

“I read that word over and over. Intermission,” she writes. “It’s the moment when the audience stands up, goes to the restroom, orders a drink, and chats in the corridor. It’s the moment when nothing actually happens, a blank space between two important events.” When you pour the best years of your life into something only to be deemed a halftime break, the collapse of self-worth is indescribable.

Beyond the employee ID, who are you?

Often, like Virginie, we view work as a sanctuary or even treat our bosses as the center of our universe. Her book includes a long letter to Karl Lagerfeld containing a heartbreaking question: “How do you explain giving so much to someone who so often hurt you?”

Those words strike a chord for many. We often overextend our emotions, health, and lives at work, convinced we’re indispensable. But when the title on the business card is taken away, we realize we’re like wandering spirits. Virginie describes herself after leaving the brand as a “ghost,” struggling to find an identity.

It’s a cruel but necessary lesson in self-growth. It’s a reminder that no matter how much you love your job or respect your boss, you must keep a part of yourself for yourself. Work can be a source of fulfillment, but it should never be the only standard by which you define yourself. When the day comes that we must leave that desk, hopefully we will all have the inner strength to live a life that truly belongs to us.

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