Beyond the Label: Women, Leadership, and Success on Our Own Terms

by Maureen Chiquet

Overview

The former global CEO of Chanel charts her unlikely path from literature major to global chief executive, guiding readers to move beyond the confines of staid expectations and discover their own true paths, strengths, and leadership values.

Driven. Shy. Leader. Wife. Mother. We live in a world of categories — labels designed to tell the world, and ourselves, who we are and ought to be. Some we may covet, others we may fear or disdain; but creating a life that’s truly your own, means learning to define yourself on your own terms.

In Beyond the Label, Maureen Chiquet charts her unlikely path from literature major to global chief executive. Sharing the inklings, risks and (re)defining moments that have shaped her exemplary career, Chiquet seeks to inspire a new generation of women, liberal arts grads, and unconventional thinkers to cultivate a way of living and leading that is all their own.

Through vivid storytelling and provocative insights, Chiquet guides readers to consider the pressing questions and inherent paradoxes of creating a successful, fulfilling life in today’s increasingly complex and competitive world.

"Why should we separate art from business, feelings from logic, intuition from judgment?" Chiquet poses. "Who decided you can’t be determined and flexible, introspective and attuned, mother and top executive? And where does it state standing unflinchingly in your vulnerability, embracing your femininity, won’t make you stronger?"

Wise, inspiring, and deeply felt, Beyond the Label is for anyone who longs for a life without limits on who she is or who she will become.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062655707
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/18/2017
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Maureen Chiquet began her career in marketing at L’Oreal Paris in 1985. She has worked at The Gap, helped launch Old Navy, and was president of Banana Republic before becoming COO and President of US operations of Chanel in 2003. In 2007 she became its first Global CEO, where she oversaw the business and brand’s world-wide expansion. She left Chanel in 2016 to focus on writing, speaking, and developing new leadership initiatives. She is a Trustee to the Yale Corporation and fellow of Yale University, where she graduated in 1985.

www.maureenchiquet.com

Table of Contents

Introduction ix

1 Breathing Deeply 1

2 With Fresh Eyes 25

3 Yielding to Chance 43

4 Road Training 61

5 Finding Your Groove 81

6 A Fine Line 101

7 Making Your Mark 125

8 Taking Charge 149

9 Having It All 175

10 Soul Calling 199

11 Embracing Paradox 225

12 Cutting the Corset 249

Acknowledgments 261

Editorial Reviews

02/20/2017
Chiquet, former global CEO of Chanel, champions the idea of defying conformity and charting one’s unique career path in this well-written and engaging memoir. She shares stories demonstrating her loyalty to this credo for both good and ill, including convincing a reticent boss to launch a line of palazzo pants at the Gap and taking one of the biggest face-plants of her career while attempting to shake up Chanel’s corporate culture. She also details her love affair with France in general and Paris in particular. She was a Francophile from a young age, and she recounts her delight in her first taste of goat cheese as a teenager visiting Provence. Later on, an important friendship with a French student during a term spent abroad inspired Chiquet to take a more freewheeling approach to life. She fills out the book by recounting key learning experiences during her climb to the top of the ladder, including a memorable performance by Dizzy Gillespie, a disastrous leadership evaluation at the Gap, and a five-hour session with a corporate psychologist who was incongruously surrounded by pink teddy bears. This entertaining and informative chronicle offers teaching moments for those who want to succeed professionally while still honoring their own uniqueness. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

Beyond the Label is a revelation. I loved going on Maureen’s journey into her growing personal and professional awareness of feeling trapped in patriarchal structures. She illuminates empathy and emotion on her road to remaking her identity. In a world still dominated by masculine definitions of success, her female gaze disrupts, questions, and reinvents both her identity and that of women everywhere.

Jill Soloway

Her book is spot on. To me, and to many others, she is the ultimate role model-and not just for women.

Millard Drexler

Read this marvelous book twice. First, enjoy the rare glimpse Maureen gives us about how uniqueness is created - by becoming, not simply doing. Then read it again while you stand in front of a mirror. You almost literally will hear Maureen’s’ voice about not just doing your brand, but being your brand.

Clayton Christensen

As someone who has worked with Maureen for years, I’ve seen her grow into a confident and effective leader who knows how to mentor young talent, take risks and innovate, and create long-term success. Her book offers a lot of heart, wisdom, and practical advice, and I think it will be a great inspiration to many- and not only women.

Jenny Ming

2017-02-06
A conversational memoir charting the rise of the former global CEO of Chanel. Coached by her aesthetically aware mother to develop "a sensitivity and curiosity to see and discover more of the world," Chiquet was only 16 when she began envisioning an escape from the conservative confines of her suburban St. Louis childhood to "take in the immense beauty of a new picture." She instantly fell in love with France after spending time in Provence, allured by pungent cheeses, liberating nudity at beaches, and a total immersion in the elegance of Parisian culture. After college at Yale, complete with semesters abroad, Chiquet began her remarkable managerial ascent at a succession of reputable companies. She sweeps readers inside her young, driven world as a fledgling marketing intern at L'Oreal Parfumerie in 1985, a stint at The Gap, and her role launching the Old Navy brand in 1994. All the while, she cultivated controversial trends and gained credibility as a businesswoman and a fashion-forward style forecaster. The book is bolstered with the author's frequent asides on how striving for uniqueness can lead to dynamic achievements in business. Aiming for a crisp amalgam of memoir and motivational guide, her declarations oscillate from the classically platitudinous ("no opportunity is ever too small to show you what you can accomplish") to the practical. Though Chiquet is frank and cleareyed about her career trajectory and openly shares opinions and insights on leadership, personal growth, and embracing change, the memoir drags with excess anecdotal material leading up to her celebrated tenure with Chanel. Readers hoping for the juicy inside story on the boardrooms and catwalk action of the fashion house may be disappointed with the book's cursory closing chapters. Resigning from Chanel in 2016, she reflects on her time as a brand leader, imparting the sage wisdom she has gained through her impressive career and as a mother. The challenge she faced after Chanel was how to reinvent herself and forge ahead in new directions. An inspirational but disjointed autobiography best suited for neophyte designers, budding fashionistas, and Chanel devotees.

Kirkus Reviews

Thriving at work is an important part of thriving in life-and Maureen Chiquet has done it. Her passion for practicing empathy and embracing self-reflection sets her apart as a leader. Her book provides a practical, optimistic, and deeply human model for creating our own journeys of wonder and wisdom.

Arianna Huffington

Ms. Chiquet [is] something of a cross between Sheryl Sandberg and Elizabeth Gilbert: a life coach/empowerment guru focused on the virtues of defining your own value system professionally, emotionally…

New York Times

[Chiquet’s] advice will be especially resonant with a new generation of women inspired and empowered to create their own definitions of success and fulfillment.

Indra Nooyi

Beyond the Label disrupts traditional definitions of what it means to be a leader and what it means to be successful. It bridges the gap between creativity and commerce, between self-expression and pragmatism, and between enduring values and the demands of an ever-changing marketplace. Read this book if you want to be challenged and inspired to find your own pathbreaking way to success.

Jeff Bewkes

Her book is spot-on. To me and to many others she is the ultimate role model-and not just for women.

Mickey Drexler

Beyond the Label details, with captivating style, the making of a new breed of female leader. The journey is sometimes bumpy, but Maureen emerges confident, powerful, and armed with the knowledge that there is more than one way to demonstrate competence and self-assurance. Women of all ages, and at all stages of their careers, will be better off for reading this revealing account of how Maureen developed her own leadership style--and how we can too.

Claire Shipman

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