This Week: Chanel Under the Microscope

Chanel has been a hot topic in industry circles lately — and not just because the French couture and beauty giant is expected to announce a new designer before the Christmas holidays.

The house — which under Karl Lagerfeld, wrote the playbook for building a global luxury brand, with a pyramid of products, from haute couture to $30 nail polish, soaked in a heady collision of heritage and modern celebrity culture — remains one of the…