The fashion house Dior introduced the Lady Dior handbag in 1995. The bag was designed by Gianfranco Ferré, Dior’s creative director at the time, and was initially known informally as Chouchou, meaning “favorite” in French.
The story began when Bernadette Chirac, France’s first lady, sought a special gift for Diana, Princess of Wales, during Diana’s 1995 visit to Paris. Dior presented Diana with the structured black handbag at the opening of a Cézanne exhibition at the Grand Palais. Photographs of the princess carrying it made the design internationally famous.
The house subsequently renamed the model Lady Dior in reference to Diana’s title and public association with the bag. Its distinctive quilted cannage pattern, rounded handles and hanging letter charms became hallmarks of the design. The handbag is therefore sometimes mistakenly attributed to Diana herself, but she popularized it rather than designing or founding it.
The Lady Dior’s success had a major commercial effect: about 200,000 were sold within two years, and Dior’s leather-goods business grew sharply. The name later inspired a Dior watch and other products.