Chanel’s little black dresses, softly tailored tweed jackets and two-tone shoes have been a fixture at 159 Bond Street since 2013. In a boom for British retail, the Parisian fashion house has agreed to pay £310 million to buy the boutique outright, which is £70 million more than the original asking price.

Chanel reportedly fought off competition for the prime location from the Abu Dhabi royal family, as well as private investors in Hong Kong, Europe and America. Spanning 12,600 sq ft, the flagship boutique is one of the largest Chanel shops in the world and houses the French maison’s complete offering of ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, fine jewellery and beauty, with sumptuous VIP changing rooms and an art-filled lounge. Designed by Peter Marino, the boutique’s showpiece is a supersized, sculptural string of pearls that hangs down the middle of the stairwell, made from hand-blown Murano glass by French artist Jean-Michel Othoniel.

Chanel has further outposts on Sloane Street in Knightsbridge and Walton Street in Brompton Cross, as well as a bijou jewellery boutique on New Bond Street.

While it is an undeniably difficult time for British retail, the luxury sector has continued to perform well: there have been consistent queues outside Bond Street’s most popular boutiques since they reopened in July, as well as steady footfall in Knightsbridge and Chelsea. During September, Thom Sweeney unveiled a multistorey townhouse on Old Burlington Street and The Deck opened as the first all-female tailor on Savile Row. Off-White also recently debuted its first standalone London store on Sloane Street.

Chanel is currently controlled by Alain Wertheimer, 72, and his brother Gérard Wertheimer, 69. In 2018, the French fashion house elected London as the base for its global headquarters, transferring staff from New York and its native Paris. In 2019, Chanel increased profits by 16.6 per cent, totalling $3.5 billion, and announced in June that it still expects to turn a profit in 2020.

For now, Chanel devotees can rest assured that the Parisian mega-brand isn’t budging from Bond Street. You can also watch the new Chanel Spring 2021 show below, filmed at the Grand Palais.