Behind the Seams: Insurance for Iconic Chanel
AIG delivers a unified multi-line programme across five continents, backed by multinational expertise
Global programmes can be complex when they expand across multiple lines, territories, regulatory regimes and service requirements.
Chanel, a global high-end luxury brand, wanted an innovative solution to improve in-country cover and claims payments worldwide, in addition to integrating the captive across more lines of cover. Marsh, one of AIG’s valued broker partners, approached AIG with this challenge, recognising it was a first for the specie insurance sector.
Identifying this opportunity to reduce complexity and improve alignment for Chanel and Marsh, AIG leveraged its UK Franchise offering to design a more integrated programme and developed a bespoke specialty solution for Chanel, covering multiple policies across Marine Cargo and Specie.
AIG’s UK Franchise brings together the combined expertise of our teams in the UK, Global Specialty and Talbot, AIG’s Managing Agent at Lloyd’s. Utilising its extensive multinational capabilities, AIG delivered a cohesive and scalable solution spanning five continents. The approach aligned to local service and claims requirements, while also reflecting the client’s broader objectives and risk management philosophy.
Rose Proby, Managing Director of Marsh Specie said, “Chanel identified an opportunity to approach this placement in an innovative way, and Marsh was proud to work alongside them and AIG to bring the solution together. We were able to look beyond conventional market offerings and AIG delivered a structure that responded to the challenge and aligned with Chanel’s needs.”
The Solution: Turning an Existing Captive into a Global Advantage
AIG partnered with Marsh and approached the brief from Chanel as a programme design and operating model challenge. A key differentiator was incorporating Chanel’s existing captive facility more strategically. Historically used primarily for Marine Cargo, the captive was structured into a broader programme approach, supporting a consolidated multi-line solution aligned to the client’s global needs.
The programme was simplified and designed for rollout across multiple territories, addressing differing regulatory requirements while maintaining consistency in execution and simplifying the administration.
“Pulling together a programme of this scale covering multiple countries across continents is incredibly complex, but AIG’s global reach, multinational capability and breadth of expertise enabled us to navigate different regulatory regimes and put in place a multi-year rollout programme that delighted the client,” said Lee Brewer, Client Director, AIG UK.
Benefits Realised Across the Ecosystem
The programme delivered tangible outcomes for Chanel by consolidating specialist lines into a single easier-to-manage structure. This simplification improved clarity and coordination across territories through an operating model built around a single point of contact at AIG for programme coordination. It also aligned lines of business, multinational fronting and service expectations, with claims administration designed to support local claims payment, one of the client’s key requirements.
Elizabeth Beaudet, Global Head of Insurance at Chanel said, “Having three separate policies added complexity and increased administration. We were exploring an innovative approach to our insurance needs, while extending our captive’s remit. AIG’s key differentiator was its ability to think outside the box, adapt and work collaboratively across multiple geographies and lines of business to make it work.”
Elizabeth Beaudet, Global Head of Insurance, Chanel, at AIG’s Client Forum in London, February 2026
Specialist underwriting capability, particularly in Specie, was one the critical enablers of these outcomes.
“Specie is a highly specialist class where underwriting must be precisely aligned to a client's unique risk profile and requirements,” said Emma Woolley, Chief Executive Officer, Talbot. “Talbot brings deep technical expertise and using the scale and breadth of AIG, allows us to structure truly bespoke solutions that meet the complex needs of sophisticated clients and leading luxury brands.”
For Marsh, the solution enabled a more efficient placement and administration approach with a single programme framework designed to scale with the client’s evolving needs. It also strengthened alignment across underwriting, multinational servicing and claims, supporting smoother execution and clearer governance across geographies.