The exceptional and brilliant fashion designer, Karl Lagerfeld, born in Germany, was known for many things. Among them, his exceptional and iconic designs for some of the world’s biggest fashion houses, his unique and fashionable personal style, and his endearing relationship with his beloved and adorable white Burmese cat, Choupette.
Through the years, Lagerfeld was often photographed cradling his furry muse with pure joy and even made her an unexpected plus-one at high-fashion events, adding an unparalleled touch of elegance to these affairs.
The former creative director of Chanel once revealed to Numéro magazine of Choupette, “She’s peaceful, funny, fun, graceful, she’s pretty to look at, and she has a great gait—but her main quality is that she doesn’t speak. It was love at first sight.” Another time, he jokingly told CNN that if he could marry his cat, he would.
Sadly the artist passed away on February 19, 2019, leaving behind his precious pet. But this year, the Met Gala will honor his legacy—and Choupette will join fellow celebrity guests in celebrating his life and career. Ahead, read everything to know about the world’s most glamorous cat.
Choupette’s journey began when French model Baptiste Giabiconi, one of Lagerfeld’s main muses, initially owned her and named her after the French nickname for “cute girl.” In 2011, the designer was asked to cat-sit for the holidays while Giabiconi took a visit to Marseille. Despite initial apprehensions about the pet’s fur, he acquiesced when Giabiconi assured him that cats “take care of themselves.” He ended up enjoying his time with Choupette so much that Giabiconi let him keep her.
Soon after adoption, Choupette went viral as V Magazine Editor-in-Chief (and Lagerfeld’s good friend) Stephen Gan officially introduced her as Lagerfeld’s new cat on Twitter.
“My love for little furballs came to me quite late,” Lagerfeld told Numéro in an interview conducted in French in July 2016. “I had dogs before in my life, but that was when I lived in the countryside. In Paris, as in all big cities, it’s always a bit complicated. As you can imagine, I can no longer afford to walk a dog down the street without it bordering on a riot. And then a dog is far from clean and spotless, and when it rains, it smells of dead rats. I had two friends who owned a cat, and they always did loads of them in the overflowing kind of affection, so much so that I found it frankly ridiculous. Well, now I’m much worse.”
Thanks to her late legendary owner, Choupette has been in the presence of many influential figures over the years. On April 26, Kim Kardashian shared several selfies on Instagram of her spending time with a cat in Lagerfeld’s office. “Had a date with @choupetteofficiel in Paris,” the shapewear mogul wrote. “We then spent some time at @karllagerfeld’s office to get a little inspiration for the Met.”
The designer’s beloved Burmese has lived a lifestyle nearly as luxurious and chic as his. After his death, she is rumored to inherit a portion of Lagerfeld’s €200 million net worth. While that shockingly doesn’t make her the richest cat in the world (Taylor Swift’s Scottish Fold, Olivia Benson beats her with a reported worth of $97 million), she is certainly still amongst the wealthiest and arguably the favorite within the fashion world.
Throughout her lifetime, the booked-and-busy cat has graced several magazine covers.
