Choupette (born 15 August 2011[1]) is a blue-cream Birman cat who was the pet of German fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld from around Christmas 2011, until Lagerfeld's death on 19 February 2019 at the age of 85.
Originally belonging to the French model Baptiste Giabiconi, Choupette was given to Lagerfeld as a gift around Christmas 2011, following a stay with the designer while Giabiconi was abroad.[2]
Lagerfeld remarked "People are stunned by her ... Soon people will talk more about Choupette than about me!"[3]
Following Lagerfeld's death in February 2019, speculation ran rampant that the feline would inherit part of the late designer's fortune, as Lagerfeld once told Le Figaro that (Choupette) "has her own little fortune. She is an heiress”.[4][5]
Internet rumours of a Choupette-inspired Chanel handbag first appeared in early July 2012 following a tweet by the New York Times' Cathy Horyn.[6] It was speculated that the Choupette was the bag carried by models in Lagerfeld's Fall 2012 Couture show,[7] though this was never confirmed.
Choupette has been credited as the inspiration behind Lagerfeld's cornflower blue Spring 2012 Couture collection.[8]
In March 2015, Lagerfeld said, in an interview with The Cut, that Choupette had earned €3 million ($3.18 million USD) during 2014 from participating in two projects: one for cars in Germany, and the other for a Shu Uemura's "Shupette" beauty product in Japan.[10][11]
In 2020, "Choupette" announced a cooperation with LucyBalu, a German cat furniture and cat supplies company.[12]
