BY IKENNA OBIOHA
Though late Karl Lagerfeld may have ruffled some feather in the past with the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in his creative decision of using animal fur in the Chanel collection, they certainly are poised to celebrate the fashion icon’s decision to include his pet cat Choupette as heiress to his multimillions.
Choupette will reportedly inherit a fortune in the Lagerfeld $150 million net worth. However, this wouldn’t come much as a surprise to those in his close circle. Lagerfeld once stated in an interview “she [Choupette] has her own fortune, she’s an heiress.’
Choupette, a seven year old Birman cat isn’t new to life on the runway. She was formerly owned by French model Baptiste Giabiconi who worked closely with the designer in 2011. Choupette ended up as a gift to Lagerfeld in December of that same year. By 2012, Choupette already had her official twitter handle (@ChoupettesDiary) with a teeming 46,000 followers by 2015. Her online presence grew onto other social media platforms like Instagram where she currently has over 200,000 followers.
With two maids at her beck and call, Lagerfeld often remarked Choupette as having her own personality, even to a point where she projected preference for her maid Francoise over Marjorie. In a 2013 interview with CNN, Lagerfeld was seen professing love for his cat. In the interview he said, “There is no marriage, yet, for human beings and animals… I never thought that I would fall in love like this with a cat.”
Choupette is rumoured to be joint heirs with Lagerfeld’s godson Hudson Kroenig. Kroenig started working with the designer from an early age of two.