With the recent passing of fashion icon Karl Lagerfeld on Feb. 19, the question now seems to be who is to inherit his estimated $200 million fortune. Surprisingly, the main recipient isn’t even human, while the second most likely recipient is an 11-year-old boy.
Last year, Lagerfeld said, in an interview with Numero, that his massive fortune would go to his pet cat, Choupette, “among others.”
“Don’t worry, there is enough for everyone,” he said.
The Cat Choupette
Following Lagerfeld’s statement that his beloved Choupette would indeed be part of his will, the reporter pointed out that it’s illegal to leave pets money under French law, to which Lagerfeld responded: “Well it’s lucky I’m not French then.”
According to Paper magazine, “Lagerfeld’s German citizenship could provide a loophole. There’s actually some European precedent for beloved animals receiving lofty fortunes: an Italian cat inherited $15.6 million in 2011.”
Chouepette didn’t always belong to Lagerfeld. Originally, Choupette was French model Baptiste Giabiconi’s cat, but after being left in Lagerfeld’s care for two weeks, the pair formed an unbreakable bond.
“When he came back I thought, ‘I’m sorry Choupette is mine,'” Lagerfeld said in an interview with CNBC.
“She’s (become) a world famous star,” he added. “She has her own fortune—for the things she did in Japan and in Germany, for cars and things like that.”
Lagerfeld never had any children of his own and considered the Birman cat to be the sole love of his life.
View this post on InstagramHappy #FathersDay Daddy @karllagerfeld. Thank you for bringing me into the (fashion) world. ????
The 11-Year-Old Boy Who Models for Chanel
While he didn’t have any biological children, Lagerfeld does have a godson: 11-year-old Hudson Kroenig, son to American model and Lagerfeld muse Brad Kroenig.
Lagerfeld met B. Kroenig during a shoot for V Man and soon made him one of his favorites. The pair soon developed a familial relationship and in 2009, B. Kroenig asked Lagerfeld to be his son’s godfather. It was an honor Karl accepted immediately.
“I see the boys like family. I have no family at all,” Lagerfeld said in an interview with the Times. “So it’s good to have, like, sons, but without the unpleasant problems sons can create.”
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Through the years, young Kroenig has starred in several campaigns, as well as walking in an impressive number of runway shows, rivaling those of much older models. He’s also met and worked with several celebrities and models, including Cara Delevingne.
The young model has also walked with Lagerfeld himself, who described him as “a modern version of Jackie Coogan, the child actor who starred with Chaplin in ‘The Kid,'” according to Daily Mail.
“His face is open like a window,” Lagerfeld said. “There is something like sunshine in it, like Mary Pickford when she was just starting out.”
Most recently, the two were photographed at the Chanel Metiers D’Art 2018/19 Show in New York.
