Exclusive: This Chanel chief launched her 40-year luxury career off the back of a failed teaching exam and a chance encounter at a student forum

Claire Isnard can trace her 40‑year career—including 17 years at fashion house Chanel—back to one bad exam. Had she passed, she’d likely still be in a classroom, grading essays on Italian literature.

Looking back, in her first-ever sit-down interview ahead of her retirement, Isnard says she feels like she’s come full circle. Despite having zero HR qualifications, she wound up as Chanel’s chief people and chief organization officer. “When you draw my story back, the first compelling and...