Tributes have been paid to Karl Lagerfeld, the design emperor who reigned in fashion houses across the world for more than 50 years, who has died at the age of 85.

His death was announced yesterday by Chanel, the brand for which the designer created some of his most famous pieces.

Both his arresting work as a fashion designer and capacity as an outrageous raconteur have left an indelible mark on the fabric of his industry. 

Lagerfeld is best known for his work as the creative director of fashion behemoths Chanel and Fendi, as well as for his own eponymous brand. He also designed for Chloe and H&M.

Regarded as one of fashion’s brightest luminaries of the 20th and 21st centuries, he was recognisable by his trademark sunglasses and a black suit, with a white shirt and with his white hair pulled back into a ponytail.

Edward Enninful, editor-in-chief of British Vogue, described Lagerfeld as “one of the greatest designers in the history of fashion” and “one of its greatest teachers”.

Alain Wertheimer, chief executive of Chanel, said: “Not only have I lost a friend, but we have all lost an extraordinary creative mind to whom I gave carte blanche in the early 1980s to reinvent the brand.”

Lagerfeld took charge of Chanel as creative director and reworked the brand’s “codes”, the aesthetic threads running through Chanel collections that gave them a unified identity.

He worked for Chanel from 1983 until his death.

The designer was known for his outspoken and often contradictory views, and gave a lifetime of colourful interviews that will long survive him.

He derided political correctness as “boring,” described himself as “physically allergic to flip flops”, and claimed to have as many as 300 iPods. 

He once famously declared that buying sweatpants was “a sign you lost control of your life”. “Sweatpants are a sign of defeat,” he said.

But not to be defeated himself by the changing tastes and trends of high fashion, Lagerfeld adapted his style over the years and embraced technology to spread his designs.

A pair of Karl Lagerfeld sweatpants now sells for as much as £200.

At the core of Lagerfeld’s personal brand was a sense of mystery and playful excitement, which gave his followers an occasionally voyeuristic obsession with his life.

His cat Choupette, herself a fashion icon in her own right, has an Instagram page run by a Lagerfeld fan.

It has more than 130,000 followers.

Lagerfeld operated with a small team, for whom he would draw his designs by hand or on an iPad for them to create.

He would also send his teams seemingly random objects for inspiration. One member of his staff once received a portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots, destined for Chanel’s next collection.

Lagerfeld worked relentlessly on his next collections and designs, refusing to retire and being secretive about his age.

Asked about his frenetic workaholism, he described himself as “a kind of 
fashion nymphomaniac who never gets an orgasm”.

He never married, but said he would tie the knot with Choupette if the law allowed it. She is understood to survive him.