The Business of Magazines

[ThatGuyPaul]

Anna Wintour Vogue Exit Rumors Swirl Before Daughter’s Wedding (WWD)

DOES ONLY HER HAIRDRESSER KNOW FOR SURE?: Maybe it’s the hot weather in the U.S. and Europe, or her daughter’s upcoming wedding on Saturday, but speculation about Anna Wintour’s exit from Vogue, and even her possible successor, has reached a crescendo louder than a tea kettle on full boil.

Numerous industry sources have insisted in recent weeks that Wintour is indeed set to leave her 30-year post as editor in chief of American Vogue, with the reveal of a soft exit thought to be coming after the all-important September issue is released, which usually happens around mid-August. The increased speculation comes in the run-up to fashion’s version of a royal wedding (the real one already happened, remember?), when Wintour’s daughter Bee Shaffer, who works in Broadway theater production and is a fixture in Vogue’s party coverage, on Saturday marries Francesco Carrozzini, a photographer and the son of the late Italian Vogue editor in chief Franca Sozzani. Vogue’s September issue, vital to its yearly revenue, is set to close the following weekend.

So much Vogue-ing has sent observers into a tizzy — even as representatives of Condé Nast continue to emphatically deny there is any change afoot in Wintour’s role. A spokeswoman said “there is still no truth to these rumors” and a source noted Wintour is already planning out her fall work calendar.

But it is the summer silly season, so Condé’s denials have done nothing to quell talk of her exit — and that British Vogue editor in chief Edward Enninful will move from London to New York to take over American Vogue (although Mark Holgate, Sally Singer, Amy Astley and even Eva Chen have been mentioned as possibilities, too). A spokeswoman for British Vogue said rumors of Enninful succeeding Wintour are “categorically false.”

Even more intriguing than all of that is the guessing game as to what Wintour’s next move would be if she were to step down.

Most observers insist that Wintour might give up Vogue, but only so she can take on an even loftier title at Condé that would give her even more power than she already has (“queen,” maybe?). Then there are those who believe she’s leaving Condé altogether to become more involved in politics, having whetted her appetite over the years as a major Democratic booster for President Obama (successful) and even more so for Hillary Clinton (not successful). Others think she’ll head back to her native England, something she’s said to have been eager to do for quite a while (rumors she was going to become Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s under both Obama or Clinton, if she’d won, have been circulating for years). The thinking is Wintour would lead a new project or even possibly start some type of formal work with the royal family there. The latter rumor seems to have cropped up after she was seated next to Queen Elizabeth II at Richard Quinn’s fashion show in February, but she also last spring received her Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire from the queen.

It’s worth noting that none of these rumors — all presented to WWD as more fact than guess, as gossips tend to do — have Wintour giving herself over to retirement to tend her garden on Long Island and fine-tune her tennis game. Instead, people seem to think that, should Wintour indeed leave Vogue or Condé, it would be for something that would catapult her into an even larger pool of influence and have her continue as an operator extraordinaire. Speaking of Wintour when she received her artistic director’s title, Charles Townsend, the-then chairman and chief executive officer of Condé, called her “maybe the greatest marketer” the organization had ever had.

Whatever is, or isn’t happening, no one seems interested in talking about Vogue or Wintour outside the context of her possible exit. Perhaps they’re only daring to dream.

The rumour mill churns!

 

[ThatGuyPaul]

Anna Wintour Vogue Exit Rumors Swirl Before Daughter’s Wedding (WWD)

DOES ONLY HER HAIRDRESSER KNOW FOR SURE?: Maybe it’s the hot weather in the U.S. and Europe, or her daughter’s upcoming wedding on Saturday, but speculation about Anna Wintour’s exit from Vogue, and even her possible successor, has reached a crescendo louder than a tea kettle on full boil.

Numerous industry sources have insisted in recent weeks that Wintour is indeed set to leave her 30-year post as editor in chief of American Vogue, with the reveal of a soft exit thought to be coming after the all-important September issue is released, which usually happens around mid-August. The increased speculation comes in the run-up to fashion’s version of a royal wedding (the real one already happened, remember?), when Wintour’s daughter Bee Shaffer, who works in Broadway theater production and is a fixture in Vogue’s party coverage, on Saturday marries Francesco Carrozzini, a photographer and the son of the late Italian Vogue editor in chief Franca Sozzani. Vogue’s September issue, vital to its yearly revenue, is set to close the following weekend.

So much Vogue-ing has sent observers into a tizzy — even as representatives of Condé Nast continue to emphatically deny there is any change afoot in Wintour’s role. A spokeswoman said “there is still no truth to these rumors” and a source noted Wintour is already planning out her fall work calendar.

But it is the summer silly season, so Condé’s denials have done nothing to quell talk of her exit — and that British Vogue editor in chief Edward Enninful will move from London to New York to take over American Vogue (although Mark Holgate, Sally Singer, Amy Astley and even Eva Chen have been mentioned as possibilities, too). A spokeswoman for British Vogue said rumors of Enninful succeeding Wintour are “categorically false.”

Even more intriguing than all of that is the guessing game as to what Wintour’s next move would be if she were to step down.

Most observers insist that Wintour might give up Vogue, but only so she can take on an even loftier title at Condé that would give her even more power than she already has (“queen,” maybe?). Then there are those who believe she’s leaving Condé altogether to become more involved in politics, having whetted her appetite over the years as a major Democratic booster for President Obama (successful) and even more so for Hillary Clinton (not successful). Others think she’ll head back to her native England, something she’s said to have been eager to do for quite a while (rumors she was going to become Ambassador to the Court of St. James’s under both Obama or Clinton, if she’d won, have been circulating for years). The thinking is Wintour would lead a new project or even possibly start some type of formal work with the royal family there. The latter rumor seems to have cropped up after she was seated next to Queen Elizabeth II at Richard Quinn’s fashion show in February, but she also last spring received her Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire from the queen.

It’s worth noting that none of these rumors — all presented to WWD as more fact than guess, as gossips tend to do — have Wintour giving herself over to retirement to tend her garden on Long Island and fine-tune her tennis game. Instead, people seem to think that, should Wintour indeed leave Vogue or Condé, it would be for something that would catapult her into an even larger pool of influence and have her continue as an operator extraordinaire. Speaking of Wintour when she received her artistic director’s title, Charles Townsend, the-then chairman and chief executive officer of Condé, called her “maybe the greatest marketer” the organization had ever had.

Whatever is, or isn’t happening, no one seems interested in talking about Vogue or Wintour outside the context of her possible exit. Perhaps they’re only daring to dream.

The rumour mill churns!

 

[KoV]

I would absolutely love to see Amy Astley as US Vogue's EIC. Loved what she did with Teen Vogue and Architectural Digest. And if Anna has any hand in naming her successor, I think Amy is a likely candidate.

 

[KoV]

I would absolutely love to see Amy Astley as US Vogue's EIC. Loved what she did with Teen Vogue and Architectural Digest. And if Anna has any hand in naming her successor, I think Amy is a likely candidate.

 

[ThatDudeOverTher]

Hmm I don't believe Edward is the one replacing Anna at Vogue...

 

[ThatDudeOverTher]

Hmm I don't believe Edward is the one replacing Anna at Vogue...

 

[mepps]

I don't believe for a second that Edward Enninful would replace Anna Wintour at American Vogue.
That position is way out of his league. Not happening.

 

[mepps]

I don't believe for a second that Edward Enninful would replace Anna Wintour at American Vogue.
That position is way out of his league. Not happening.

 

[PierreGotha]

American Vogue needs someone who is sharp and intuitional, much like Anna but younger. Edward lacks the given qualities, but he is progressive and creative.

 

[PierreGotha]

American Vogue needs someone who is sharp and intuitional, much like Anna but younger. Edward lacks the given qualities, but he is progressive and creative.

 

[8eight]

Laura Brown will get American Vogue.

 

[8eight]

Laura Brown will get American Vogue.

 

[Benn98]

Laura Brown will get American Vogue.

 

[Benn98]

Laura Brown will get American Vogue.

 

[ThatDudeOverTher]

I don't believe Edward will get the job, not for lack of trying on his part, but because his appointment wouldn't fly here in the US, not with all the gender mess going on. A man leading the supposed #1 women's publication? I think not and CN won't risk the backlash. But you can clearly see how hard he's trying, with his cover options and flaunting of his famous friends. It's a solid strategy though and under different circumstances - time period - it would work. CN already has male editors at Vogue Italia, Arabia, Polska, etc.

The rumor was that one of the promising young stars within CN America was being groomed for the job. That rumor died when that person left the company last year after a brilliant run and moved to the west coast. Many found it a strange move and even stranger was that many assumed that editor would have gotten the Glamour gig. Very quiet rumors however, was that it was all planned and that bright young thing was sent to the west coast to establish closer connections with the Hollywood crowd, so that when the time comes, it won't be a problem booking celebrities for covers, features etc. From what I understand, said person is now back on the east coast.

But who really knows...

 

[ThatDudeOverTher]

I don't believe Edward will get the job, not for lack of trying on his part, but because his appointment wouldn't fly here in the US, not with all the gender mess going on. A man leading the supposed #1 women's publication? I think not and CN won't risk the backlash. But you can clearly see how hard he's trying, with his cover options and flaunting of his famous friends. It's a solid strategy though and under different circumstances - time period - it would work. CN already has male editors at Vogue Italia, Arabia, Polska, etc.

The rumor was that one of the promising young stars within CN America was being groomed for the job. That rumor died when that person left the company last year after a brilliant run and moved to the west coast. Many found it a strange move and even stranger was that many assumed that editor would have gotten the Glamour gig. Very quiet rumors however, was that it was all planned and that bright young thing was sent to the west coast to establish closer connections with the Hollywood crowd, so that when the time comes, it won't be a problem booking celebrities for covers, features etc. From what I understand, said person is now back on the east coast.

But who really knows...

 

[Benn98]

I don't believe Edward will get the job, not for lack of trying on his part, but because his appointment wouldn't fly here in the US, not with all the gender mess going on. A man leading the supposed #1 women's publication? I think not and CN won't risk the backlash. But you can clearly see how hard he's trying, with his cover options and flaunting of his famous friends. It's a solid strategy though and under different circumstances - time period - it would work. CN already has male editors at Vogue Italia, Arabia, Polska, etc.

The rumor was that one of the promising young stars within CN America was being groomed for the job. That rumor died when that person left the company last year after a brilliant run and moved to the west coast. Many found it a strange move and even stranger was that many assumed that editor would have gotten the Glamour gig. Very quiet rumors however, was that it was all planned and that bright young thing was sent to the west coast to establish closer connections with the Hollywood crowd, so that when the time comes, it won't be a problem booking celebrities for covers, features etc. From what I understand, said person is now back on the east coast.

But who really knows...

Elaine Welteroth from TeenVogue! I'll reserve judgement for now. This would be such a big edition for her! The jewel of the crown, headed by an upstart? Let's see....

I wonder what are Amy Astley's chances? I feel like she's been personally groomed by Wintour.

 

[Benn98]

I don't believe Edward will get the job, not for lack of trying on his part, but because his appointment wouldn't fly here in the US, not with all the gender mess going on. A man leading the supposed #1 women's publication? I think not and CN won't risk the backlash. But you can clearly see how hard he's trying, with his cover options and flaunting of his famous friends. It's a solid strategy though and under different circumstances - time period - it would work. CN already has male editors at Vogue Italia, Arabia, Polska, etc.

The rumor was that one of the promising young stars within CN America was being groomed for the job. That rumor died when that person left the company last year after a brilliant run and moved to the west coast. Many found it a strange move and even stranger was that many assumed that editor would have gotten the Glamour gig. Very quiet rumors however, was that it was all planned and that bright young thing was sent to the west coast to establish closer connections with the Hollywood crowd, so that when the time comes, it won't be a problem booking celebrities for covers, features etc. From what I understand, said person is now back on the east coast.

But who really knows...

Elaine Welteroth from TeenVogue! I'll reserve judgement for now. This would be such a big edition for her! The jewel of the crown, headed by an upstart? Let's see....

I wonder what are Amy Astley's chances? I feel like she's been personally groomed by Wintour.

 

[Deleted member 141523]

if Anna goes, i don't see big changes at the mag. We will see one celeb after another. Yes, i'm not a big fan of the hollywood-fashion mix, but despite that, Anna is a true legend, and I respect her a lot. she was pushed to put famous people because Vogue needs to sell. It's the cult of celebs in USA, not Anna's fault.

 

[Deleted member 141523]

if Anna goes, i don't see big changes at the mag. We will see one celeb after another. Yes, i'm not a big fan of the hollywood-fashion mix, but despite that, Anna is a true legend, and I respect her a lot. she was pushed to put famous people because Vogue needs to sell. It's the cult of celebs in USA, not Anna's fault.