Vogue Singapore Issue #1 by Fish Zhang, Bryan Huynh & Gregory Harris

[Hafyiez wafa]

Art Director Vogue Singapore is Henry Thomas Lloyd

instagram.com/henry.thomas.lloyd/

 

[Benn98]

Via South China Morning Post:

‘It’s been tough’: luxury fashion magazine Vogue Singapore’s editor-in-chief on its ‘super difficult’ launch amid Covid-19 chaos, downturn

• Between the announcement of Vogue Singapore’s launch in January and its debut this month, everything changed for the luxury fashion industry because of Covid-19
• Editor-in-chief Norman Tan talks about the difficulties he and his team overcame, and the issues Vogue’s 27th international edition will focus on

Vincenzo La Torre
Published: 8:55am, 23 Sep, 2020


The long-awaited first issue of Vogue Singapore, the 27th edition of the glossy fashion magazine owned by publisher Condé Nast, is out, both in print and online. When Condé Nast announced the edition’s launch in mid-January, the world was a very different place. Since then the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing financial crisis have battered the global economy, taking a toll on the luxury industry in particular.

According to consultancy Bain & Company, the global market for luxury goods is expected to contract by 35 per cent to 39 per cent in 2020, while marketing agency Digital Luxury Group reported in June that luxury brands have cut advertising budgets by between 30 per cent and 80 per cent as a result of the economic downturn.

This month the Monetary Authority of Singapore predicted that the city state’s economy would contract by 6 per cent this year, with wholesale and retail trade among the sectors most impacted.

Launching a fashion magazine in 2020, especially in a saturated market such as Singapore’s, where titles such as Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Her World and Female already operate, was never going to be easy, but the coronavirus pandemic made the task even more difficult. Still, the Vogue Singapore team, led by editor-in-chief Norman Tan, formerly head of the local edition of men’s magazine Esquire , was up to the task.

Condé Nast attempted to launch a Singapore edition of Vogue almost 20 years ago but that short-lived magazine was one of the few flops in the history of the illustrious publisher, which is why there has been a lot of speculation about this new undertaking and whether Tan and his team can make a success of it.

Tan describes the logistics of producing fashion shoots during a global pandemic as “super difficult” but he is happy with the number of advertisers that the magazine was able to get, especially in such a difficult economic situation.

“When we started talking to brands in March and April they were quite optimistic about the launch as it was the beginning of Covid, but then they started making cuts and it was really challenging,” Tan says. “When we closed at the end of August we exceeded our expectations and benchmarks in terms of commercial revenue, so I’m thankful that brands were able to support us because it’s been tough.

“Not every brand from the luxury groups advertised, because everyone has different budgets, but we managed to get the top brands.”

The print version of the magazine features three covers, starring Singaporean model Diya Prabhakar
in Balenciaga, photographed by Bryan Huynh with CGI floral illustration by Rodolfo Hernandez; Chinese supermodel Ju Xiaowen in Fendi, photographed by Gregory Harris; and Japanese actress Nana Komatsu in Chanel, photographed by Fish Zhang. The theme of the issue is Arise, sending a message of positivity.

The first issue includes interviews with Singaporean personalities such as actress and film producer Tan Kheng Hua, international designers such as Giorgio Armani, and three foreign domestic workers who share their stories of hardship, which Tan describes as “touching and a reassessment of the world as we know it in Singapore, one of those stories that are not normally told in Singapore”.

Many editions of Vogue, including the flagship US and British ones, have been covering hot-button issues such as politics and racism lately. While the global health and economic crises and Black Lives Matter movement have triggered this shift in direction, it has also come as a response to controversies surrounding Condé Nast,
which has been called out by former employees for its lack of diversity and toxic culture.

“We’re going to publish those stories that we can focus on here in Singapore,” says Tan. “There are a lot of regulations about what we can and can’t discuss politically or otherwise, so it’s just being careful with what we talk about and choosing our platforms, because for some reasons in Singapore they seem to scrutinise print but you can talk about different topics online and on social media.”

Unable to launch with a physical event because of the pandemic, Vogue Singapore is debuting Vogue Studio, a day-long digital immersive experience that involves animated fashion shoots, live events and talks hosted by Tan and Anna Wintour, American Vogue’s editor-in-chief and Condé Nast’s US artistic director and global content adviser.

Events used to be an important source of revenue for media companies, especially luxury publishers like Condé Nast. The company’s luxury conference, which over the years has taken place in cities such as Cape Town, Florence and Seoul, and was hosted by former Vogue International editor Suzy Menkes, has been cancelled until further notice, another victim of the global pandemic.

Vogue Singapore will also have a philanthropic arm, the Vogue Foundation, which will support local talent from fields such as design and content creation through the Vogue Prize.

 

[phungnam96]

“Issue One”? More like Issue None.

 

[Phuel]

Via South China Morning Post:

‘It’s been tough’: luxury fashion magazine Vogue Singapore’s editor-in-chief on its ‘super difficult’ launch amid Covid-19 chaos, downturn

• Between the announcement of Vogue Singapore’s launch in January and its debut this month, everything changed for the luxury fashion industry because of Covid-19
• Editor-in-chief Norman Tan talks about the difficulties he and his team overcame, and the issues Vogue’s 27th international edition will focus on

Vincenzo La Torre
Published: 8:55am, 23 Sep, 2020


The long-awaited first issue of Vogue Singapore, the 27th edition of the glossy fashion magazine owned by publisher Condé Nast, is out, both in print and online. When Condé Nast announced the edition’s launch in mid-January, the world was a very different place. Since then the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing financial crisis have battered the global economy, taking a toll on the luxury industry in particular.

According to consultancy Bain & Company, the global market for luxury goods is expected to contract by 35 per cent to 39 per cent in 2020, while marketing agency Digital Luxury Group reported in June that luxury brands have cut advertising budgets by between 30 per cent and 80 per cent as a result of the economic downturn.

This month the Monetary Authority of Singapore predicted that the city state’s economy would contract by 6 per cent this year, with wholesale and retail trade among the sectors most impacted.

Launching a fashion magazine in 2020, especially in a saturated market such as Singapore’s, where titles such as Harper’s Bazaar, Elle, Her World and Female already operate, was never going to be easy, but the coronavirus pandemic made the task even more difficult. Still, the Vogue Singapore team, led by editor-in-chief Norman Tan, formerly head of the local edition of men’s magazine Esquire , was up to the task.

Condé Nast attempted to launch a Singapore edition of Vogue almost 20 years ago but that short-lived magazine was one of the few flops in the history of the illustrious publisher, which is why there has been a lot of speculation about this new undertaking and whether Tan and his team can make a success of it.

Tan describes the logistics of producing fashion shoots during a global pandemic as “super difficult” but he is happy with the number of advertisers that the magazine was able to get, especially in such a difficult economic situation.

“When we started talking to brands in March and April they were quite optimistic about the launch as it was the beginning of Covid, but then they started making cuts and it was really challenging,” Tan says. “When we closed at the end of August we exceeded our expectations and benchmarks in terms of commercial revenue, so I’m thankful that brands were able to support us because it’s been tough.

“Not every brand from the luxury groups advertised, because everyone has different budgets, but we managed to get the top brands.”

The print version of the magazine features three covers, starring Singaporean model Diya Prabhakar
in Balenciaga, photographed by Bryan Huynh with CGI floral illustration by Rodolfo Hernandez; Chinese supermodel Ju Xiaowen in Fendi, photographed by Gregory Harris; and Japanese actress Nana Komatsu in Chanel, photographed by Fish Zhang. The theme of the issue is Arise, sending a message of positivity.

The first issue includes interviews with Singaporean personalities such as actress and film producer Tan Kheng Hua, international designers such as Giorgio Armani, and three foreign domestic workers who share their stories of hardship, which Tan describes as “touching and a reassessment of the world as we know it in Singapore, one of those stories that are not normally told in Singapore”.

Many editions of Vogue, including the flagship US and British ones, have been covering hot-button issues such as politics and racism lately. While the global health and economic crises and Black Lives Matter movement have triggered this shift in direction, it has also come as a response to controversies surrounding Condé Nast,
which has been called out by former employees for its lack of diversity and toxic culture.

“We’re going to publish those stories that we can focus on here in Singapore,” says Tan. “There are a lot of regulations about what we can and can’t discuss politically or otherwise, so it’s just being careful with what we talk about and choosing our platforms, because for some reasons in Singapore they seem to scrutinise print but you can talk about different topics online and on social media.”

Unable to launch with a physical event because of the pandemic, Vogue Singapore is debuting Vogue Studio, a day-long digital immersive experience that involves animated fashion shoots, live events and talks hosted by Tan and Anna Wintour, American Vogue’s editor-in-chief and Condé Nast’s US artistic director and global content adviser.

Events used to be an important source of revenue for media companies, especially luxury publishers like Condé Nast. The company’s luxury conference, which over the years has taken place in cities such as Cape Town, Florence and Seoul, and was hosted by former Vogue International editor Suzy Menkes, has been cancelled until further notice, another victim of the global pandemic.

Vogue Singapore will also have a philanthropic arm, the Vogue Foundation, which will support local talent from fields such as design and content creation through the Vogue Prize.

Thanks Benn.

I don’t know why some may have been expecting some tremendous revolution with this Vogue… All the South Asian Vogues have been a none-event and very much reflective of their conservative-consumer culture in its pandering. And when you factor in that Singapore is more or less a police state that’s teetering close to a theocratic state, then they are very much restricted in how fashion is presented: None-offensive, non-provocative and a very safe, polite consumer-friendly approach. So essentially Tatler with a younger presence... Zzzzzzzz…

Of course conservative and reserve doesn’t mean bland and catalogue when it comes to high fashion. But we’re not in an era where the exclusivity and tantalization of an unattainable world is in vogue. Sadly, we’re in a catalogue, all-and-immediate accessible and relatable world and Vogues that are desperately begging for the commoners’ dollar these days.

(The CG/vector flourishes are on the juvenile side-- and I swear the Balenciaga cover is exactly what I’d have to do for work back in 2007 LOL, of which I’m sure wasn’t some random concept that the team came up with— but likely a strategic effort to engage with their potential reader’s preferred aesthetic. These are the uninspired days...)

 

[PowerDroid]

Do we need another Vogue?
What's next?? Vogue Quebec? Vogue Arkansas?

Didn't you hear? They are launching Vogue Naples......

 

[GivenchyAddict]

If 1950s Vogue could make it interesting then any Vogue can make it in 2020.

First, when you do studio, have a strong idea and have a photographer who knows well with composition, lightning, etc.

Secondly, have a stylist who can request the strongest pieces to make it a strong and impactful or the opposite way : simple yet timeless and very luxurious pieces

Last but not least, hire a damn good Art director who knows about the craft and knows about either Brodovitch or Liberman or both even!

With or with budget, these Vogue don't know how to produce good content anyway so Tran is cute with his little excuses.

 

[Hafyiez wafa]

270 Pages

 

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Masthead



Vogue Singapore Digital Edition

 

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Editor's Letter



Vogue Singapore Digital Edition

 

[JPineapple]

Review (266 pages)

In Vogue: SP (10 pages)
Photo: Benjo Arwas
Stylist: Dani and Emma
Celeb: Sydney Park

Beauty: The Alchemist (8 pages)
Photo: Jumbo Tsui
Direction: Alli Sim
Model: Leah Chen

Diya (12 pages)
Photo: Bryan Huynn
Stylist: Desmond Lim
Model: Diya Prabhakar

Jū Xiaowén (16 pages)
Photo: Gregory Harris
Stylist: Daniela Paudice
Model: Jū Xiaowén

Nana (18 pages)
Photo: Fish Zhang
Stylist: Xander Ang
Celeb: Nana Komatsu

Wildflower (14 pages)
Photo: Chi Gi Seok
Stylist: Xander Ang
Model: Yoon Young Bae

Keep Looking Up (10 pages)
A reprint from Vogue Russia September cover story.

Vogue Life: Ana Kim (9 pages)
Photo: Less
Stylist: Lee Jong Hyun
Celeb: Ana Kim

The next days I’ll post the pictures