The rare smile that appeared on the face of legendary American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour at Victoria Beckham’s fashion show in Paris on Friday was too remarkable to go unnoticed. That she was addressing the man sitting a few seats away, British Vogue editor-in-chief Edward Enninful, was even more intriguing.
For while Ms. Wintour must have hoped the gesture would convey a sense of unity, behind the glossy pages of the fashion bible there is a growing coldness between the magazine’s grande dame and her former protégé, the first black man and openly gay to reach the top. worked.
In fact, playing in the shadows is what one magazine insider described as “a fight not just for the crown of Vogue but for the heart and soul of the magazine itself.”
Enninful is driving the most sweeping and controversial changes in the magazine’s 130-year history: a bold bid to make Vogue more diverse and even “genderless,” a departure from its traditional female base.
At the center of it all is Enninful himself, who is driving the most sweeping and controversial changes in the magazine’s 130-year history: a bold bid to make Vogue more diverse and even ‘genderless’, a departure from his traditional female base. .
The latest move to raise bushy eyebrows in style was the inclusion of Oscar-nominated actor Timothée Chalamet on the latest cover, making him British Vogue’s first male cover star. Enninful is said to be ‘eager’ to land Ncuti Gatwa, the first black doctor in Doctor Who and star of Netflix’s Sex Education, as his next cover star.
“He wants to appeal to everyone, not just women,” a source confided to The Mail on Sunday. “For him, the future is a genderless, multicultural Vogue that appeals to all and excludes no one. Gay men have always bought the magazine, but he wants to appeal to everyone and reach an audience that traditionally wouldn’t buy a women’s fashion magazine.”
What that means for those loyal to Vogue’s women-led high fashion brand remains to be seen. As one observer put it: “At its heart, Vogue represents the glamor and aspiration of women. If you stop being a women’s magazine, you destroy its soul.
But at the moment, there seems to be little that can stop Enninful. Ever since the 50-year-old, who came to the UK from Ghana at the age of 13, took over British Vogue five years ago, there has been constant speculation that he is being chosen to take Wintour’s job as editor at boss. head of American Vogue and Global Chief Content Officer of the magazine’s publisher, Conde Nast.
Ever since the 50-year-old, who came to the UK from Ghana at the age of 13, took over British Vogue five years ago, there has been constant speculation that he is being chosen to take Wintour’s job as editor at boss. head of American Vogue and director of global content for the magazine’s publisher, Conde Nast
A source said: “There have been many claimants to the throne, but Edward considers himself his natural successor and he is the only person who seems to be a real threat.”
However, even in the famous fashion world, he has been branded a ‘diva’ and has earned the delightfully mischievous nickname ‘Edward Enninfulofhimself’.
Also mischievously known as the ‘Queen Mother’, she is said to have much in common with her mentor. An American media outlet has alleged that she has ‘assistants [who] guide him through meetings and bring his glasses and eye drops and help apply them.’
His fans say no one ever calls him the ‘Queen Mother’ and that he needs eye drops because his eyesight is so bad it borders on disability.
Reports also suggest that he turns away colleagues with simple requests asking them to “call Darnell.” [his powerful agent, Darnell Strom].
And his differences from the formidable Wintour, whose demanding and famous personality has earned him the nickname ‘Nuclear Wintour’, suggests that he is made of harsh stuff.
In the US, reports of the widening rift between the magazine empire’s two most influential publishers surfaced this week with various outlets apparently “in the know” about the simmering tensions.
“Anna Wintour’s Feud With Her Protégé Is Making Earl Nasty,” read a headline in an article alleging that Enninful “is apparently looking for the Iron Lady of Gloss’s big job” and has told associates that ” thinks he can do a better job than Wintour. above the Vogue brand’.
The publication speculated that Wintour might try to “appease” Enninful, who has spent the last few weeks on a promotional tour for his memoir, A Visible Man, leading him to another coveted position, perhaps the editorship of an alternative magazine in the Conde Nast stable. to protect his own work. “Anna is not dumb, so people are hoping there will be musical chairs soon,” a source said.
The latest move to raise bushy eyebrows in style was the inclusion of Oscar-nominated actor Timothée Chalamet on the latest cover, making him British Vogue’s first male cover star.
Tongues waggled last month when Enninful was absent from Wintour’s glamorous ‘Vogue World’ event in New York to showcase her vision for the magazine’s future.
A source said: “He had been all over New York promoting his memoir, so the expectation was that he would be there.” The fact that she was on annual vacation and flying to California at the time has been a constant source of talk.
The couple also kept their distance in Paris this week despite choreographed smiles at the Posh fashion show. Enninful stayed at the Crillon Hotel with his friend, Tatler editor Richard Dennen, while Wintour took his favorite suite at the Ritz.
Meanwhile, just as intriguing, there are signs that Wintour appears to have been taking a cue from Enninful’s book in an attempt to keep up.
When he took over as editor of British Vogue in 2017, it marked a radical departure from the magazine’s previous editor, the highly respected Alexandra Shulman, who held the post for 25 years.
Enninful was heard to describe the office as “too many fancy old white women”. Several high-level female executives were immediately replaced by men and women of color, and with them a number of “young, cool, gay hipsters.” One of them is her protégé Alex Kessler, a fashion editor who lists her pronouns as he/he.
Not to be outdone, Wintour was forced to look at her own empire, which had been criticized for being “white-centric”. Certainly since then, she has sought to promote diversity and once looked around an editorial meeting and declared, ‘Why are there so many white people in the room?’
But if Wintour sees Enninful as a threat, his supporters won’t admit it. Last night one said: ‘Everyone is making a big fuss about Edward putting Timothée on the cover, but Anna put Harry Styles on the cover of American Vogue two years ago.
‘Anne is tough. She has survived three decades at the peak of her career. She is like the Queen, she will die in that job. She will never give it up voluntarily.
‘Anna has always been very firm in her vision of what Vogue should be; a fashion bible for women.’
But, it seems, Enninful is a man on a mission. He has also been on a big charm offensive in the US while promoting his book.
In a profile in the New York Times, he opened up about his lifelong battle against racism, recounting the now infamous story of how a white security guard at Vogue’s London headquarters pulled him away from the front door and told him to will use the merchant’s entrance.
Although the guard was fired, Enninful used the anecdote to illustrate the daily racism he encounters, including having to ask a white staff member to call a taxi for him.
The piece effusively described Enninful as “at the forefront of a new cohort” that “snapped open musty chintz curtains and revealed a northern lights of different races, sizes, ages, and sexualities.”
She also quietly displayed her star power by handing the author of the New York Times article a list of friends to contact that began: ‘Beyoncé. Rihanna. Naomi. Magnet. Oprah.
A well-placed source predicts that Enninful will not be intimidated in pursuit of their targets. “In public, he and Anna show nothing but mutual respect, but there seems to be no question that he is fighting for his crown,” the source said.
“She may have tried to keep up with the times, and I commend her for trying, but she can’t change the fact that she’s an old white lady.”
His value has been recognized within the company. Enninful now holds the title of European Editorial Director of Vogue as well as Editor-in-Chief of British Vogue, giving him control of influential Vogue editions in Italy, France and Spain. And whatever you do, it’s working.
While British Vogue’s readership is small (about eight million between print and digital compared to 25 million for American Vogue, according to Conde Nast), British Vogue’s subscriptions were up more than 14 percent in 2021 compared with the previous year.
As Enninful told the New York Times: “You can still have diversity and still maintain quality,” pointing to covers featuring Rihanna and Beyoncé and a special issue edited by the Duchess of Sussex.
He has also gained powerful allies, including Conde Nast editor Si Newhouse’s wife, Ronnie, who has known him since the 1990s when she was the creative director of Calvin Klein and he was the stylist for the Kate Moss jeans campaign. . Richard Dennen, clearly influenced by his colleague, now makes sure that all other Tatler covers feature a person of color.
As for Enninful, at least in public, he remains diplomatic. Asked by the New York Times if he ‘had the ambition to run Vogue’s mothership’, he replied: ‘I’m happy to be working in Europe.
But you never know what the future holds.