So Anna, we are talking on the day that Connie Nass announced that Khloe Mal is going to succeed you as editor of American Vogue. How do you feel?
I feel great. I love Chloe. I'm very happy for her. She's going to do a brilliant job. We've worked together for well over a decade. But at the same time, she really had to prove herself during the interview process. We saw a lot of amazing candidates. And Chloe consistently came back with the clearest vision and the most original ideas and understanding of what a Vogue will look like in two years, not just five or ten. She understands a newsroom, immediacy, culture, and that fashion doesn't exist in a vacuum. She has a great sense of humor and she knows what works.
Now, why step aside from American Vogue now? Have you been thinking about this for a long time?
I have been thinking about it for some time and it felt like this was the right time because we're seeing so much change in fashion. There are well over 40 new creative directors in very high level positions all over Europe and some here. So it seemed like a good moment to bring in someone with a different perspective and a different generation who could look at things in a new way.
Now at first in 1988, you burst on the scene as the new Vogue editor by putting somebody on the cover with a pair of jeans on. In fact, I noticed that Khloe was wearing jeans in her photograph on the Vogue website. Was she maybe signaling something?
I think that picture was taken a while ago, but she looked great. Similarly, I had been working at Vogue as creative director before I took the position at American Vogue and also at British Vogue. Having that history is a huge advantage: you understand how things work, who the people are, how decisions are made, and you can choose to do things differently.
So you have this odd situation now. You are not leaving your office. You've got two huge jobs at Condé Nast. Khloe said to the Times, 'The truth is that no one's going to replace Anna.' Both women have acknowledged the strangeness of this arrangement. How will this work?
I implicitly trust Khloe and I want her to succeed. She is beloved by her team. She will require support from all of us. She doesn't work in isolation; she's very open and communicative.
But will you be in her head? Will she be trying to edit?
I don't think so. Absolutely not. She is very much her own person with her own point of view.
How does it differ? She looks at things with a more quirky, unusual point of view.
She comes at things from different angles. She's interested in fashion but not obsessed with it. She will not be drawn into a fashionista conversation. She can step back and look at things in a healthy context.
Has the fashionista conversation dissipated and disappeared in the contemporary world?
I think it exists in certain circles. What I love about Khloe is that she's an insider but also an outsider.
What you're saying is she doesn't want to be an Anna mini me.
No, not at all. That was clear during the interview process. She wants to be her own person.
When you took over Vogue, it had an immensely central place in fashion. Now we live in an age of Instagram, TikTok, and AI. How is her job different from yours?
I look on Vogue as the world's biggest fashion influencer. American Vogue alone has over 50 million followers. Our influence is immeasurable. Khloe has a much bigger platform than I had when I started. When I began at American Vogue, it was solely a print publication with a few events. Now she has all these different ways to reach audiences. How exciting and culturally relevant is that? It's a great honor and responsibility.
You mentioned print. When I started at the New Yorker in 1998, I thought I was about to lose my job. Si Newhouse asked to have lunch with me and said if we went from weekly to bi-weekly we would save millions, but said it was my decision. I decided that would signal something terrible. What does print mean going forward for Vogue? Chloe wants fewer print editions. Why?
I think print has to be collectible and represent a newsbreaking moment. It has to feel more important and substantial, separate from the day-to-day news we put online. It's not purely a business decision; it's the right decision. Print has the same responsibility as a runway show — it gives a message and makes news, but it doesn't have to be many times a year.
You're a very politically engaged person. The world is in bad condition. How do you make a case that fashion is important in the midst of all that?
Fashion is always important. It's about self-expression and a statement about yourself. It can say so many different things. People are individuals and ought to be able to express themselves. It's a form of creativity.
For decades, you've been known as the editor with exacting control over every spread. Is that true?
That's very much exaggerated. I oversee so many different Vogues now that it's impossible to have that level of detail. It's important to surround yourself with people you admire and respect.
What I mean is how deeply do you get into other Vogues around the world?
I look at every print issue before it goes to press, and I look at their sites and social media. But there's no way to keep up with every platform across all territories. I certainly keep my eyes out.
Did you ever have a moment when you thought 'enough with this'?
No, because I love what I do. I grew up in a family of journalists. My house was full of interesting people. I find it just as exciting today. I'm always more interested in looking forward than looking back.
People ask about inspiration, but true creative design comes from the mind, not from somebody else's. It's original. I work with Andrew Bolton at the Met, and his original thinking makes him a great artist.
I wonder how you felt when Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez arrived at the Met Ball in a white dress with 'Tax the Rich'.
She was sitting at my table. I hadn't seen the back of the dress until the next day. I think everybody uses fashion in different ways, and that was important to her.
Your father was at the London Evening Standard. Your brother is at The Guardian. Journalism is in your blood. How did you become yourself?
I was lucky in my upbringing. I wanted to work in media but didn't want to be part of my father's world. I remember filling out school forms and asking him what to write. He said, 'Just write you want to be editor of Vogue.' So I did, at age 13. That was a goal. My first job at Harper's Queen taught me to do everything. When I came to the States and saw how siloed things were, that training gave me confidence. I was fired from Harper's Bazaar because they said I'd never understand the American market. Everyone should be fired once. It helps you get everything into proportion. I landed at New York Magazine and caught the eye of Alexander Lieberman, then moved to Vogue.
How did you develop your look and why?
My hair has always been this way. A British hairdresser once cut it into three layers; it was the worst haircut ever. I wore a hat for a year and then resolved never to cut it differently. The glasses are because I'm very shortsighted, but they help me get through situations where I might be bored.
