Anna Wintour is the formidable British Editor-in-Chief of American Vogue — the world’s most influential fashion magazine — a position she has held since 1988. Known for her exacting standards, composed demeanour, and an instinct for talent that borders on the supernatural, she has earned the industry nickname ‘Nuclear Wintour’. It is a title worn, one suspects, with quiet satisfaction.
Fashion runs in the family. Her father, Charles Wintour, was the long-serving editor of the London Evening Standard, and Anna inherited not only his editorial eye but his uncompromising standards. Under her stewardship, Vogue has been transformed: she was the first editor to place film stars and musicians on its cover, blurring the boundaries between fashion, celebrity, and culture in a way that changed the industry permanently. Not a single page goes to print without her approval.
With her trademark blunt bob, oversized sunglasses, and a schedule that begins before most people have had breakfast, Wintour is as much an icon as the magazine she commands. Love her or fear her — and many do both — her influence on fashion is beyond question.
Here are ten of our favourite Anna Wintour quotes, plus one perfectly observed note from a journalist who knew her well.
10 Anna Wintour Quotes on Fashion, Vision, and Getting Things Done
1. On fashion’s power to unsettle
“There is something about fashion that can make people really nervous.”
2. On developing your own style
“Create your own style. Let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others.”
3. On timing
“It’s always about timing. If it’s too soon, no one understands. If it’s too late, everyone’s forgotten.”
4. On knowing fashion
“You either know fashion or you don’t.”
5. On fashion as cultural record
“If you look at any great fashion photograph out of context, it will tell you just as much about what’s going on in the world as a headline in The New York Times.”
6. On staying true to your vision
“Just be true to yourself, and listen as much as you are able to people whose opinions you respect. But in the end, it has to come from you. You can’t worry too much about what the competition is doing. It has to be a true vision.”
7. On the democratisation of fashion
“The democratisation of luxury means more people are going to get better fashion. And the more people who can have fashion, the better.”
8. On fashion and the future
“Fashion is not about looking back. It’s always about looking forward.”
9. On what fashion is — and isn’t
“Fashion is not beautiful, neither is it ugly. Why should it be either? Fashion is fashion.”
10. On her legendary sense of urgency
“The notion that Anna would want something done ‘now’ and not ‘shortly’ is accurate.”
— Barbara Amiel, British journalist
Which Anna Wintour quote speaks to you most? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
Utterly vapid. Disdainfully vapid. Wintour is the quintessential shallow bully. She is as hollow as the “quotes” attributed to her. Why American Vogue run by a pair of Brits anyway? (Wintour and Coddington) There is a special place in hell for this monster.
Almost all english People are bullies
That’s right,they are always bullies and rude to boot
And I suppose you’ve met “almost all” of the 60+ million people that make up the population of Britain? Get a passport, get out of your unworldly bubble.
MOSSAD 9/11
Yet she is so ugly!