The most powerful woman in the fashion world

Anna Wintour is the emblematic editor-in-chief of Vogue, a monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine. She is easily recognizable by her bob haircut and dark sport glasses. Her outstanding work ethic has propelled her to be the editor-in-chief of the famous fashion magazine since the late 1980s, succeeding Grace Mirabella. While she has become famous due to her strong leadership traits and imperious demeanor, Anna has implemented bold changes to the prestigious fashion magazine over the years. Her fame has brought her to the attention of big screen names when needing professional fashion advice.

Anna Wintour received the Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) title in 2008 and the Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) title in 2017. Later, in 2013, she was also named artistic director at Condé Nast, a global mass media company created in 1909. By 2020, Anne became the company’s global chief content officer.

Let's dive a little deeper and uncover the way Wintour’s career takes off in the fashion world. First, her education and passion for journalism and media started in England when she worked for two magazines in her teen years. After relocating to the US, she was a junior writer for fashion magazines, such as ‘Harper's Bazaar,’ ‘Viva,’ ‘New York,’ and ‘House & Garden.’ By 1988, Anne was named editor-in-chief of British Vogue's New York department. After a relatively short but productive time at New York Magazine, Wintour was selected by Alex Liberman to be the creative director of the American branch of Vogue.

Anna Wintour is known for being extremely disciplined when it comes to working. Allegedly, she wakes up at 4 AM on some days, and occasionally she gets in contact with her team before 6 AM.

But the real power of Wintour is perhaps her drive and success in shifting shift Vogue’s vision. When interviewed by the London Evening Standard she stated that there is a new type of woman in the world, empowering women to be themselves. On the cover of her first Vogue issue as editor-in-chief, Wintour made a statement with a street shot using jeans and a Lacroix couture sweater, thus marking a new chapter in the history of the magazine.

Anna truly raised the impact of her position, by having an amazing network of individuals that she has created over the course of more than 30 years across different industries. Because it's not just about fashion. Her work also includes politics, entertainment, and sport. And her influence goes beyond fashion. Did you know that Serena Williams, the famous tennis player, regards Anna as a close confidant? She even relates contacting her when she was struggling, right before winning Wimbledon. She won with the help of Wintour's advice. In brief, she likes to help people and she doesn't make a big deal out of it. What's more, the media doesn't really talk about these things and how she influenced so many people and enterprises.

This shows that a lot of individuals really count on her taste. Indeed, she is a very smart businesswoman. Her force might be because she’s able to express herself very efficiently with all the creative teams and other entrepreneurs. And it is important to know how to communicate with creative people and with business people as well, as they aren't the same. Well, she can talk to both. But she is also a self-made woman, as she worked her way up through multiple jobs, roles and positions, really hard work to get where she is now.

After all, she's a powerful figure of fashion with an astounding work ethic. If you want to get inspired, she gets up at 4 AM some days, reads the news, exercises, gets ready for the day with hair and makeup, and goes to the office. Her team members say that she works a lot during the day. For example, after she became the Artistic Director of Conde Nast, she didn't lose her job at Vogue, instead, she just started to wake up earlier so that she could do more. This shows extremely good skill with time management and efficiency. But she is different from others and she wants her team to move faster and faster: 15 minutes for a task might be considered too long! So, move quickly if you work for Wintour. This isn't a bad thing, after all: if you send an email, she will respond right away.