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15 Famous Fashion Journalists in the World

Fashion journalism is a very interesting field of study especially when you are so passionate about fashion. If you are looking to attend all these fashion events without even paying a dime (coz duh! the media house that has sent you will take care of it), then this is a profession to pursue. You will not only get to meet all the fashion icons you can think of but will also experience the thrill of meeting many fashion designers, picking on their minds and just getting to understand this industry even better. Moreover, there are many other types of journalists like travel journalists and many others. This sheds light on how important and vast this field is.

1. Anna Wintour

Anna Wintour at the Twenty8Twelve fashion show in London, September 22, 2009- Author; Daniel Case-

Anna Wintour started her career as a fashion editor in the 80s. After being fired from Bazaar, she worked her way up to being the Editor-in-chief of British Vogue, which she did for more than 30 years.

In essence,  fashion was a part of her life even more than just a career choice or passion. Her efforts to revolutionise British Vogue so as to make it relatable and approachable have inspired so many women across the globe.

Currently, Anna is the editor-in-chief of American Vogue and the chief content officer of Conde Nast, which is highly regarded as the most influential figure in fashion. Arguably, she is the most commercially minded editor ever.

2. Suzy Menkes

Suzy Menkes at Â鶹APP Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2019- Author; Myles Kalus Anak Jihem-

Suzy Menkes is a force to reckon with. She is quite frankly, one of the best fashion editors and critics in the world. She has a powerful influence and demeanour in the fashion industry as it was said once that she challenged Marc Jacobs designs. The fashion show started 2 hours past the challenge. In other words, she really doesn’t give a damn who you are. If the designs are whack and not pleasing to her eyes, best believe she will definitely call you out.

Thanks to her reputation, she is known for her strong and independent views. She has also invested 25 years of her life being a journalist for the International Herald Tribune industry. Lately, she’s been part of different outlets of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar thus showing how her career keeps on growing.

In addition to her very amazing portfolio, Menkes is also the author of several books on fashion and jewellery designs. You can always check out her social media pages for more fashion inspirations.

3. Robin Givhan

Robin Givhan reading at the 2015 National Book Festival- Author; slowking4 –

Robin Givhan is hands down still one of the leading fashion editors and critics for the past 15 years. Quite frankly, she’s been in the game for such a long time and thus the respect that is always associated with her name is quite huge. Interestingly enough, she is the only journalist to have won Pulitzer Prize which is no easy feat and has also worked with various magazines like The Daily Beast and Newsweek.

She has been in the Washington Post newspaper house for more than 10 years and her amazing skill of aesthetic writing together with fashion criticism is something to envy. Every young journalist in town looks up to her for inspiration.

4. Franca Sozzani

Plus size modelling- Image by Eris from

Plus size modelling and inclusivity of women into the fashion world regardless of their skin colour is something that has always been frowned upon. Racism and body shaming is still very much happening in the fashion industry and many women interested in this industry who haven’t met the ‘threshold’ (whatever that might be in accordance to designers), are being driven to depression. So, when this saviour by the name of Franca Sozzani came on board and started breaking all the stereotypes in this industry, many fashion enthusiasts felt seen, included and appreciated. This rule breaker has fought all forms of racism and even featured plus size and black models in the issue of Vogue Italia back when she worked there. Of course, this wasn’t appreciated so much but she didn’t care. That is what I love about Sozzani.

5. Venessa Friedman

Financial Times Newspaper- Image by sandid from

Venessa Friedman is well known for her brutally honest reviews. Of course, this always rubs some people the wrong way (nobody loves criticism anyway) but that’s what really sets her apart. However, thanks to her honest reviews, she holds a huge fan base. For just a bit of background information, Friedman was the fashion editor writing for ‘Finacial Times’ and her writing style has been dubbed as simple and understandable. This is why so many of her fans genuinely love her content. Currently, she is the chief fashion critic and fashion director at The New York Times having been given that position back in 2014.

6. Cathy Horyn

Cathy Horyn- Author; DavidShankbone-

For 16 years, Cathy Horyn has been known as a well-known fashion critic who has worked for the New York Times for 16 years. Having been in the industry for so long, she’s also been a part of various fashion magazines like Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar and International Herald Tribune just but to name a few.

7. Alexander Fury

Men’s Fashion- Image by Pexels from

Just to try and break the pattern a bit. Let’s have a look at a male fashion journalist. One of the very well-known ones is Alexander Fury, a men’s fashion critic at Financial Times. He is also a fashion features director at ‘Another Magazine’ and he is one of the men who has managed to mark his fame in a very female-dominated peer of editors. FYI: His Instagram page is also as updated as him.

Additionally, he is part of the British Fashion Council and has also been the chief fashion correspondent in the New York Times style magazine. On the same note, he is also the fashion editor of the ‘Independent’ on Sunday newspapers.

8. Glenda Bailey

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Glenda is honestly one of the most influential fashion icons in the industry. She is very well known for her bold ideas and for always bringing unheard and fresh ideas to the table. Thanks to her, the circulation of Marie Claire flared up by 80% and currently, she now works as the editor-in-chief of Bazaar. As a young fashion writer or fashion journalist, this is the icon for you to look up to and follow.

9. Dana Thomas

Girl holding the washinton post newspaper- Image by WikiImages from Pixabay

Dana Thomas started off her career by working for the ‘Washinton Post.’ This is where she had the opportunity to spread her wings in this industry and understand the nitty-gritty of the industry. Apart from being a fashion journalist, she has also written so many books on fashion that actually have amazing recommendations. Currently, she is also an active contributor to various well-known magazines such as the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Harper’s Bazaar among others.

10. Anna Dello Russo

Anna Dello Russo at Â鶹APP Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2019- Author; Myles Kalus Anak Jihem- Wikimedia

Anna is an Italian fashion journalist who is very well known for her outstanding street-style fashion. The good thing about her is that she doesn’t just critique fashion designs and write about them. She goes to great lengths to actually be seen in the trendiest and most beautiful designs there are. Just check up any fashion weeks and you will definitely spot her representing quite well. Additionally, she has worked with Vogue Japan and contributed to many other fashion platforms on a wider scale.

11. Richard Buckley

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Richard Buckley is another man, in this female-dominated industry that has done quite well for himself. Having passed on on September 2021 after battling a long illness, he sure left a huge mark in the industry. During his prime time, he worked for Vogue Italia, New York Magazine, Vanity Fair and even Vogue Hommes. I mean, his portfolio is quite impressive.

12. Laura Brown

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Laura is another fashion journalist based in Australia who does a marvellous job of critiquing and writing about fashion. She is the editor of In style Magazine which is owned by Dotdash Meredith in the U.S. Laura has worked for Harper’s Bazaar for 11 years which is pretty impressive. Before that, she produced more than 100 covers and even collaborated with Mon Purse, a Sidney- based designer of handbags.

13. Lisa Armstrong

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Lisa is also another fashion journalist who is currently heading the fashion department at ‘The Daily Telegraph.’ She has worked as a freelance for Elle Uk, Vogue UK as a fashion writer, The Independent and also Bazaar. Her portfolio is also quite impressive and she comes out as a fashion enthusiast who has done her homework well and thus knows what she’s talking about in every piece of writing she comes up with. Additionally, she was also honoured as the fashion journalist of the year, during the 2017 Fashion Awards.

14. Grace Mirabella

Fashion show event- Image by Ahmad Ardity from

Mirabella is actually the former editor-in-chief of Vogue before Anna Wintour came on board back in 1971 and 1988. Having completed her studies at Skidmore College in Economics, she soon after started her career by doing junior positions in retail. She even worked at Macy’s. She literally started small and built her way up. Later on, she started in a junior position at Vogue where she gradually got promoted to become the head editor.

15. Carine Roitfeld

fashion event- Photo by Rudy Issa on

Carine Roitfeld is a fashion journalist who mostly writes about French fashion. She was actually a french fashion writer, editor and stylist at Vogue Â鶹APP between the years, 2001 and 2011. Later on, she became the editor-in-chief of the bi-annual print magazine fashion book which did quite well. She has even involved herself in personal freelance styling and modelling projects thus letting you know that she always truly knows what she is talking about in each and every piece she writes about. Moreover, in 2012, she became the global fashion director of Bazaar.