A Tribute To Anna

While freelancing at CondeNet years ago, I took one month off to go upstairs and fact check for Vogue. The first time I saw that bob down the hallway I froze. I walked past Anna Wintour unable to even say hello. Later I saw Grace Coddington waiting for the subway at Times Square. Vogue editors take the subway? A few months later while visiting my former research editor, I rode the elevator upstairs despite having just left because the one and only stepped into the lift. There she was–Anna Wintour. As it was winter, she was glad in a tweed Chanel suit. This time I was able to speak a few words. I told her I’d freelanced in research and that I was so impressed with how she dealt with the Big Ol’ Boys. As the elevator approached ground level, she turned and said nonchalantly, ”Oh it’s really not that hard.”

I missed this profile of the fashion Queen Bee, Anna Wintour. If you don’t know who she is, than you probably think fashion is fluff, rather than a multi-billion dollar industry that involves agriculture (cotton!), manufacturing, advertising, sales, marketing, editorial, retail, and now, flash sale sites abound. Anna is at the helm, the one choosing which trends will survive. The amazing Bloomberg TV show Game Changers profiled the Briton. I thought it would be fitting to post this ahead of Fashion Week.