Anna Wintour is stepping back as editor-in-chief of American Vogue after more than 30 years after being at the helm of comfortable authority. That announcement was made on June 26, 2025 during a Condé Nast staff meeting. Wintour, 75, first started with the magazine in 1988 and is credited for making Vogue a worldwide brand in fashion and culture.
While Wintour is stepping back from the U.S. version of the magazine, she is not retiring. She will still stay with Condé Nast as the company's Chief Content Officer and Global Editorial Director of Vogue. In that capacity, Wintour will still continue to oversee all the international editions of Vogue, and other Condé Nast products, such as Vanity Fair, GQ, Glamour, and Wired.
As part of the transition, Condé Nast has started the search for a new Head of Editorial Content for American Vogue. The Head of Editorial Content will manage the magazine's daily editorial responsibilities and report to Wintour. Both Wintour and the new Head of Editorial Content will have the ability to grow the brand, as other international editions of Vogue have successfully done with similar editorial structures.
Wintour will still have an active involvement directly in important Vogue events and initiatives like the Met Gala, Vogue World, and special editorial projects in interests that she has, like tennis and theater.
The Career That Changed Fashion Publishing
It can't be overstated how important Anna Wintour is to the fashion industry and the term 'powerful' might even lessen the impact she has had in the time she has been in control of fitting Vogue within the realm of influential publications. In 1988, Vogue was already a strong brand, however, as a true cultural institution, Vogue was completely transformed under Wintour's leadership. In addition, she delivers an inspiring personal style as well as a clear editorial vision, and she seems to have the ability to see into the future in terms of fashion, at least long before the rest of the industry sees a trend.
One of the more memorable early decisions in her editorial life was to put a model in jeans and a couture jacket to depict the cover of her first issue of Vogue. The decision at the time was considered a risky choice to put jeans on the cover, but what a powerful cover it became. This was a sign of the kind of risk and new directions for editorial Wintour would be known for.
Anna Wintour Steps Down As ‘Vogue’ Editor-In-Chief After 37 Years https://t.co/OUKNInqGNR
— VIBE Magazine (@VibeMagazine) June 26, 2025
For most of her career, she has supported both established designers and newcomers. Many well-known designers credit Wintour with launching or supporting their careers. Wintour was also among the earliest people to bring celebrities into the fashion conversation by showing Hollywood stars on the covers of Vogue and using the magazine to consider wider cultural movements.
Beyond the pages of Vogue, Wintour has also been a major player in supporting and organizing the Met Gala - one of the most exciting events in both the fashion and entertainment worlds. Wintour also has enterprise and power beyond the fashion world, being a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and being named Dame Commander by the British Empire.
Wintour’s choice to leave the U.S. Vogue reflects a close in an important chapter in fashion journalism. But with her continuing leadership of international content, she will remain one of the most significant figures in content.
Her move is viewed as a tactical opportunity to let someone fresh take charge at US Vogue, but she retains a big picture view of the brand around the world. The next few months are critical in that Condé Nast is looking for a successor that can continue the Vogue legacy and adapt to today’s changing media landscape.
Source(Image / Thumbnail): wwd.com
