Why Are So Many Editors Leaving Magazines for Retail Brands?
Yesterday, WWD reported that Anamaria Wilson, the fashion features director at Harper’s Bazaar, would be leaving her post at the magazine to join Michael Kors as senior vice president of global corporate communications. Wilson is something of a veteran in the publishing industry, building her career over the past twenty years at such prestigious titles as WWD, W Magazine and, of course, Harper's Bazaar, so her recent move to Kors is somewhat unexpected--and it's definitely a change of pace. But Wilson isn't alone: Several big-name editors have recently made the jump from editorial to brands. NYLON's Faran Krentcil is now at Clarins and Shopbop; New York Mag's Jenny Kang is now at J. Crew; GQ's Sean Hotchkiss is also now at J.Crew; Glamour's Jenny Feldman is now at Amazon; Lucky's Jen Ford is now at Kate Spade; Marie Claire's Taylor Tomasi Hill is now at Moda Operandi; and the list goes on. So what's going on? Why are all these editorial-minded individuals leaving publishing to work for retail brands?