For the first time ever, British Vogue has appointed a black man to be at the helm.
Parent company Condé Nast announced Monday that Edward Enninful will be leaving his position as the creative and fashion director of W, an American magazine, to become editor-in-chief of the British fashion book.
Enninful is set to replace Alexandra Shulman and disrupt a 100-year history of white women holding the position , including the current American Vogue editor, Anna Wintour. The 45-year-old, who is openly gay, will also become the first non-white man to lead a mainstream women’s fashion magazine.
Enninful is one of six siblings and migrated to England from Ghana when he was young. He has always had a love for fashion and officially began his career in the industry at the age of 16, when he was recruited to model in the British magazine i-D.
Three years later, Enninful went on to become i-D’s fashion editor, which made him one of the youngest to ever hold such a prestigious position. He worked there for nearly two decades before leaving to contribute to both the American and Italian editions of Vogue.
Enninful, who helped to style the models in Vogue Italia’s popular “Black Issue” in 2008, has been recognized for his efforts to diversify the fashion industry and has been outspoken about racism .
He will officially take on his new role on Aug. 1, and we can’t wait to see what he’ll do next. Congrats to him!