Anna Wintour Steps Down At U.S. Vogue. Who Could Replace Her?

Anna Wintour, who has been setting the public fashion taste as editor-in-chief at Vogue since 1988, said today she is stepping down from her longtime position. Although Wintour will remain as an executive at parent company Condé Nast, where she is chief content officer, she will decrease her day-to-day involvement at Vogue while still retaining the brand’s global editorial director role.

Wintour is one of the few magazine editors to attain celebrity status that rivals that of the models she featured on her title’s cover. As a longtime tastemaker in the fashion industry, she influenced brands worth billions and even (allegedly) inspired the infamous character of Miranda Priestley, the ice queen editor in former Vogue employee Lauren Weisberger’s smash book and movie The Devil Wears Prada.

Potential Anna Wintour Replacements

Of course, the big question now is who will succeed Wintour in fashion’s most prominent job. Condé Nast did not announce a replacement.

Wintour will undoubtedly play a role in selecting her successor, and there will be many hoping for consideration. But only three people, all of them women, have the clout, editorial experience and most of all confidence to take on the job—it is not easy to replace a legend.

Anna Wintour Successor Possibility One: Amy Astley

Amy Astley, currently editor of Architectural Digest and widely respected within the publishing industry, may be the top contender. She served as the launch editor for Teen Vogue, when she was handpicked for the job by Wintour herself.

She thus knows the Condé Nast brand intimately, a considerable advantage in a company that prides itself on legacy and tradition even as the magazine world has changed drastically over the past two decades. And Teen Vogue was a huge success under Astley, earning Adweek’s Startup of the Year honors in 2004.

She jumped to Architectural Digest in 2016, just as Teen Vogue hit its stride by publishing more political content during the Trump years, and she has guided the title to greater digital success, a must now for magazines.

Anna Wintour Successor Possibility Two: Chioma Nnadi

A British superstar who previously worked for the American version of Vogue, Chioma Nnadi currently edits British Vogue. When she took over the title in 2023, she also became the first woman of color to serve in a senior leadership role at Vogue. When her appointment was announced, Wintour said that Nnadi, who is of Nigerian, Swiss and German descent, was “beloved” by her Vogue colleagues.

She worked at the American Vogue for more than a dozen years before that, notably as co-host of the Vogue podcast, which earned her listener kudos and more of a public face than most writers. Condé Nast credited her efforts with driving digital and social media traffic upon her appointment to edit British Vogue. Her longstanding personal relationship with Wintour could give her an edge.

Anna Wintour Successor Possibility Three: Kate Betts

Kate Betts is definitely the least likely of the three to earn the position, and even suggesting her may seem outlandish, considering she left Vogue after she and Wintour reportedly butted heads. But consider this: Until she exited to become editor of Harper’s Bazaar, she was seen as Wintour’s likely successor.

And while whether the two ever actually made up, public appearances aside, Wintour cares deeply about the Vogue brand and wants it to succeed. Betts was an exceptional arbiter of that style, and she wrote a scathing review of Prada in the New York Times that Wintour likely appreciated.

She didn’t last long at Harper’s and later published a memoir; today, she’s a contributing editor at Time Style & Design, freelancer and CNN fashion contributor. The appointment is unlikely, but it would be interesting.