They said/We said: Condé Nast reportedly forbids its contributors and employees from working with Carine Roitfeld
In a move that could be straight out of The Devil Wears Prada, the New York Post’s Page Six is reporting that Condé Nast is pulling out all the stops in its attempt to freeze out former Condé editor Carine Roitfeld.
A source told Page Six that Condé Nast CEO Jonathan Newhouse sent out a friendly “reminder” to contracted contributors like Mario Testino, Craig McDean, David Sims and the Mert Alas/Marcus Piggott team about their exclusive contracts with Condé, and that contributing to Roitfeld’s new biannual glossy CR Fashion Book would violate their agreements.
Even those who are not under contractual obligation with Condé Nast are being strongly “discouraged” from contributing to CR, which will be published by Fashion Media Group LLC.
After having left her post as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris amid a flurry of rumours (most hinting at tensions between Roitfeld and Newhouse), the fashion industry was abuzz with excitement over what direction the always edgy and fascinating Roitfeld would take. So far, all her ventures have been far from disappointing.
Given Roitfeld’s popularity with the who’s-who of the fashion world, it will be interesting to see how this rumoured power struggle unfolds. We can only imagine the number of advertisers, brands, editors and photographers who are caught between a desperate desire to collaborate with Roitfeld and the fear of some serious backlash from publishing heavyweight Condé Nast.
THEY SAID…
Cheryl Wischhover, features and beauty editor: “We can’t help but wonder if brands—who would hate (read: can’t afford) to lose the support of Anna Wintour and the Condé machine—may be strong-armed into not working with CR Fashion Book.” [Fashionista]
Vanessa Pilar Grannis, blogger: “What ever happened to ‘Work hard and Be Nice to People.’?” [Twitter]
Samantha Randazzo, writer: “When it comes to Condé Nast, you’re either with them or against them.” [Styleite]
WE SAID…
Rani Sheen, copy and health editor: “That a publishing powerhouse of this size is worried about its people contributing to a start-up is a huge compliment to Carine. She’s nurtured incredible talents before—here’s hoping this spurs her to do it again and help a new generation of star shooters and editors emerge.”
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