Anna Wintour Quotations

I'm very good at delegating - people work much better when they have a real sense of responsibility. But at the same time, I don't like surprises. I don't pore over every shoot, but I do like to be aware at all times of what's going on.

To be in 'Vogue' has to mean something. It's an endorsement. It's a validation.

I surround myself with a talented group of people that are opinionated and interesting. I try to remain very open to what others have to say.

I'm horribly hands-on, I'm afraid. I like to read every caption.

I look for strong people. I don't like people who'll say yes to everything I might bring up. I want people who can argue and disagree and have a point of view that's reflected in the magazine. My dad believed in the cult of personality. He brought great writers and columnists to The Standard.

I’m very driven by what I do. I am certainly very competitive. I like people who represent the best at what they do. If that turns you into a perfectionist then maybe I am.

In the end I do respond to my own instincts. Sometimes they're successful, and obviously sometimes they're not. But you have to, I think, remain true to what you believe in.

One doesn't want fashion to look ridiculous, silly, or out of step with the times - but you do want designers that make you think, that make you look at fashion differently. That's how fashion changes. If it doesn't change, it's not looking forward. And that's important to me.

I'd always been extremely fascinated by the French Nuit Blanche, which is a weekend that they have in Paris where they keep all the museums open until dawn. You can go and hang out in Versailles in the middle of the night and watch the sun come up.

I think possibly what people working for one hate the most is indecision. Even if I'm completely unsure, I'll pretend I know exactly what I'm talking about and make a decision. The most important thing I can do is try and make myself very clearly understood.

I don't think I am that hands-on. I'm much more of a believer in finding a great team of people and trusting them to follow their instincts. They work better when they feel they have freedom and they are trusted.

I'm always looking for a cover subject that reflects the magazine, an interest in fashion, in culture, in society. We're trying to bring the world into the pages of 'Vogue.' We do that by tapping into the zeitgeists with our cover subjects.

It's very important to take risks. I think that research is very important, but in the end you have to work from your instinct and feeling and take those risks and be fearless. When I hear a company is being run by a team, my heart sinks, because you need to have that leader with a vision and heart that can move things forward.

I want 'Vogue' to be pacy, sharp, and sexy - I'm not interested in the super-rich or infinitely leisured. I want our readers to be energetic executive women, with money of their own and a wide range of interests. There is a new kind of woman out there. She's interested in business and money.

It's important for young women and men coming out of the fashion schools to think seriously before starting their own collections.

I never pay any attention. I'm sure it's not such a good way to be, but I don't really follow market research.

'Vogue' is the best of everything that fashion can offer, and I think we point the way. We are, you know, a glamorous girlfriend.

If one comes across sometimes as being cold or brusque, it's simply because I'm striving for the best.

Because of reality television and all these celebrities thinking they can be designers, everyone imagines that they can just become a designer, photographer, or model, but that's not the way things work. People have to go to school, learn their craft, and build a brand - that's the right, healthy way to do things.

My father was a newspaper editor, so I was surrounded by journalists my entire life. I think the fact that he was so well known may be why I chose to go into magazines and move to the States at a young age.

It is so important for designers not to run scared, and not to be too worried about what's safe and what's commercial.

I don't really follow market research. In the end, I respond to my own instincts.

I went to Wimbledon before I could walk. It's just been a lifelong passion.

'Vogue' is a fashion magazine, and a fashion magazine is about change.

I wasn't academically successful. And maybe I've spent a lot of my career trying to make up for that.

Part of the pleasure of editing 'Vogue,' one that lies in a long tradition of this magazine, is being able to feature those who define the culture at any given moment, who stir things up, whose presence in the world shapes the way it looks and influences the way we see it.

Previous first ladies seemed to feel the need to wear a sort of uniform, whereas Michelle Obama likes fashion and is very comfortable in fashion. She's happy to mix high and low, and she loves emerging designers. That will do nothing but good for our industry.

The Fashion Fund celebrates the real passion that underlies the fashion business, not the frothy world of glamour and celebrity that so often surrounds it.

The notion that a contemporary woman must look mannish in order to be taken seriously as a seeker of power is frankly dismaying. This is America, not Saudi Arabia.

By the time I came to the States, I really understood how a magazine works. I came to 'Vogue' as creative director, and three years later I went back to London to be editor in chief of British 'Vogue.'

Fashion today is available to everybody in a way that it's never been before: you've got every designer you've ever heard of working for H& or Target. That's fantastic.

I like having young assistants in my office; they have energy, and I spend time with them to make sure they understand what we're doing. By investing in them, I'm investing in the magazine. All over 'Vogue,' 'Teen Vogue,' and 'Men's Vogue,' there are people who have been through not only my office but also many other offices at 'Vogue.'

It's very important to me that I look good when I go out publicly. I like looking at my clothes rack in the morning and deciding what to pick out. I enjoy fashion.

It is important always to have really original talent. There are lots of good designers that make attractive clothes and make women look beautiful. But at the same time, one doesn't want to lose the idea that there is someone out there who can change the way you look at fashion.

I've been very lucky to put women that I sincerely admire on the cover of 'Vogue:' the then First Lady and now Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and, more recently, First Lady Michelle Obama. Those were benchmarks for the magazine, and certainly covers that I've been very, very proud of.

There's barely a strand of the modern media that the Kardashian-Wests haven't been able to master, and for good reason: Kanye is an amazing performer and cultural provocateur, while Kim, through her strength of character, has created a place for herself in the glare of the world's spotlight, and it takes real guts to do that.

I don't think of myself as a powerful person,

There's always a way to wear fur,

It's possible in today's world to be instantly famous, whether it's through Instagram or whatever platform it may be, but it's a very different matter to be successful financially and in the long-term

Tears? Are you going for a Barbara Walters moment?

Vogue' is the best of everything that fashion can offer, and I think we point the way. We are, you know, a glamorous girlfriend.

It is a family; it's a slightly dysfunctional family, but it's also very close and warm and loving family.

I saw young women in the street dressing in a way that I thought was influencing the designers. Fashion was being influenced by all sorts of different people, and culture and also across the street. So I saw more as a trickle up, than a trickle down influence. When I came to Vogue, that's what I wanted it to reflect.

They (fashion editors) have always been our secret weapon.

Fashion is a reflection of our times. Fashion can tell you everything that's going on in the world with a strong fashion image.

Gisele Bundchen, along w Kate Moss, is a phenomenon. I wish models knew they have to have a personality

The notion that Anna would want something done "now" and not "shortly" is accurate.

It's not so much about powerful women. In some cases, there are stereotypes about women. I often don't hear men talked about in the same way. It's more a sexist stereotype than a powerful stereotype.

I'm an ice queen, I'm the Sun King, I'm an alien fleeing from District 9 and I'm a dominatrix. So I reckon that makes me a lukewarm royalty with a whip from outer space.

Well it just looks so ugly. Is it a boy or is it a girl?

I think what I often see is that people are frightened about fashion. Because it scares them or makes them feel insecure, so they just put it down. On the whole people that may say the mean things about our world I think that’s usually because they feel, in some ways, excluded or, you know, not a part of ‘the cool group’ so as a result they just mock it.

With all the new media outlets out there, with all the noise, a voice of authority and calm like Vogue becomes more important than ever. The more eyes on fashion, the more opinions about fashion, the more exploration of fashion around the world, the better it is for Vogue. Vogue is like Nike or Coca-Cola—this huge global brand. I want to enhance it, I want to protect it, and I want it to be part of the conversation.

Models today, she explained, don't understand that to be successful you have to have a personality, intelligence, and issues that you support, and Gisele embodies these qualities.

The gossip might make better reading, but the simple fact of the matter is that it isn't true.

I'd just been on a trip to Minnesota, where I can only kindly describe most of the people I saw as little houses.

We are devastated to learn of the death of Alexander McQueen, one of the greatest talents of his generation. He brought a uniquely British sense of daring and aesthetic fearlessness to the global stage of fashion. In such a short career, Alexander McQueen's influence was astonishing - from street style, to music culture and the world's museums. His passing marks an insurmountable loss.

I don’t like people who are late.

One should look forward rather than backwards.

[The democratization of luxury] means more people are going to get better fashion. And the more people who can have fashion, the better.

Fashion's not about looking back. It's always about looking forward.

Create your own individual style. I'm not interested in the girl who walks into my office in a HEAD-to-TOE LABEL look that's straight off the runway. I'm interested in a Girl who puts herself together in an ORIGINAL INDEPENDENT Way

One wants to be surprised.

I’ve never taken a selfie and I don’t plan to start now,

When I hear a company is being run by a team, my heart sinks, because you need to have that leader with a vision and heart that can move things forward.

I worked for Harper’s Bazaar. They fired me. I recommend that you all get fired; it’s a great learning experience.

There's a new kind of woman out there…She doesn't have time to shop anymore. She wants to know what and why and where and how.

People constantly make the mistake of comparing London with New York, Milan and Paris and that's not what it's about. London has its own fashion identity. You come here to find the next Alexander McQueen or John Galliano.

Some people have the Bible. I have Vogue.

Fashion is not beautiful, neither is it ugly. Why should it be either? Fashion is fashion.

To be in Vogue has to mean something

Fashion goes in only one direction -forward- and I am a firm believer in thinking that way too.

Gisele Bundchen is a bit of a jock. 1 of my fave shoots is her playing football

Everyone should be sacked at least once in their career because perfection doesn't exist. It's important to have setbacks, because that is the reality of life.

Go get a job. Whether it’s working as a designer or working in a restaurant and then doing your own thing in your own time, it’s a reality of life. In the end it’s going to be helpful to you and so many others.

Even if I'm completely unsure, I'll pretend I know exactly what I'm talking about and make a decision.

If one comes across sometimes as being cold or brusque its simply because I'm striving for the best.

Just be true to yourself, and listen as much as one is able to to other people whose opinions you respect and look up to but in the end it has to come from you. You can’t really worry too much by looking to the left and the right about what the competition is doing or what other people in your field are doing. It has to be a true vision.

The Trump Card is appealing, grounded, smart, and has a sense of humor. Ivanka Trump proves that believing in yourself and working hard never go out of style.

It's the mishaps that make it fun, and brings you the surprise.

In today's world you have to interact. You can't be some difficult, shy person who is not able to look somebody in the face; you have to present yourself. You have to know how to talk about your vision, your focus and what you believe in.

You can’t really worry too much…about what the competition is doing or what other people in your field are doing. It has to be a true vision.

You either know fashion or you don't.

There is something about fashion that can make people really nervous.

If you can't be better than your competition, just dress better.

The best way to make dream come true is to wake up.

It’s always about timing. If it’s too soon, no one understands. If it’s too late, everyone’s forgotten.

If you look at any great fashion photograph out of context, it will tell you just as much about what's going on in the world as a headline in The New York Times.

People respond well to those that are sure of what they want.

I'm interested in seeing just the girl on the street because she is unlike any other. I'm inspired by whatever it is she might be wearing.

We wanted to be as careful as we could to signal that this magazine is aimed at a different market, ... upscale feel.

This is why New York has become the most relevant fashion capital in the world. Because we respect not only the established designers but also the up-and-coming ones like Peter.

It's strong, pretty and wearable. And the stores will love it.

I mean, he's sort of the target reader, Jay.