Suzy Menkes and the New Digital World

Tonight I watched this interview between Suzy Menkes, one of today's most respected and legendary fashion journalists, and Imran Ahmed, founder of Business of Fashion, the leading site for up-to-the-minute news from the fashion industry. Suzy has recently been named International Vogue Editor for Conde Nast International, a role that will see her write a global column several times a week, to be published on Vogue websites from all over the globe, including China, Brazil, India, Russia and Germany to name a few. Suzy joins Conde Nast International from a long career at the International Herald Tribune and New York Times newspapers, where her legendary journalism brought a serious and honest tone to fashion writing. Suzy herself says one of the reasons she accepted the new role at Conde Nast International, was that she feels it's incredibly important to keep up with the ever-evolving times. Suzy is not afraid of technology and this role seemed the perfect transition to be able to utilize the internet and it's up to the minute benefits.

Suzy began her career back in 1987 , a time when iPads, Instagram and digital cameras didn't exist. It's fascinating to listen to Suzy talk about her career back in these days when fashion wasn't instant. Back then, a fashion show was for press and buyers only, and had a certain mystery allure to the general public that no longer exists now that all shows are live-streamed and images of the shows are up on social media before the model has even left the catwalk. You can now even pre-order items from the catwalk, as they are going down the catwalk as seen at Burberry and I'm sure many other brands next season. In the interview, Suzy mentions the frantic process of getting film from a show sent on a bike to be developed straight after the show, choosing the best photos to be developed, then being biked straight to the newspaper with the hope of not missing the print deadline for the next days paper.

I could talk for hours about this subject. It's amazing to think about the transformation the industry has been through with the introduction of the internet and social media, in particular when it comes to fashion shows. Something that used to be for the eyes of the elite is now accessible to the world. Fascinating.