The End of the Edwardian Age

Prior to taking over British Vogue in 2017, Enninful was a contract person, meaning he could style high-paying advertising campaigns and pursue other cash-rich projects with ease. Photo: David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images
Lauren Sherman
June 5, 2023

The fashion media in-crowd’s use of the word “promotion” to describe Edward Enninful’s impending exit as editor in chief of British Vogue, announced last week, seemed odd to me, and obviously a bit contrived. It was clear that Enninful was not being promoted, but instead going freelance in 2024. The move itself manifested a few unspoken realities of how fashion works these days.