Famed “Project Runway” editor Nina Garcia will return to Elle magazine, this time as the magazine’s editor-in-chief, an announcement made by Hearst on Tuesday (September 12, 2017). She will begin her role on September 18th and her first issue will be either the February or March 2018 issue.
Garcia will succeed Robbie Myers, who has been the editor-in-chief of the magazine since 2000.
For the past five years, Garcia has been the creative director of Marie Claire, a publication she joined in 2008 as a fashion director.
Elle will be familiar territory for Garcia, who served as the magazine’s fashion director from 2000-2008, and she said as much in a statement about the move. “I understand firsthand what the DNA is,” Garcia told the NY Times. “I am looking to amplify the DNA of the brand. It’s bold, it’s provocative, it’s inclusive, democratic, it’s innovative. I just want to amplify all those things we know about Elle.”
The return is a triumphant one for Garcia, who, according to Gawker (‘member them?), was fired from Elle for refusing to wear a label as part of a paid for endorsement deal with the magazine.
Garcia will bring with her an Instagram following of 416,000, much of which was amassed through her role as a judge on the long-running reality fashion show “Project Runway.” Garcia has been a judge on the show since its first season in 2004 when one of the prizes was editorial placement in Elle magazine.
