Men’s fashion and lifestyle bible Esquire US recently welcomed young gun Jay Fielden to its reins following the departure of long-time editor-in-chief David Granger in March.
Formerly of The New Yorker, Vogue, and most recently Town & Country, Fielden yesterday spoke to Business of Fashion about how a publication and its editor can stay afloat amidst the current market. Below, we take a look at Fielden’s five key tips.
- Continue to move forward. “I think with any magazine that is edited by a certain person for a long period of time, it expresses an idea about the world. It’s just inevitable when you’re new to something, you have to ask the most basic questions. And if you ask basic questions and they don’t seem to line up with what was, then you have to change it.”
- Respect your competitors. “Having a great competitor is a great thing for everybody,” Fielden says of Condé Nast rival GQ.
- Be consistent with your content. “I want it to be fun, funny, stylish and substantive. Those are four things that if I could apply them to everything in the magazine, I’m happy.”
- Live and breathe your product. “I’m a high priest of this, man,” Fielden comments. “I believe in it.”
- Acknowledge your predecessors and learn from them. “Stepping into the shoes of anyone who has a great reputation and was an award-winning editor comes with respect, trepidation and careful thought. I think he did amazing things there. He was an amazing editor, yet he wasn’t the only one. Esquire’s had a number of amazing editors. He took over, and someone will eventually take over for me. That’s exciting, that’s emboldening and, yes, it keeps you up at night. You know the stakes are high.”
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