Radar ranks trendsetters and the news isn't good
Look out, it seems as if we should all be dressing like mall rats if we truly want to be fashionable. On Radar's first ever fashion influence list Lauren Conrad came in first place, with an aspirational Anna Wintour coming in at number 17.
All is not lost, fashion insiders like Karl Lagerfeld and Marc Jacobs came in second and third, but then we're back to the reality roundup with Tyra Banks at number 4. A supermodel, yes, but one completely almost completely degraded in the fashion department. For the full list, keep on reading.
1. THE UPSTART: Lauren Conrad, Intern: Teen Vogue; Designer, Lauren Conrad Collection—Millions of tweens believe passionately in her fairy tale, and they all get allowances. The Lauren Conrad Collection launched in September 2007, featuring a 10-piece line of camera-ready dresses best accessorized with a caramel tan and a blank stare. Roll your eyes, but Conrad, in her pearls, headbands, and empire-waisted floaty dresses, is the mild-mannered muse of the moment.
2. THE JESTER: Karl Lagerfeld, Designer, Chanel, Fendi—His personal rebranding effort may veer toward the broadest rag-trade caricature—the powdered white ponytail, stomach-cinching black pants, and noir shades—but they’re perfectly calibrated for mass consumption. He also cannily picks his muses (Lily Allen, Lindsay Lohan) with an eye on deep-pocketed consumers decades his junior.
3. THE PRINCE: Marc Jacobs, Designer, Marc Jacobs, Louis Vuitton—It’s official: Marc Jacobs is bullet-proof! His fashionably late reputation hit a snag last fall, when fashiondom furiously cooled their Chanel pumps during a two-hour delay at his show. Jacobs responded by threatening to move his show to Paris. Since Jacobs happens to be the only American designer who’s consistently revered for his art, the glitterati scrambled to make amends. Even in an off year, his power was palpable.
4. THE STATIC: Tyra Banks, Reality TV Phenom—Banks has laid down the ratings-grabbing schmaltz on her eponymous chat show, and, as the host of America’s Next Top Model, has held the reins as the face of fashion in the flyover states since 2003.
5. THE MOGULS: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Presidents: DualStar; Designers: The Row, Elizabeth & James—The waify divas—who control an estimated $14 billion empire—launched two clothing lines in 2007 alone, have graced the covers of Nylon, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire and Teen Vogue. But their greatest coup is the accolade they now share with Anna Wintour: the wrath of PETA. When people start throwing blood in your face, you know you’ve arrived.
6. THE POPULIST: Sasha Charnin Morrison, Fashion Director: US Weekly—Though it lacks hauteur, fashion flacks say landing a shot of a Simpson sister holding a label’s latest It bag in one of Morrison’s coveted red-carpet pages moves more merch than a full-page image in a highly art-directed Condé glossy.
7. THE PHOENIX: Rachel Zoe, Hollywood Stylist—With a plum role overseeing the relaunch of Halston’s ‘70s-glam collection, she’s sagely steered away from the underage DUIers who made her a success. In 2007, she stepped up her media assault by publishing the requisite book and landing herself in millions of homes via an ad campaign for cell phones. The Zoe-thon appears to have worked: Both W and the Times Magazine have tripped over themselves with fawning articles dubbing her fashion’s queen bee. Expect the fluff to keep flowing: The last thing a magazine wants to do is alienate the woman who just might pull out her Samsung and score them their next cover.
8. THE ORACLES: Philippe Von Borries and Piera Gelardi, Co-Owners: Refinery29—The Web’s preeminent indie fashion hub, refinery29.com, susses out new trends so routinely that many fashion monthlies unabashedly lift their news directly from the site. Philippe’s a tall, blond German; Piera’s a former photo editor from City magazine who manages to pull off cloche hats with aplomb. And they’re married, which is so gosh-darn dorky, it’s cool.
9. THE GAUL: Olivier Zahm, Editor in Chief: Purple—For lensmen-on-the-make and would-be It girls, an audience with Purple magazine’s Olivier Zahm—who’s also the creative director for YSL’s stunning ad campaigns—is the ultimate break. The consummate Frenchman, Zahm’s got the cravat, cigar, and aviators-at-night look nailed, plus the chops to keep it from being repellent.
10. THE STARMAKER: Margareta Van Den Bosch, Head of Design, H&M—As H&M’s top style maven, van den Bosch outfits Gen Y in trendy gear for nothing. More importantly, she oversees the cheap-chic chain’s frenzy-inducing collaborations, the most successful of which (Stella McCartney and last fall’s leopard crazed Roberto Cavalli line) sell out within hours, and raise awareness for the designers’ own entry-level lines.
11. THE GATEKEEPER: Bonnie Morrison, Publicity Director: KCD
12. THE HEIRESS: Delphine Arnault Gancia, Board Member: LVMH
13. THE PRES: Diane Von Furstenberg, President: CFDA; Designer: Diane Von Furstenberg
14. THE INGENUE: Georgina Chapman, Co-Designer: Marchesa
15. THE BLOW-UP DOLL: Victoria Beckham, Style Advisor; Spice Girl
16. THE PIED PIPER: Jane Keltner, Fashion News Director, Teen Vogue
17. THE BATTLE AX: Anna Wintour, Editor in Chief: Vogue
18. THE ELDER STATESMAN: Ralph Lauren, Designer, Polo Ralph Lauren
19. THE REALITY MAVENS: Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum, Talking Head; Model
20. THE PHENOM: Cory Kennedy, Muse: Cobrasnake, Urban Decay; Designer: Urban Outfitters
21. THE LADY IN WAITING: Bee Shaffer, Daughter: Anna Wintour; Contributor, Teen Vogue
22. THE SAVIOR: Patrick Robinson, Designer, The Gap
23. THE EXTRATERRESTRIAL: Sasha Pivovarova, Model
24. THE SHOPKEEPER: Humberto Leon, Co-owner: Opening Ceremony
25. THE SHOWMAN: Andre J., Muse
For more on the list be sure to pick up the March issue of Radar.