Former 'Marie Claire' Editors in Chief Reminisce About Their Time on the Job

As I sit down to write this note to you, it's a mere two days before we put our Changemakers Issue to bed, which will hit newsstands 30 years since Marie Claire was first published in the US. The moment makes me think of all the change that's happened to MC since then, and how the magazine continues to evolve.

The world around us does, too. Take Kamala Harris, who is poised to make history in America’s presidential election. Her common refrain, “You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you,” rings in my head as we celebrate three decades of this magazine and I think of the pioneers who led this brand before me. I pass the mic to them to share their favorite MC memories and lessons learned during their time as editor in chief.

“Landing the job to launch MC U.S. as editor in chief—now that was a thrill and an honor. But my next favorite memory was working with and having so much fun with my terrific, enthusiastic, and incredibly creative team, including the late Lynn Murray, our incomparable photo director, whose life was taken in the 2021 mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado. My lesson, don’t listen to the naysayers who tell you that something can’t be done—just go ahead and do it!”

“My favorite memory was taking Drew Barrymore with me to feed kids in Kenya. She was interested in girls’ education; I was interested in food sustainability. I learned you can change the world with just one woman and one idea. Over my tenure at MC, I raised over $1 million for women’s charitable causes around the world.”

“When I got to MC, the publisher Susan Plagemann told me she had started selling the upcoming September issue around the theme of American fashion so could I please create a big fashion story. I have always loved the mix of news and fashion in MC, so I thought let’s have some politicians, who at that time were jockeying to be presidential candidates. With the team’s help we got Hillary Clinton, an up and comer called Barack Obama, John McCain, and Rudy Giuliani to agree to be in it. It was an ambitious and effective solution to a business need, and for me and my new team a wonderful introduction to the intoxicating mix of MC, journalism and fashion and fabulosity, which is even more so today. I loved my years there and I simply surfed on top of a very talented team. My three executive editors Lucy Kaylin, Anne Fulenwider and Joyce Chang all went on to edit Oprah, Marie Claire and Self respectively."

“One of my favorite memories is from our first Power Trip, which was a giant team effort and took months of dreaming and plotting. Standing at the head of the plane, holding that microphone that the flight attendants use, looking out over the sea of accomplished women, and welcoming them all on the crazy adventure we were about to embark on, and thinking, Holy shit, we did it. And honestly, the best lesson the job taught me was how to manage a team. Not the sexiest answer, but something I had zero experience in, learned on the fly by making mistakes, and that was ultimately crucial to the success of the magazine and to everything I've done since.”

“During the dark days of lockdown we photographed and interviewed Janet Mock for the first digital cover of Marie Claire. In such a challenging time to have the opportunity to create a beautiful story to inspire readers felt like an incredible privilege. Shift an in person and on paper process to Slack, docs, and email during a global health crisis? No problem. We are capable of so much more than we ever thought possible.”

“The night we won the ASME award was my favorite memory. The presentation was during the pandemic, so it was streamed virtually. The team decided to watch together in our art director’s backyard, where she’d set up a projector. When we won, the livestream cut to me for an acceptance speech and caught us realizing we’d won in real time, the team exploding behind me, and then everyone trying to duck and hide so I could blurt something out before joining the celebrations. I learned no idea is too crazy if you have enough ambition, confidence, and the right team to pull it off.”

Read more stories in honor of Marie Claire's 30th anniversary here.