Your host:
Paul Blanchard
Media consigliere for global CEOs, entrepreneur, broadcaster and author
Unifying 17 international editions under one global editorial leadership
In a special edition, we’re joined by the new editorial leaders of GQ. Established in 1957, the iconic men’s fashion and style title has a global reach of 10m in print, and over 50m online. Joining from New York is global editorial director Will Welch; and from London, deputy global editorial director Adam Baidawi. Will was previously the editor of GQ America; and Adam was previously editor of GQ Middle East, moving from Dubai to London to take the role. Both newly-promoted to deliver publisher Condé Nast’s new digital-first strategy, the pair immediately made their mark with a special issue – in which 17 of the brand’s international editions joined forces to simultaneously publish The Weeknd on September’s cover.
In this in-depth interview, they pay tribute to Dylan Jones who left the UK editor’s chair after 22 years; share their plans to “harness the power of global unity” and end the era of local editions “competing” against one another for stories and interviews; and share insight from their strategic pivot to digital – with the “physical glossy magazine” always being “the shining diamond at the center of what we do.”
