L'Officiel

''L'Officiel is a French fashion magazine founded in 1921 by Amédée-Martin Brunhes as L'Officiel de la Couture et de la Mode (till late 1921, then as L'Officiel de la Couture, de la Mode et de la Confection till 1923, as L'Officiel de la Couture, de la Mode de Paris till 1935, as L'Officiel de la Couture et de la Mode de Paris till 2020, as L'Officiel since 2020/2021; with the secondary title Official Fashions'' from 1924 to 1926), it is the oldest fashion magazine of French origin in publication. The magazine is a bimonthly publication, published six times per year for February/March, April/May, June/July, September, November, and December/January. Founded as the official publication of the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, the magazine's slogan is 'The Official Voice of Fashion' (in French 'la voix officielle de la mode'). Circulation Editors French publications usually have multiple editors for different sections of the magazine, in the case of ''L'Officiel'' they are listed below. However, as of 2026 Vanessa Bellugeon is the only Editor-in-Chief at the publication. == History ==

The Beginnings of L'Officiel and Jalou/Pérès takeover (1921–1984) ''L'Officiel'' was first published in 1921, Brunhes son M.E. Max Brunhes purchased the publication in 1927. ''L'Officiel'' created the 'Coupe des Dames' (Ladies Cup) in 1933 for the Monte Carlo Rally. Under the leadership of Castanié, Jalou, and Pérès ''L'Officiel'' continued publishing throughout World War II. Castanié launched the first sister publication of ''L'Officiel in 1946, Chapeaux de Paris'' (Hats of Paris) which focused on millinery. According to the New Zealand Fashion Museum at the time a British edition of the magazine was in operation. In the late 1940s Philippe Pottier joined the magazine as a photographer and a fashion editor staying with ''L'Officiel for twenty-five years. He previously worked for Elle'' but left after they refused his request to work as both a photographer and editor. Jacques de Lacretelle and Irène Lidova contributed to the magazine in the 1950s. In 1956, according to Mary Brooks Picken ''L'Officiel was the most popular couture magazine worldwide and was the leading publication of French fashion publishing. In 1998, however, it was rebranded to L'Optimum'' due to a publishing rights dispute. The Éditions Jalou publishing house was transferred to the three children of Georges Jalou in 1986: Laurent Jalou became the president, Marie-José Jalou directed the editorial content, and Maxime Jalou served as artistic director. As of 1998 the average issue circulation of ''L'Officiel'' was 96,578. 21st century Catherine Millet and France Huser contributed to the magazine in the 2000s. Laurent Jalou died in 2003 and Marie-José became president of Éditions Jalou, she stepped down from her role as Editor-in-Chief of ''L'Officiel'' and restructured the content of the magazine to target a younger audience. Controversy broke out in 2011 when Beyoncé was featured on the cover in blackface and tribal makeup. ''L'Officiel'' responses said that it (the tribal makeup) was in honour of Fela Kuti and "a return to her African roots". Dodai Stewart said "It's fun to play with fashion and makeup, and fashion has a history of provocation and pushing boundaries. But when you paint your face darker in order to look more 'African,' aren't you reducing an entire continent, full of different nations, tribes, cultures and histories, into one brown color?" about the shoot. For the October 2013 issue Karl Lagerfeld shot the cover photo and editorial, which featured the cast of Opium a film about the life of Jean Patou. The cryptocurrency Taste Token was launched in 2018 the venture was led by Benjamin Eymère the then ''L'Officiel'' CEO and was developed to compensate readers for their time on the website and for brands to learn the interests and preferences of readers. It has since been closed. Stefano Tonchi became the magazines Chief Creative Officer in January 2020 however he left the magazine in December 2021 after payments to freelancers continued to be delayed. In January 2021, a group of freelancers working for the magazine took legal action in France, claiming that they had not been paid. For the 100th anniversary in 2021, ''L'Officiel opened its archive for academic study to students at Parsons Paris. They also launched L'Officiel House of Dreams'' a website set up as a virtual museum documenting the history of the magazine. ''L'Officiel Inc. SAS, Éditions Jalou'', and associated companies were sold to AMTD International (subsidiary of Hong Kong-based AMTD Group) in April 2022. ''L'Officiel Singapore and L'Officiel Malaysia were relaunched in March 2023, now directly owned and managed and no longer under a franchising ownership model. In August 2023, L'Officiel Philippines'' was brought under direct ownership. In 2023 ''L'Officiel was reorganised to become part of AMTD World Media and Entertainment Group (WME). In 2025 a de-SPAC transaction occurred with a company backed by Lawrence Ho, which saw the creation of a new parent The Generation Essentials Group (TGE), publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. On the IPO day L'Officiel'' hosted the first fashion show on the NYSE trading floor. In 2026, the Jalou family accused AMTD of "trademark infringement, tax fraud, and misuse of corporate assets," and according to The Times the new owners are "fraudulently running the publication into the ground". AMTD has been accused of running a financial scheme that aims to squander the assets of the French company, profiting from the brand without the French entity receiving any profit. Primarily through foreign subsidiaries registered in the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands. The stripping of assets from the French company is in direct violation of the 2015 recovery plan following Éditions Jalou's bankruptcy that prohibits the sale or transfer of the business and its brands. Former CEO, Benjamin Eymère (and member of the Jalou family) launched legal proceedings against the company for unfair dismissal, seeking whistleblower status (that was denied by the labour court). The first permanent location opened in the Omotesandō district of Tokyo in April 2025. A ''L'Officiel Bar'' opened at the Tokyo coffeehouse in October 2025. In October 2025, a ''L'Officiel Coffee'' pop-up occurred at Shreeji Newsagents in London, U.K. It was announced in November 2025 that the second coffeehouse would open in Macau at the City of Dreams casino and resort and the third would open in New York City's Tribeca district. Coffeehouses are planned to open across Japan, and in Australia, China, France, Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Noteworthy covers • 20 July 1921: First issue, depicting two French nobles on a walk through a forest • 15 September 1921: First photograph cover, photo by Delphi • May 1929: Elsa Schiaparelli, first cover featuring a designer • October 1945: First cover illustrated by Eduardo García Benito • No.301/302 1947: First cover illustrated by René Grau • December 1960: Wilhelmina Cooper's first magazine cover • April 1968: Alexandra Stewart, first actress on the cover • June 1970: Sandi Collins, first black model on the cover; alongside uncredited French model • September 1971: Pat Cleveland, first black model solo cover • February 1974: Jane Birkin, first singer on the cover • June 1977: Masako Natsume, first Asian woman on the cover • November 1984: Linda Evangelista's first magazine cover • December 1990/January 1991: Gianni Versace, first cover featuring a male designer • February 2003: Raquel Zimmermann, photographed by Nick Knight • March 2011: Beyoncé, first black singer on the cover • October 2013: Cast of Opium, photo by Karl Lagerfeld • September 2016: "Gang of Africa" cover featuring eight black models • October 2019: Cai Xukun, first solo man on the cover • September 2021: Jessica Chastain, 100th anniversary cover • September 2023: Emma Corrin, first non-binary person on the cover == Editions ==

''L'Officiel'' has 19 international editions. A men's edition ''L'Officiel Hommes was first published in 1977 and continuously since 2005. L'Officiel Art was launched in 2012 and then as a themed issue of L'Officiel'' from 2021 to 2023, it now operates as a digital-only publication. Spin-off titles of the magazine that are no longer published include ''L'Officiel 1000 Modèles/L'Officiel Accessories (1996–2019), L'Officiel Chirugie Esthétique (1996–2019), L'Officiel 1000 Modèles Design (2003–2018), L'Officiel Voyage (2005–2019), L'Officiel Business (2007), L'Officiel l'Intégrale 5000 Modèles/L'Officiel Fashion Week (2011–2019), L'Officiel l'Intégrale Luxe (2012–2015), and L'Officiel Beauté'' (2013). ''L'Officiel editions in Brazil, Italy and the Middle East all had original print runs in the 1970s, these editions were closed down but later relaunched. L'Officiel Italia, L'Officiel Malaysia, As of 2026, editions in Australia, Canada, and Mexico are planned to relaunch within the year. They also own and operate La Revue des Montres in France, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore. La Revue des Montres'' is planned to be launched in Vietnam and Japan. launching in April 1987, however this edition ceased publication in 1990. The magazine was relaunched in 2002 as ''魅力 L'Officiel 中文版'' and was operated by NCN (Hong Kong branch) under licence, the magazine was based in Hong Kong. However it closed the same year. In 1980 时装 (Fashion) was founded and by the mid-1980s had almost reached a circulation of 300,000. From late 2003 the magazine was rebranded to ''时装 L'Officiel'' after an agreement was made with Éditions Jalou and with this the magazine became distributed in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau. The magazine is based in Beijing. As of 2021 L'Officiel China had a circulation of 839,000. L'Officiel Hong Kong ''L'Officiel entered the Hong Kong market in 2002 with the launch of 魅力 L'Officiel, the Chinese edition of L'Officiel. 魅力 L'Officiel was based out of Hong Kong, however, it would cease publication within the year. 时装 L'Officiel China'' was distributed in Hong Kong from its launch in 2003. The Hong Kong edition of ''L'Officiel, entitled L'Officiel Hong Kong SAR launched on digital platforms in November 2023 and entered print in March 2024. Katherine Ho (previously of Vogue Hong Kong'') was appointed editor-in-chief. L'Officiel Italia ''L'Officiel Italia originally had a short run in the 1970s and again in the 1990s. In 2009 L'Officiel Hommes launched an Italian edition and in September 2012 L'Officiel Italia'' was relaunched with Carlo Mazzoni as Editor-in-Chief. L'Officiel Japan In 1973 a version of ''L'Officiel translated into Japanese was released. However it was not until 2005 that the Japanese edition L'Officiel Japon was launched. It later closed in 2008. In October 2015 L'Officiel Japan was launched with Tetsuya Mabuchi as its Publisher and Naoko Kikuchi as its Editor-in-Chief it was published by Éditions Jalou and Seven & I Publishing''. The magazine ceased publication in December 2016, but its last issue was January/February 2017. In early 2020 it was reported that within two years a Japanese edition was aiming to be launched along with editions for Australia, Nigeria and the United Kingdom. WWD Japan in May 2024 reported that the magazine would relaunch in September with Takafumi Kawasaki as its Editor-in-Chief, he previously worked for L'Uomo Vogue and GQ Japan. but it would cease publication in 1980. This original version of the magazine was edited by Dorothy Coleman Seeman however in 1979 she was replaced by Himilce Novas who Diana Vreeland called "terrific". The owner and publisher was Evan Katz and by the second issue ''L'Officiel/U.S.A.'' had a subscriber count of 124,000. For the 1976 debut an advertising campaign featuring the endorsement of American model Marisa Berenson ran in WWD. In 1977, an advertising campaign was produced featuring the members of the Joffrey Ballet committee (Sally Brayley, Geraldine Stutz, Mrs. B. Duke Glenn, Mrs. John G. Ward, Charlotte Ford, Susan Brody, Isabelle Leeds, Christine Biddle, and Susan Fine) and publisher Evan Katz. In July 1980, co-publisher F. Philip Slater (previously of Town & Country) and five other employees were let go due to the early 1980s recession, Katz was attempting to find financing or a buyer for the magazine. L'Officiel/U.S.A. would cease publication from its August 1980 issue. At the time the magazine had a circulation of 140,000. Rumours of an American ''L'Officiel'' relaunch persisted throughout the 2000s, however, it wasn't until 2017 that the magazine was revived. In 2017, ''L'Officiel USA'' launched on digital platforms led by Joseph Akel with funding from Global Emerging Markets, the first print edition was released in February 2018. Peter Davis, replaced Akel as editor-in-chief in 2019. A settlement was reached in July 2023 with L'Officiel agreeing to pay 41 freelancers US$275,000. After the role of editor was left vacant for nearly two years, Caroline Grosso was appointed editor-in-chief of ''L'Officiel USA in August 2022. Grosso previously served as the global head of content projects and fashion initiatives for L'Officiel, prior to joining L'Officiel she was the digital fashion director at W''. == Foreign editions and editors ==

Operating Defunct == See also ==