Leading not just Vogue but fashion industry to a legendary peak by her extraordinary creativity, Anna Wintour

If the late Karl Lagerfeld was fashion's commander-in-chief, Wintour is its head of state, enigmatically presiding over matters of style and culture far above the average Vogue reader's head. Wintour's first cover is considered the most groundbreaking. Staring model Michaela Bercu, it featured a couture Christian Lacroix jacket with a beaded cross, paired with stonewashed Guess jeans. It had never been seen on a Vogue cover, and the magazine's printers wondered if it was a mistake.

Wintour has changed how the world gets dressed, in a way that has nothing to do with following trends. She is the key architect of one of the prime aesthetics of our era, which is that of soft power. She has always been as much about power as she is about fashion, and her biggest impact has been on the clothes we see on television screens and newspaper front pages, not on catwalks.

Wintour, who is already the editor in chief of Vogue US and artistic director and global content advisor of Condé Nast, will now also serve as chief content officer for the magazine conglomerate, a position in which she will oversee all brands including international editions. The move is part of Condé Nast's effort to bring together its US and global operations as it seeks profitability.