Vogue Names Staffer Chloe Malle as Anna Wintour Successor

Following the news that former Vogue editor-in-chief Dame Anna Wintour was stepping back as the helm of the trendsetting magazine in July, fans of fashion have been wondering who would be her successor.

Condé Nast have appointed 39-year-old journalist and Vogue staffer Malle as head of editorial content with her role being effective immediately. Coincidentally, Wintour was also 39 when she took over the role from Grace Mirabella in 1988.

Wintour released a statement to Vogue about the decision, calling Malle a "frontrunner" from the beginning.

"I believe that warmth, joy, experience, and keen vision are what Vogue will thrive on through the years ahead," Wintour began.

"At a moment of change both within fashion and outside it, Vogue must continue to be both the standard-bearer and the boundary-pushing leader. Chloe has proven often that she can find the balance between American Vogue's long, singular history and its future on the front lines of the new. I am so excited to continue working with her, as her mentor but also as her student, while she leads us and our audiences where we’ve never been before," she continued.

The 75-year-old fashion guru reportedly announced the news that she would be stepping back from her position to staffers on Wednesday, June 25.

Malle has been with the magazine for 14 years, climbing her way up the ranks to become editor of Vogue.com and the host of the magazine's podcast, The Run Through.

"I've spent my career at Vogue, working in roles across every platform -- from print to digital, audio to video, events and social media. I love the title, I love the content we create, and I love the editors who create it," Malle said in a statement. 

"Vogue has already shaped who I am, now I'm excited at the prospect of shaping Vogue. I look forward to embedding myself even more fully across print, video, and events -- fostering the true cross-platform plurality that our audience craves and demands," she concluded.

Malle has had an eventful year, having just finished covering the highly-publicized wedding of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez in Venice. She was even given access to the bride before the ceremony, where she received an insight to the lead-up for the magazine's cover story.

The official position Malle is taking over is titled the US Head of Editorial Content, leaving Vogue with no official "editor-in-chief."

Wintour will still be within the Vogue family; she will stay on in her role as chief content officer for Condé Nast and global editorial director for the magazine. This will allow for her to retain control of the magazine, while no longer being involved in the day-to-day. In her role, she also oversees Wired, Vanity Fair, GQ, AD, Condé Nast Traveler, Glamour, Bon Appetit, Tatler, World of Interiors, and Allure.

Malle is the daughter of actress Candice Bergen and French film director Louis Malle. She is a graduate of Brown University, and grew up in Los Angeles. She began her career writing about property for the New York Observer. She has since written for the New York Times, Marie Claire, the Wall Street Journal and Architectural Digest.

She joined Vogue in the features department 14 years ago.