December 5, 2023 |
Prepped and primed to spruce up your coffee table just in time for the holidays, we are back with a brand new issue of 10+ (and it’s our biggest one yet). Available in both a beautifully crafted boxazine and an elegant, packaged magazine format, inside we celebrate the women of our industry who are spearheading change and those who lead with compassion, kindness and positivity. From designers and CEOs, to independent business owners and the women nurturing a new generation of creatives, we set out to spotlight the inspirational stories of the fearless forces who are shaping fashion today. Our first cover stars Ursula Wangander, who is warrior-like in Balenciaga Couture. Shot by Szilveszter Mako and styled by Patti Wilson.
10+ Issue 6 includes a 200-page magazine, three A0 posters, and new to the 10 Magazine roster: dedicated jewellery and beauty supplements (more on those in the coming days).
For a peek inside the issue, read Sophia Neophitou’s editor’s letter below:
I have always been so inspired by the women in my life. My spectacular Mamma Christoulla, my amazing grandmother (YiaYia) Annastasia and my warrior sister Ermioni. All these women represent kindness, unconditional love, compassion, tenacity, empathy and endless determination against adversity.
The grit and vision they showed me gave me the capacity to dream. They also showed me that my end goal can be achieved without hurting or diminishing others, but instead celebrating and championing them. We can bring other women with us by reaching down and pulling up, helping others to achieve their goals. Being a role model is important.
The women in my life were definitely that for me. They faced so much to provide and care, and create a world for me that was full of hope. Their strength, power, compassion and fearlessness gave me so much of my own power to make my dreams a reality. As I grew up, I watched them face so much hardship but always prioritise those they loved. They protected us all from anything that might not allow for our dreams to become realities.
These are the types of women we have filled the issue with, which focuses on all the brilliant women in leadership roles across our world. They prove they can bring a different approach to business, with empathy, patience, kindness and a place to grow emotionally. Each provides a different perspective on success in each of their individual fields.
The journey to these CEO positions, or any senior leadership role, is getting better for women but is by no means the norm. Women still represent such a small percentage of those at the top table.
As Miuccia Prada said in the very first issue of 10+, “no one gives a woman freedom, no one gives you anything, everything you achieve by yourself”. She was speaking about her own struggle for independence in an industry built by and in favour of men.
I believe that a woman’s approach to leadership can be far more empowering and inspirational. In our leadership methods there is more care and fearlessness, boundless creativity and irreverence for the old ways. Hélène Poulit-Duquesne, CEO at Boucheron, whom we feature in this issue, speaks of kindness, respect, humility and fearlessness as the qualities required for great leadership.
Studies have shown that companies with female board members are more likely to make decisions that benefit everyone – from investors to staff – and not just themselves and their directors. They have also shown that women leaders help to increase productivity, enhance collaboration, inspire organisational dedication and improve fairness.
Women build and cultivate stronger connections, while female leaders commit in a different way to their male counterparts in terms of building caring connections, mentoring and developing others, and showing concern for the community. In today’s business environment, this acts as a superpower.
In another study by Cindy Adams, president at Leadership Circle, women scored significantly higher in all five creative dimensions, primarily in their capability to connect and relate to others. This suggests that female leaders are not only better at building relationships but that the relationships they build are characterised by authenticity and an awareness of how to contribute to the greater good.
Despite all these benefits, only 10 per cent of Fortune 500 companies are led by women, which highlights the need for more women at all levels of leadership. There is no doubt that we have all been inspired by women who show compassion, commitment, enthusiasm and a capability to command a situation when necessary. We need to look no further than our own mothers, or all the women in our lives, for this to be apparent.
Women are more than able to make bold and wise decisions as leaders, which helps make a team environment less authoritarian and more cooperative. Bringing a family feel to the team boosts teamwork and helps implement a more nurturing culture within the business, as opposed to a culture of fear. In a woman’s life, wearing different hats is common. We are often balancing careers, households and parenting along with other responsibilities. These skill sets help women leaders adjust to new situations and focus on finding solutions.
Women leaders will bring skills, different approaches and innovative ideas to the table, but all of this combined will help create innovative perspectives that lead to better decision- making as a whole for the business. This issue is dedicated to the brilliance of all the women who have reached such senior positions and those that inspire us to achieve our dreams, showing us it’s possible.
I hope you all come away feeling invigorated and inspired by these amazing women and their journeys. Let that transport us all to a place of hope. Let’s see more women in these roles. Let’s show that’s it absolutely possible to get there!
10+ Issue 6 – VISIONARY, WOMEN, REVOLUTION – is on newsstands December 8. Pre-order your copy here.
THE HIGH LINE
Photographer SZILVESZTER MAKO
Fashion Editor PATTI WILSON
Talent URSULA WANGANDER
Hair ISSAC YU at Salsa Hair
Make-up LUCIANO CHIARELLO at Julian Watson Agency using Westman Atelier
Set designer EDITH DI MONDA
Photographer’s assistants GIANLUCA MALAVOLTA and JACOPO TODOROV
Fashion assistants MICHIEL HEEMSKERK, FRANCIS COONEY, EMMA OLECK, TOMMASO PALAMIN, GEORGIA EDWARDS and SONYA MAZURYK
Make-up assistant MAYA ROGET
Set design assistants AURELIEN LEFEBVRE, JESSICA GARCIA CORRAL, MELISSA CORTI and ALICE CREPALDI
Executive producer SIYAN CHEN
Production SHANGHAI MUCI CULTURE MEDIA CO. LTD.
Special thanks to KATY JARVIS
