EXCLUSIVE: Icon Magazine to Launch U.S. Edition With Gro Curtis as Editor in Chief
PARIS — Men’s fashion and lifestyle magazine Icon is launching a U.S. edition in April with Gro Curtis serving as editor in chief.
This will bring to six the number of international editions of the magazine, owned by the media-tech giant Reworld Media, which also owns more than 80 multiformat media brands including Grazia and Air France’s inflight magazine Envols.
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“Following the birth of the local subsidiary Reworld Media U.S. and the successful launch of Grazia U.S. in 2023, this new edition represents another significant step for the growth and international expansion of the company in a strategic market,” declared Stéphane Haitaian, managing director of Reworld Media and director of Reworld Media U.S. “We are excited to bring this prestigious brand to the United States and thus be able to reach an even larger number of readers.”
Curtis said the goal was to “establish Icon as an arbiter of good taste and impeccable men’s style rather than creating another trivial almanac of trends,” in a statement revealing the launch.
“As a brand, Icon has built a strong image and editorial signature globally so it’s exciting to be able to shape our voice in the U.S.,” he said. “Challenging the fundamental codes of menswear has always been my passion and I’m looking forward to further promoting and nourishing U.S.-based men’s designers, talents creatives and models.”
A Croatia native, Curtis most recently served as editorial director of VMan since 2023, after a four-year stint as fashion director of the magazine and its sister publication V.
He cut his teeth at Vogue Paris and Vogue Homme in 2011 before moving to New York in 2012, where he assisted stylists Melanie Ward and Karl Templer. From 2014 to 2019, he served as fashion director of London-based menswear title Hero.
Over the years, Curtis has contributed to publications including Dazed, System, British GQ, Vanity Fair and various Vogue editions as well as consulted for labels such as Pyer Moss and Amiri.
While the full editorial team will be unveiled when the first edition launches in April, key appointments were included in Monday’s announcement.
Icon cofounder Andrea Tenereani will serve as editorial director of the new publication, while its creative director will be Alex Wiederin, a veteran of the publishing world with a track record as founder of Buero New York, cofounder of AnOther Magazine and creative director of Esquire and Vogue Hommes International. Tanya Amini, an entrepreneur with a track record in luxury and publishing, will serve as publisher-at-large.
The print edition will be biannual and tell “the story of men’s style in all its aspects, with an offer of cross-media content, continuous storytelling with insights into the passions of contemporary men, an ever-attentive eye on new trends as well as on the icons of the moment and emerging talents,” the company said.
In conjunction with the first edition, Icon USA will make its debut on social media platforms including Instagram.
First launched in Italy in 2011 as a monthly, Icon expanded with a Spain edition in 2013, followed by further international editions in Australia and the Middle East. The title was acquired by Reworld Media in January 2023 from the Mondadori publishing group, in a transaction that also covered Grazia. A French edition bowed in last March.
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