Kenya Hunt is the editor-in-chief at Elle UK, the first Black woman to hold the title. An American who has lived in London since 2008, Hunt joined Elle UK as fashion features director in 2015, rising to the role of deputy editor before leaving the magazine for Grazia UK in 2019. She returned to Elle in 2022, this time as editor-in-chief.
She confronted the dual challenges of operating in a media landscape where social media and digital publications were rapidly supplanting print, and where the relevance of luxury fashion was being questioned by consumers who were growing more concerned with social justice and climate change.
Hunt has a long history as a staunch advocate for greater diversity within the fashion industry. She founded R.O.O.M Mentoring, a support network dedicated to creating opportunities for people of colour in fashion, in 2015. In 2021, she published "Girl: Essays on Black Womanhood,” a collection of essays written by both Hunt and guest authors that delves deep into the experiences and challenges of being a Black woman in contemporary society.
Shortly after assuming her new role, she told The Business of Fashion the key to expanding Elle’s reach and revenue was for the magazine to speak to “this moment,” broadening the scope and diversity of its audience and more consciously interrogating the broader questions facing women today.
“I don’t think we can create this in a bubble anymore,” she said. “I don’t think it’s enough to just give women a shopping edit. We have to put some context to it, and acknowledge how her life looks right now."
