Working her way up from editorial intern to the digital editor at fashion’s foremost bible for inspiration, CR Fashion Book.
Vienna Vernose is CR Fashion Book’s Digital Editor, working her way all the way up from an intern herself. She now handles CR’s social channels with a combined following of over two million followers, while maintaining the digital publication and writing for print. From interviewing BLACKPINK’s Lisa to Megan Fox, Vienna shares her story for the first time.
Picked out of a hat… quite literally
Vienna has always been immersed in fashion by her family, from her stylish parents she quickly became interested in the world of fashion, flicking through her mum’s magazine rack of old W’s fascinated by the industry. However, when she went to University she began majoring in Gender Studies an important topic of the time in 2016 as the Me Too movement was at its prime. Starting in a completely different field, Vienna never thought the world of fashion was within her reach, feeling like a frivolous world she would never be able to take on. Shutting it out of her brain until it could no longer be silenced, she knew it was a career she wanted to take on. Studying at Parsons School of Design in New York, she was at one of the world’s top fashion schools ready to take it on in the fullest form.
Switching her class schedule, Vienna picked up journalism and design with a major in fashion communications. It wasn’t until a PR class when assigned a new project called the Anatomy of a Magazine, she (quite literally) picked her career out of a hat.
“Everyone was assigned a different magazine to dissect, and by doing so we picked one at random out of a hat. I picked CR Fashion Book and immediately my teacher said, ‘I think you’re really gonna love this magazine. And I did.’”
Loving it so much, Vienna took her initiative and cold emailed the team expressing her passion for the magazine and here she is today as CR’s very own Digital Editor.
From Soybeans to Skyscrapers
Vienna grew up in a very small town called Hainesport in New Jersey before moving to Pennsylvania. Living on a Soybean farm, she would make regular family trips of a two-hour journey to New York, driving from fields of corn into the big city it was just at her fingertips. Her love of New York began with her frequent visits, “I didn't care how I got there. I knew when I went to school that I wanted to be in New York.” However, Vienna recalls it’s easy to think the grass is greener when you grew up in a small town, “romanticizing the idea of living in a city, which is something that I totally did.”
The Three A’s of Success
When considering internships for the industry, Vienna exclaims the importance of undertaking them while still in college. Although she didn’t go ahead with a year abroad, continuing to intern throughout her studies was incredibly beneficial. Standing out during your internships can be the key to getting hired Vienna explains, “the way I was hired, my internship from CR into my position now is that I was always, I was always available.”
Which was something she learnt from her Dad. She always remembered the three keys to success are the three ‘A’s’, availability, affability and ability. Vienna explains, “You always are available. If they need you to do something, you're doing it and you're doing it an hour ago, you know, like that's it.” Affability is crucial, taking on a task with a positive attitude, never just taking the easy route of letting a task go. Being a positive person for people to be around can truly get you a long way. Finally, ability is showcasing your skills to take on the task in the industry. Getting hired from an internship, is something Vienna proved is truly possible if you put in the work.
The Role of a Digital Editor
As the Digital Editor of CR Fashion Book, Vienna manages the entire scope of CR’s online digital network, from the online website to Instagram and Twitter to maintain CR’s voice. She is also responsible for spearheading CR’s Reels channel. Vienna also gets to handle writing different pieces and editorial work, when the bi-annual print comes around she is often tasked with writing creative articles. Another major part of Vienna’s role is handling different requests for proposals from brands who want to advertise or work with CR in a certain way.
Megan Fox Moments
Vienna’s role is full of pinch-me moments she only ever dreamed of. “I'm extremely lucky to have the position that I am in and even luckier to have a team that I work so well with and who have trusted me with these pieces that I could only dream of having written.” Her biggest pinch-me moment so far was interviewing the untouchable Megan Fox for CR’s print in 2021.
“At the time when I'd interviewed her, she hadn't done many interviews. it was this time of her resurgence into the public eye. So to be able to care for her story in that way and tell it on CR’s platform was a dream.”
Working with the multitude of brands she liaises with today are the fashion houses she has long looked up to and has been her fabric of life. “To work with them on an intimate level is more than I could have ever, ever dreamed for.”
Small Town Advice
“Nothing is impossible. I think what deterred me at first from fashion was thinking about how impossible it was to get a job and, and what would I even do, who would even care about like what I would have to say or where, or, you know, anything like that. But it's not, it's not this industry that's, you know, has a sprawling gold gate in front of it.”
Vienna explains when you're passionate about the role and the industry, you are down to the hard work you can get it. Expressing the importance of knocking down every single door and not taking no for answer.
“If you hear no, go find a yes.”
Her main advice for anyone is arranging calls with people in the industry, something Vienna did a lot at the start of her career. Emailing those with your dream role and asking for a 10-minute call, not only gets you great advice but also puts your name out there, even if it is just a small introduction. Continuing the connection and communication with them could even lead you to a role when they’re looking for an assistant in five years' time. You never know what can come from that relationship.
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