Rawdah Mohamed at Vogue Scandinavia

Vogue Scandinavia launches in August 2021, led by editor-in-chief Martina Bonnier. Focused on Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, sustainability will be a key topic for the magazine. Rawdah Mohamed, featured here for Cartier, will be the Fashion Editor.

Grandeur suits Mohamed, Vogue wrote in 2019. At the time the influencer was a healthcare professional working with autistic children. She also signed with a modeling agency but did not receive a warm welcome in Paris, Vogue continues.

“I really wanted [fashion] to be a place where I could just be myself and everyone would just accept me for who I am,” she says. “I was very sad to realize that, no, this is yet another place where I still have to fight to be me and to be able to free to dress however I like and to look however I like.”

Well known for her street style as a hijab-wearing Muslim woman, Mohamed, who is also of Somali heritage, believes that her appointment will impact her community. “It has a huge impact for Muslims, and I see this as [a] collective achievement to better understand the world of fashion,” she said.

“Vogue Scandinavia has taken the diversity issue to the next step, meaning creating [a] work environment where people of different backgrounds are being valued,” said Mohamed, whose April Instagram post with “hands off my hijab” written on her hand started a campaign that trended on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. “We can participate in conversations, take part in decision-making processes and are able to have an influential voice in fashion.”

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Naomi Osaka Luanches First Swim Collab with Frankies Bikinis on May 10 AOC Fashion

Tennis stars Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams were 2020’s highest-paid female athletes in the world. Osaka took the top spot. with Forbes estimated earnings of $37.4 million, endorsements generating $34 million. Serena lost her four-years running top spot to Osaka, but hardly wept on her way to the bank with an estimated $36 million in earnings, including $32 million in endorsements.

Among Osaka’s newest ventures is her Frankies Bikinis X Naomi Osaka collection, representing the Haitian-Japanese athlete’s first venture into swimwear. The collab dropeds twice last week on May 10 and today, May 19 on the Frankies Bikinis website.

“I think it’s really important for brands to design for all women, not just certain sizes or shapes or body types. For me, it’s important to align myself with brands that make inclusivity a priority,” Osaka said. “Frankies Bikinis holds high standards for inclusivity, which allows everyone to be able to find products that make them feel confident and empowered. That’s exactly what we aimed to do with this collection.”

Today’s New York Times does a deep dive on Naomi Osaka’s business interests. Cindy Gallop, a brand consultant who has worked with several of Ms. Osaka’s sponsors, tells the Times “She is the perfect storm. She’s a spectacular athlete. She has a strong sense of social justice, she’s prepared to speak her mind.”

Gallop continues: “She’s female, and . . . she’s not white. I hate, loathe, and detest terms like this, but she is, in quotes, diverse. She ticks every box. You can practically hear the brand managers thinking: ‘She is absolutely the right person to sponsor, right now.’”

“She’s the first professional tennis player we’ve worked with,” said Jen Sey, the brand president of Levi’s, “but for us, she rises above that. She’s such a powerful voice, the way she’s encouraged others to speak out about equality. She’s outspoken. That’s what we like about her. There’s no point in partnering with someone if you’re just going to tell them what to do.”

Read on: How Naomi Osaka Became Everyone’s Favorite Spokesperson New York Times