Models today, she explained, don't understand that to be successful you have to have a personality, intelligence, and issues that you support, and Gisele embodies these qualities.

People constantly make the mistake of comparing London with New York, Milan and Paris and that's not what it's about. London has its own fashion identity. You come here to find the next Alexander McQueen or John Galliano.

I’m very driven by what I do. I am certainly very competitive. I like people who represent the best at what they do. If that turns you into a perfectionist then maybe I am.

Gisele Bundchen is a bit of a jock. 1 of my fave shoots is her playing football

The notion that a contemporary woman must look mannish in order to be taken seriously as a seeker of power is frankly dismaying. This is America, not Saudi Arabia.

I'd just been on a trip to Minnesota, where I can only kindly describe most of the people I saw as little houses.

I saw young women in the street dressing in a way that I thought was influencing the designers. Fashion was being influenced by all sorts of different people, and culture and also across the street. So I saw more as a trickle up, than a trickle down influence. When I came to Vogue, that's what I wanted it to reflect.