The WOTC 2021 Collection

Our January/February brought the WOTC Powerlist 100, a stellar line-up of some of the most innovative and transitional female leaders across the globe, and tackled traditional power lists which were heavily dominated by white, middle-aged men, and very few women, nor women of colour at that. Of course, we also honoured 20 young leaders in our Ones to Watch list. Cover girls included Anne Boden, the unlikely CEO of Starling Bank, luxury retail merchant at heart Marigay McKee, who contributed greatly to the success of Harrods and Saks Fifth Avenue, and Eliza Jones, Lola Payne & Valerie Makinde, who are breaking out of the barriers of London and building a fashion legacy with WMNS WEAR.

And as we celebrated Women’s History Month 2021, we also marked this time with our Women in Leadership Issue. I was greatly inspired by the TV series, The Bold Type and the incredible leadership displayed by the character Jacqueline Carlyle, who played the former editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan magazine Joanna Coles. The issue followed the extraordinary WOTC ‘Now Woman’ Summit, and cover girls included Hannah Holland; the woman currently disrupting the talent management industry with her female-focused agency HLD; Millie Kendall MBE, who brought leadership to the UK beauty industry almost three years ago granting them a voice and establishing them as a body within government; Dr Vanessa Ogden who brought hope to young women and girls almost 16 years ago by allowing them to have opportunities and an education and Caroline Rush CBE, the woman ensuring that the British fashion industry remains at the cutting edge of young, fresh and exceptional talent, through platforms like London Fashion Week.

Our April/May issue introduced the new age of partnerships. Every day we use services from some of the biggest collaborations in the world; Hewlett-Packard, Ben and Jerry’s, McDonald’s, Google, Apple — and so, we discussed partnerships in every capacity, from business moguls to celebrities, and even presidents, their wives, and families. Cover stars featured Former Prime Minister of Belize Dean Oliver Barrow and the former First Lady of Belize, Kim Simplis Barrow; the nation's first black Prime Minister and First Lady.

Our June/July issue The New Art brought together 10 unconventional artists, and pioneers as our cover stars, all displaying their own unique art forms. From Seema and Sunny Chadha who are the bombshell couple who founded VENUS ET FLEUR, their deluxe collection of rose arrangements to disruptor and French entrepreneur Marine Tanguy who is progressively changing the sphere of the art world, with her creative agency, MTArt Agency and lending a voice to upcoming artists.

Our August/September edition, the iconic Big Fashion Issue started the much-needed conversation on sustainability, as we witnessed fashion retailers lead the way in the sharing economy and rental, and brought WOTC Fashion Week and London Fashion Week to a beautiful close. In the lead up to Fashion Month also known as September, we opened the dialogue on the area of sustainability, all whilst uniting the women leading this fashion revolution from the founder of bag rental phenomenon COCOON to the co-founders of MY WARDROBE HQ, the UK’s first fashion rental marketplace.

October and November brought the Education Issue. When I initially had the idea for the issue, I was determined to introduce fresh faces and amplify those voices, the ones that were rarely heard: the students. The issue was completely stripped back. There were no trends to follow, or lip glosses you needed to purchase, just an awe-inspiring lineup of the most brilliant minds in the world from 18-year-old Christina Adane, who challenged Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2020 when he made the decision to take away free school meals for 1.3 million school children across the nation to Oxford, Cambridge and Harvard students who are ethnic minorities.

Our December Issue saw us end the year exactly how we began; by honouring women and creating platforms and opportunities as our 18 winners of the WOTC New Faces Awards became cover stars. They included Trish Halpin, former editor-in-chief of Marie Claire and Lorraine Candy, former editor-in-chief of Elle, and Daps, a young creative from one of the most notorious areas of South London who turned his life around when he embraced an opportunity presented to him to follow his dream and has since revolutionised the entertainment industry as one of its leading directors.

Our platform has once again allowed hundreds of women to tell their stories and be heard, whilst influencing and inspiring hundreds of thousands of others in the process.

2021 brought 7 issues, 71 cover stars, 108 features and 3 events. Phenomenal isn’t the word!

To read our 2021 catalogue of issues, please click below.