To mark 45 years of Fashion Quarterly, we brought together nearly 50 former and current team members for a special shoot — a celebration decades in the making.
The idea was a little wild: track down and gather the people who have shaped FQ across generations, and somehow get them all in one room. But we did it — even coordinating timings so one of our former photographers, Neil Gussey, could fly in from Sweden. The atmosphere on set was electric — a mix of laughter, and shared pride.
Old friends reunited, stories flowed between the makeup chairs as Aleph delivered flawless touch-ups, and the energy that has always fuelled FQ came rushing back. Everyone wore Fashion Quarterly-branded T-shirts, a simple uniform that felt almost symbolic: a reminder that no matter what era or issue, we’ve all been part of the same story. There was Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut Champagne, of course, and cake to close the day — but mostly, there was connection.
This gathering wasn’t just a photo shoot; it was a moment to reflect on what Fashion Quarterly means to those who’ve built it, nurtured it, and cared for it. A reminder that FQ has never been just about glossy pages — it’s also about the people behind them.
The FQ effect
Our alumni share their most memorable moments.
Paula Ryan
Founder of FQ
“Most of our main shoots were undertaken in Europe, the Americas, and Asia. We sold every page to advertisers, including the cover to Mary Quant. She later invited us (Don Hope and myself) to have lunch with her and her husband in London… post a shoot on the Orient Express and Venice.”
Christina Sayers Wickstead
Former Editor
“[I remember] starting as Paula Ryan’s deputy editor and her telling me not to have orange handled scissors as they clashed with the decor. ‘We don’t do orange,’ she said as she elegantly picked them up and tucked them away in the bottom drawer of my desk, never to be seen again. Black handled scissors were ordered the same day. When it came to aesthetics Paula always played the A+ game.”
Dan Ahwa
Former Associate Fashion Editor
“In 2013, [I was] asked to do the most cooked shoot I’ve ever done — a circus-themed extravaganza in the foyer of the Bauer offices at City Works Depot. As someone who can’t stand the circus, it quickly became one of those shoots that still haunts the team that worked on the magazine at the time. Chipwood was carted in and scattered on the industrial floors by reception, our creative director Marcel Gull dressed up as a knife thrower, two miniature horses were brought in, and aerialists came with their silks and strung themselves from the rafters of that tin shed. Mara Sommer — bless her — photographed it beautifully of course, because that’s what Mara does when tasked with a complicated brief, but we laugh about it to this day with a slight shudder.”
Fiona Hawtin
Former Editor
“I went to a lunch held in Milan during Fashion Week to announce the Met Gala exhibition. Anna Wintour was chairing it. I whipped into a department store for a spritz of perfume, which meant I was 10 minutes late. Everyone was there and there were only two spots left… so much for fashion people running late. Then, during a speech one of the guests was whispering to another and Anna herself got up, went over and asked them to be quiet.”
Zoe Walker Ahwa
Former Editor
“Covid was a defining part of my time as editor of FQ. A lot has been written about the end of that era — when the magazine’s then publisher Bauer shut down via a Zoom call in the early days of the pandemic — but less about the passion and nervous energy the team poured into the work in the weeks leading up to that. We were in the middle of an Autumn issue and the brand’s 40th anniversary, with Covid-19 a distant but looming concern. Soon we were sent home, and I vividly recall days of getting computers and chairs, ensuring we were all set up and safe while being on deadline for an issue we weren’t even sure would go to print. It never did but I will be forever grateful for my clever team and the way everyone came together to create something special and beautiful, under the weirdest of circumstances.”
Emma Gleason
Former Features Director
“Working at Fashion Quarterly was a dream come true. I’d been reading the magazine since I was a teenager, so when I returned from overseas and editor Zoe Walker Ahwa hired me for the features director role (I was covering for Lucy Slight, who was on maternity leave), I couldn’t have been happier. It was a real fashion job at a real fashion magazine — the glossy (by New Zealand standards) Bauer headquarters, and a time when media and culture at large felt optimistic.”
Don Hope
Founder of FQ
“After a very successful shoot in New York, costing around $10,000, we were homeward bound. We arrived at JFK early as had huge luggage to process – plus a very important briefcase containing hundreds of photo film strips. The briefcase was by my ankle during check-in with no one around. Then it was gone — vanished. A runner in silent sneakers had pounced thinking he had a briefcase full of valuables, not useless rolls of film. I scoured the airport and car park looking for a discarded case to no avail — so a week’s work, money spent, and nothing to show for it. Fortunately, the photographer had kept back, for his file, one roll of each fashion garment shot. We managed to cobble together a feature from these cut-offs — the day was saved!”
Rachel Morton
Former Creative and Fashion Director
“Fashion Quarterly was my creative playground for more than a decade and a space that shaped some of the most rewarding years of my career. My greatest collaborator across this time was with the late Craig Owen. We would spend hours making and breaking the rules within the confines of a commercial fashion magazine in New Zealand. Thank you for letting us play!”
Melissa Williams
Former Editor
“A highlight includes organising a trip to Japan to chase the snow for a winter coat feature, but it wasn’t that cold so Rachel Morton was sent farther and farther out on the bullet train! I also remember taking over the website Runway Reporter, which was founded by Stacy Gregg, who then came to work with us, and featuring clothes from the newly opened Gucci store on the cover — and they gifted us all handbags afterwards!”
Georgia Bramley
Creative Director
“I have so many highlights from over the years but one that always comes to mind is meeting Kim Cattrall — Samantha Jones herself — when she visited with Specsavers in 2016. She complimented my shoes. Another would be pitching the idea for Miss FQ when I was 22 to the Bauer executive team. I remember walking into that boardroom equal parts nervous and determined. They listened, they liked it — and Miss FQ was born.”
Leonie Barlow
Former Editor
“Editing Fashion Quarterly was one of the greatest privileges of my career. For me those years were a beautiful blur of babies, deadlines, late night edits, and unforgettable teamwork. But they were also pure magic. Happy 45th birthday, Fashion Quarterly!”
This article originally appeared in Fashion Quarterly’s Summer 2025 issue.
Photography: Guy Coombes.
Photo assistant: Josh White
Make-up courtesy of Aleph Beauty
Hair courtesy of Shark Beauty
