John Burr Fairchild (March 6, 1927 – February 27, 2015) was the publisher and editor in chief of Women's Wear Daily (WWD) from 1960 to 1996 and the founding editor of W magazine in 1972.
Fairchild was born in Newark, New Jersey,[1] and grew up in Glen Ridge. His father was Louis Fairchild, who joined WWD in 1924, and Louis's father was Edmund Fairchild, the founder of Fairchild Publications.[2] John was a direct descendant of Vice President Aaron Burr. He graduated from Kent SchoolinKent, Connecticut, in 1946 and Princeton. He had a brief tour in the Army but did not see combat. In 1949, while at Fairchild's Paris office, he met his future wife Jill.[3]
He became the European bureau chief of Fairchild Publications in 1955, the publisher of Women's Wear Daily in 1960 and the founder of W in 1972. He wrote a column for the back page of W under the pseudonym Countess Louise J. Esterhazy.[1] Under his control, Women's Wear Daily was transformed from a negligible trade journal into a notorious, influential and controversial fashion publication that became known as the "bible of fashion".[4][5]
Today, WWD is owned by Penske Media Corporation (PMC) started by Jay Penske (son of race-car driver Roger Penske), alongside sister fashion publications Sourcing Journal and Footwear News. In 2020, W was acquired by Bustle Digital Group, Mic, and W Media, a joint venture led by Karlie Kloss.[6]
Fairchild died on February 27, 2015, at age of 87.[7]
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