Valéria Bessolo Llopiz

Valéria Bessolo Llopiz is Elle’s SVP and international director. 

She has spent two decades thinking about the brand the fashion magazine should project. Last year, she took a stand, announcing Elle would ban fur across all of its 45 editions, one of the first publications to do so.

“Today, we think animal fur is no longer in line with our values. It’s time to take a stance on the critical issues of protecting and caring for the environment,” she told BoF’s annual VOICES gathering in December 2021, where the news was announced. 

By the start of 2023, none of Elle’s editions will feature fur in editorials or advertising content, a move that reflects an ongoing shift away from the material among luxury brands that big media organisations have been slower to follow. Elle’s decision followed conversations between the publication’s owner Lagardère Group and animal rights organisations.

French-born Bessolo Llopiz started her career as a product manager at Karl Lagerfeld ’s Chloé. In 2001, she started working for Elle brand, where she was then appointed head of design and vice president of licensing in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region. In 2008, she joined the Elle magazine team, and was appointed international director in 2011. She was named to her current role in 2017.