Jefferson Hack, the co-founder of Dazed & Confused magazine in 1991, a tastemaker and independent publisher, believes there has never been a more difficult time in fashion since he began his career. “Brexit has made trade extremely difficult. Due to the lack of visas, all collaboration between Europe and the United Kingdom has ceased. And with the pandemic and interest rates acting as a tailwind, we have this extremely difficult set of circumstances for younger designers.”
Hack focuses on examining the world through the eyes of young creatives and the obstacles they face. This nurturing perspective has earned him a special recognition award for cultural curation from the British Fashion Council (BFC), to be announced this week.
“Hack will be awarded for empowering youth through creativity and for creating countless opportunities for next-generation creatives working across fashion, design, art, music, and more, providing a platform and supporting emerging talent,” states the British Fashion Council. In December, the award will be presented to him at the Royal Albert Hall during the BFC’s annual Fashion Awards.
Before thirty-one years ago, Hack was a pioneering artist. At the age of 19, he co-founded the influential independent zine with the photographer Rankin; stylist Katie Grand soon joined them. He describes himself as “the youngest member of the group.”
“They were my first teachers because they had such confidence and charisma, and I was very shy,” he says via Zoom from the east London home he shares with his 33-year-old girlfriend, American model Anna Cleveland.
Since then, Hack has collaborated with some of the most prominent names in the creative industries, including designers Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood, and Karl Lagerfeld, pop artist Peter Blake, photographer Nick Knight, and singers Rihanna and Bjork.
Now 51 years old and having expanded Dazed into Dazed Media, which consists of AnOther Magazine and Another Man, digital video channel Nowness, Dazed Beauty, and Dazed Studio, Hack is the mentor to a large number of the young creatives featured on the platform. He says, “I probably do more than I have time for.”
More than 130 professionals and freelancers are employed by Dazed Media at its London headquarters, 180 Strand, which he describes as a “dream factory” and a “community.” In addition, it features artist residencies, an exhibition and performance space, a bookstore, a library, and a bar.
The mentoring occurs “organically,” with Hack ensuring that he is present at least three times per week. Physically, it is much simpler to simply catch up with each other than to schedule everything.
The DIY punk energy of early Dazed remains. Hack says he always teaches his mentees to maintain financial and creative independence: “Don’t take anyone else’s money unless you have perfect control,” he says. “I have witnessed so many people lose their names and brands because they signed contracts they did not fully comprehend.
“It is an utter dictatorship. All VC [venture capital] firms want to invest early and earn large holdings, but they offer nothing to the table.”
He has experienced “so many opportunities to step away from the platform” and “such tedious, lengthy conversations at so many board tables — I simply no longer care.”
It turns out that Hack’s lifeblood is independence. “Towards the conclusion of my teens, I struggled to be independent due to the number of money people around me were making and how appealing it appeared. But I felt in my heart that independence was the only way I could operate. I am quite thrilled.”
