The Style Questionaire: Emil Wilbekin

The other girls can have Anna Wintour, the editor of American Vogue, but I'll always have Emil Wilbekin. The iconic magazine editor is known for his twelve-year tenure at Vibe Magazine, where after climbing the ranks from from Style Editor to Fashion Director, he became Editor in Chief from 1999-2004. He spent the following years in executive roles at Mark Ecko Enterprises -- became editor of Giant magazine and then consulted with Microsoft. Now, the uber editor is at Essence Magazine, where he was recently appointed as managing editor of Essence.com. The titles speak to the fact that Wilbekin is one of the most talented and visionary editors in publishing at the moment, but they only hint at the most important detail of all: he is a consumate style guru! Naturally, I had to pull him aside for a quick chat on his style philosophy.

Splurge versus Steal? "I'm a big believer in high/low. As much as I love luxury items, I also appreciate a good deal. I'm not afraid of editor's discounts, eBay, sample sales, thrift store finds or a good sale."

Fragrance on a man: "Should be minimal and memorable. A little goes a long way and is really for intimacy not public announcement."

Denim is an everyday staple for me: true or false? "True. I wear jeans almost all the time."

Fashion is relevant because? "Fashion is really a form of self expression and creativity. It's the way we all express ourselves every day. Just look at people on the street and you see fashion's relevance."

The last time item you bought was? "A white custom-fit Polo Ralph Lauren oxford shirt."

If you had to wear one fashion designer for the rest of your life it would be: Ralph Lauren

And finally...what's been your stamp on Essence.com so far and what can we expect in future? Since I've joined Essence.com, we have focused the content on the site to be more topical. We have broadened the perspective of who Black women are and what they are interested in: more relationships, fashion and beauty, and pop culture reporting. We have added many new bloggers like Joy Bryant, June Ambrose, Dr. Janet Taylor and Danielle Belton. And we are relaunching the site with a new design on October 29.