EXCLUSIVE: Elle Magazine Launches Pan-African Edition

PARIS — Elle magazine’s footprint is growing, with a continent-sized leap on Saturday.

The glossy publication is launching its largest territorial edition with Elle Afrique Francophone, a French language pan-African publication that covers 23 countries across the continent, including the Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Benin, Senegal and Gabon.

Its launch builds on the success of the Côte d’Ivoire edition, introduced in 2017, and marks the 51st international edition of Elle, owned by French publishing group Lagardère.

“With Elle Afrique Francophone, Elle durably reinforces its presence in Africa and demonstrates its vocation as a global media able to project its creative and avant-garde vision from each of its territories, carried by women who inspire the world,” said Constance Benqué, chief executive officer of Lagardère News and Elle International.

Franco Ivorian entrepreneur Frédérique Nanan, who launched Elle Côte d’Ivoire and was its editor in chief, will serve as chief executive and publisher of the new edition. Leading a team of correspondents across the continent is editor in chief is Julie Yapo, a seasoned journalist of Ivorian descent.

For its inaugural issue bowing in Saturday, the magazine tapped Naomi Campbell as cover star. Styled by Law Roach and captured by South African photographer Trevor Stuurman, she sports a yellow tweed jacket and striped shirt from Chanel’s spring 2026 pre-collection.

“We are in 2026: is here and I’m happy for it,” the supermodel said in an interview in a 12-page spread dedicated to her. “Being on the cover is an honor. I’m looking forward to seeing the next issues and the way they will continue to celebrate this continent I love so much.”

Also in the issue is the inaugural “Elle La Liste,” a list of 24 African women shaping fashion, culture, entrepreneurship and innovation across the continent.

There will be three print editions a year, dated February, June and November as well as nine digital editions. A bilingual platform in French and English is also launching, as well as a podcast and newsletter.

But the new publication’s ambitions are wider.

“Francophone Africa is our foundation,” Nanan declared. “All of Africa is our horizon.”

After its launch in French, an English-language version will come by the end of the year, to reach markets such as Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. At its maximum expansion, the magazine could reach an audience of 200 million women, according to figures provided by the team.

Nanan also intends the magazine to be a conduit for social impact, with a portion of advertising revenue going toward the Health Dignity Fund of Think Tank Nanan, a nongovernmental organization she founded in 2020. Since its creation, it has supported more than 1,000 women in the Ivory Coast through awareness, health and rehabilitation programs.