Condé Nast and Stefano Tonchi have at long last settled a dispute stemming from Tonchi’s dismissal from W magazine, the large format fashion monthly that Condé Nast unloaded in 2019 when it was sold to Future Media Group, the company run by Surface Magazine chief executive officer Marc Lotenberg.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed, but Tonchi filed a breach of contract suit against Condé Nast parent Advance Magazine Publication in June 2019, seeking $1 million for wrongful termination. Condé Nast countersued, claiming Tonchi interfered with the sale of W.
In March 2020, Lotenberg furloughed the staff and shut down the magazine, citing the coronavirus pandemic.
The print magazine is currently published six times a year by W Media in partnership with BDG and includes several celebrity investors including models Karlie Kloss and Kaia Gerber. W’s editor in chief Sara Moonves (she was promoted from style editor when Tonchi left in 2019) and Kloss helped to orchestrate the sale of W, which also includes a digital component, away from Future Media.
“Stefano Tonchi is a talented journalist and media executive who made enormous contributions to the success of W magazine as editor in chief for over nine years,” a Condé Nast spokesperson said in a statement. “We are pleased to have resolved this matter with him. “
Tonchi added: “Leading W magazine and working with talented teams at Condé Nast was a highlight of my career. I am very glad we can all move on from our differences.”