Stylists setting the agenda

If you think fashion stylists pick nice frocks for famous friends, think again. Today they shape the world of glamour, deciding what's hot and what's not. Clare Dwyer Hogg meets three such visionaries and asks, what next?

Why you need to know her

Grand is one of the prime talents behind so many of London's fashion bibles: she launched Dazed & Confused (along with the photographer Rankin and Jefferson Hack), was fashion director of The Face, and is editor-in-chief of Pop magazine. She also works for magazines from across the Atlantic, such as Harper's Bazaar, where she is senior contributing editor. On the catwalks she styles Louis Vuitton's men's and womenswear shows, and her portfolio of advertising campaigns includes Louis Vuitton, Prada, Miu Miu, Armani and Calvin Klein among others.

Celebrity clientele

Jennifer Lopez, Drew Barrymore, Uma Thurman (pictured), Hayden Christensen, Christina Ricci, Scarlet Johansson, Liz Hurley, Victoria Beckham and Madonna.

Career highlights

"When I first worked with Kylie. It was all very new and it was really exciting. I'd never worked with someone famous before, and she was so nice, and really excited about clothes. Fashion wise, I feel very lucky to be able to work with great talent, like Prada and Marc Jacobs. As a stylist, working with great clothes makes what I do look good."

What will be hot next season?

"Winter will be all about black, a strong silhouette, and quite dark, romantic clothes. I've got a feeling that as the season goes on, sportswear will become really interesting. That's something we'll see for spring/summer 2006 for men and women. Before that we'll start seeing fashion stories with a sporty, hi-tech modern look to them."

What will be hot in the future?

"Fashion is fighting for disposable income with brands like Apple and Sony. It's no longer just about wearing clothes - the latest iPod gear is as important as what trainers you're wearing and the bag you're carrying. It will all be much more competitive and everyone will need to be super-aware of what everyone else is doing. I think there will be an increase of people working across brands too - like the relationships Adidas has with Stella McCartney and Yohji Yamamoto. That will extend past sports brands with companies like Apple working with fashion."

BEN COOKE
Age 34

Why you need to know him

After working with the Spice Girls for many years, and a crowd of other celebrities, he is now the stylist behind the hairdos that you see David and Victoria Beckham sporting. They fly him around the world to keep them looking sharp, whether it be a trip to the Olympics announcement in Singapore or the usual return journey to Madrid. For men's and women's hair trends, he's one to watch. And now he has his own salon, with his friend Jonathan Long, he'll be bringing his influence directly to the high street.

Celebrity clientele

Aside from David and Victoria Beckham, Cooke regularly styles all kinds of stars, from the worlds of music and movies. Among those he has worked with are Westlife, Minnie Driver, Joely Richardson and Gwyneth Paltrow.

Career highlights

"Doing the Spice Girls' final concert. It was Christmas, and they were performing for four nights. It was the most amazing experience. We used to muck around backstage, and then every night I was in the front row watching them perform. Opening my salon Lockonego five months ago was definitely another highlight, and being at Live8 with David Beckham this year was also brilliant."

What will be hot next season?

"For women, it's becoming very individual. Years ago it was about 'The Haircut' of the moment - like Jennifer Aniston's "Rachel" layers. Now the general feeling is about eclecticism. Whatever suits you personally is what you should go for. But one trend that will, literally, be getting bigger and bigger, is expensive-looking, luxurious hair - the kinds of power-blowdries from the 1980s. For men, things are very different. There it's more about following trends, so there'll be squaddie buzzcuts, which are quite extreme, and the neat, well-groomed preppy look will hang around. One thing that's going out is long hair at the back. So, as with women, a smarter, more groomed and less scruffy look is on the way in."

What will be hot in the future?

"Who knows? With hair, everything that goes around comes around, reinvented with a different angle, and I can't see that changing in a hurry. I think it could be something from the 1980s next: fingers crossed it won't be those hideous page-boy cuts and pudding basin styles."

CRYSTAL McCLORY
Age 34

Why you need to know her

McClory was the fashion editor at the British men's style magazine Arena, and associate editor of its high-fashion sibling, Arena Homme Plus. She now works internationally, on titles such as Maxim Fashion in New York, the British and Japanese editions of GQ, and Tank. Her influence is also felt through advertising, informing our opinions of major brands such as Nike, Armani Exchange, Diet Coke, MTV and Reiss.

Celebrity clientele

Though she styles with both men and women, McClory has worked most famously with a group that defines what it means to be modern, manly and stylish. From the top league of football fashion are Rio Ferdinand, Luis Figo and Thierry Henry. Brian Ferry, Michael Bublé and The Stereophonics span the music world. Film stars Damian Lewis, Ray Winston, Jamie Bell, Christian Bale, Steven Berkoff and Tom Hardy have also called on her services; and, just to complete the Who's Who with a touch of next-generation royalty, Frederick Windsor.

Career highlights

"Shooting with David Bailey, who was amazing to work with - we bonded over Essex-girl jokes. And shooting in Rio for GQ magazine with gorgeous male models - we stayed in Copacabana Palace and got up ridiculously early, but had time to sunbathe and there were people employed to pour cold water on our feet."

What will be hot next season?

"In menswear there's a bit of a Pete Doherty influence, which is anti-fashion, a twisted version of what used to be gentlemanly attire: velvet jacket, vintage scarf and hat. Fashion and rock'n'roll are going hand in hand. There's a move towards things that are a bit biker too, and sheepskin will be in evidence. For women, it's grown-up sexy: dark colours, pencil skirts, tailored jackets, 1940s nipped waists."

What will be hot in the future?

"There'll be a return to chic and dressing up, but that doesn't mean the trend will continue. In time it will all flip around in the other direction. What is constant, though, is that whatever style camp or money bracket you're in, there will, more than ever, be a fashion label to fit your bill."

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