Victoria Beckham towers above the Manhattan skyline, so you might mistake it for a brunette feiray with its extremely high heels. Chrysler’s buildings peer behind her like a bodyguard. The East River glows in the distance. Forever, her best model, Beckham wears her own designs. The sage green blazer features attractive off-quilter flip details on the collar. Her lob is pure white, and her hairdresser, Kempaves, is waiting on her wings, if she is at the back of her head. She is here at the pinnacle of Midtown (literally 55th floor) and most brides have received lines from famous editors who showcase New York’s bold names in their 2026 fashion collection and greet her.
Blazer, bodysuit, sunglasses, Victoria Beckham. Tights, Calzedonia. Pump, Kristen.
Beckham knows something about drawing an audience. First, she became one of the world’s biggest pop icons. She and her soccer star husband later achieved power couple status and helped bring the term WAG into cultural consciousness along the way. Still, when she reinvented herself as a fashion designer in 2008, the industry maintained a certain skepticism about celebrities who dared to cross over to Seven Avenue. Some corners had upward noses. (“No one,” she says, “I recognize that more than I do.”)
So she bowed her head and focused on what she was doing, not what she called “noise.” That’s why, after 17 years and cat allocation, her line still has many people. It evolved with her. From the form-fit dresses she has become known to the perfect office looks and the gathered gowns at today’s show.
“It was such a journey,” she admits she sits to chat in a private room, as Berry Lacroix’s steady flow can be seen in her way. “My business has gone through a lot, and it’s all very public. Being a celebrity, a brand, is a double-edged sword.”
Coats, skirts, pumps, tom ford. Tights, Calzedonia.
Bringing us to her latest role: the subject of the documentary. Beckham was undoubtedly the breakout star of the 2023 Netflix documentary about her husband David. She went viral for so many exchanges with him, where she claimed that she raised the working class, admitting that her father had driven a Rolls-Royce. Now she will come to stream again, this time in a Netflix documentary about herself. The three-part series headed by Nadia Hallglen, an Emmy-nominated documentary about Michelle Obama, becomes an arc from Beckham pop star to designers and entrepreneurs, hiding her as she prepares to showcase her Spring 2025 collection at Paris Fashion Week. The documentary also touches on what drives her to become a performer, how she navigated misogyny commentary from tabloids, the “wag” labels she lays on her after she and David gathered, and how she found her foothold in the fashion industry.
Coat, skirt, Tom Ford. Tights, Calzedonia.
She didn’t want to do it at first, so David said he was finally convinced. “I really didn’t understand why someone was so interested. I love my job, but I was a little shocked,” she says. “But throughout the process, I really enjoy it. I love the fact that I have the opportunity to shed some light on our industry.
And, as she says, “I’ll look back on my journey and talk a bit about my previous career without damaging my brand.” After all, “I was with Spice Girls for four years. It was very defined at that time. I was in the fashion industry for almost 20 years.”
“(David) believed in me when there weren’t many people. He invested in me. Sometimes I was a laughing matter. People didn’t take my business seriously, but he always believed in me.”
A self-proclaimed control freak, Beckham had to give in to the whims of the cutting room, which he ultimately found to be “very liberating.” “I had to leave a vanity at the door. Every time they followed me at work, I couldn’t think of the fact that there was a camera there. For a minute, I’d create a collection, choose fabric, cast models. There was a lot going on, so I had to look at the fact that they were there.
Coat, Loue. Watch, Van Cleef & Arpels. Heels, Kristen.
Whether the documentary will inspire any more viral moments remains to be seen. “Oh, Rolls-Royce?” she laughs. “Even one of our kids said, ‘How many times have you filmed it?’ “No, there were no rehearsals,” when David and his four children (now in the 14-26 years old) said they loved watching the front line at the London Fashion Week show, she said, “That’s what we do. We all support each other. We always show up to each other.”
How traditional are we? “I’ve always tried to be the best mom and wife I could,” she says. Demonstrate the importance of her children’s work ethics. “After my last show, I remember very vividly that the kids and David came backstage. I had just come out of my exit, and the look of their faces as they approached me – it was a real pinch me moment because I saw how proud they were.” Her philosophy always states, “It’s healthy that kids know that Daddy goes to work, and Mom goes to work. Work will be my best version.”
Blazer, bodysuit, Victoria Beckham. Tights, Calzedonia. Pump, Kristen.
Dress, Dolce & Gabbana. Bra, Fleur du Mart. Ring, Cartier.
She and David have been together for 28 years and she believe in their longevity in the fact that they have grown into each other. “In relationships often one will say to the other, ‘You’ve changed.’ Of course, you’re different from when you were 50,” she says. “He believed in me when a lot of people didn’t. He invested in me. Sometimes I was a laughing matter and people didn’t take my business seriously, but he always believed in me.”
It may be hard to imagine this symmetrical someone could see themselves as the weak, but Beckham does. When I tell me about the latest categories of her beauty brands (coloured complexion), she confesses that she struggled with acne from a young age. “My skin was so bad at one point, I remember what my mom’s friend told me. “When I was younger, I was so self-conscious for my skin. I didn’t even want to see people in my eyes. It really affected my confidence. It can make you very depressed.”
Jacket, bodysuit, skirt, Victoria Beckham. Watch, Van Cleef & Arpels. Heels, Kristen.
When she reinvented herself in her 20s as an unwavering, confident luxury spice, she was a fan of designer clothing more than her customers. “I couldn’t afford them, but I admired and interested in luxury,” she says, “By the way, the ‘little Gucci dress’ was by no means a bit of a Gucci dress. It was from the High Street Store. (He’s of course a friend now.)
She founded Beauty Line in 2019. Today, she sells eyeliner every 30 seconds. “People would stop me on the street and talk to me about being with the spice girl,” she says. “Now, every day people tell me about eyeliner.”
Dress, St. Laurent by Anthony Vaccarero.
Beckham’s Social Media Beauty Tutorial was a hit. People say, “There’s a pretty big production behind those videos. It’s… me,” she admits. “I recently got a tripod because people were wondering why I only show one side of my face. The reason is, I have a camera, I’m talking, and I’m actually using this hand to put on makeup!” she says she’s waving desperately. She adds, a bit incredibly unbelievable, she doesn’t own the ring lights.
“Growing old is actually really great. The filters go away and there’s less shit.”
Social media was a boon when it came to thawing out her once skin-like image. In the 90s, “There was a shot of paparazzi and a story the media was saying.” Now people can see real, unmediated Victoria. “I’ll read those stories and see my photos look very gross. But there are very different people inside, and I think that’s another reason why David wants to do a documentary.
She also enjoys herself in fashion with a t-shirt with a slogan that looks like “Fashion stole my smile.” “Fashion never stole my smile,” she says now. Then to her spokesperson: “I should wear a new T-shirt. Would you remind me?” Fashion made me smile. “I’m very satisfied. ”
Coat, Loue. Watch, Van Cleef & Arpels. Heels, Kristen.
Satisfaction may not be fueling the tabloids, but it feels good. And Beckham didn’t seem that confident. Amidst so many industry turmoil and many ups and downs of her brand, she proudly tells me that her business is profitable. (As a private company, we don’t report results.) Many designers start to experience these challenges outside the spotlight, but “when my name is on the label, it’s news,” she says. “There were rumors at first. Was this a vanity project, or did my husband save me? … It wasn’t about opinions. It was a fact. My business was struggling.” That’s what she will discuss in upcoming documentaries. “I really think it’s the first time I’ve opened up myself. There’s a vulnerability there. There’s two days left to shoot and I’m done with work. I went to the editor.”
Victoria in the past may not have been that easy, but “age is actually a really great side to getting older. The filters go away and there’s less shit. In fact, she told me sly when I shot the last Elcaucas in 2009. She was in her 30s. Well, after 51 years and a few lifespans, she’s back on the front page.
Court, Arai. Gloves, kite.
Lead Image Credits: Coat, Top, Skirt, Arai. Gloves, kite.
Rouge artist Kempaves hair. Makeup by Yumi Lee and Francesca Abrahamovitch for Victoria Beckham Beauty. Manicure by Rica Romain from LMC at Worldwide. A design by Jacob Burstein for MHS artists will be set. Prodn produced by Sarah Maxwell.
A version of this story is featured in the October 2025 issue of Elle.
Get the latest issue of Elle
