Conde Nast has raided the New York Times to tap Stefano Tonchi as the new editor-in-chief of its floundering W magazine.

Tonchi, the editor of T magazine, a fashion insert into the Sunday Times, replaces Patrick McCarthy, a 30-year veteran of the Fairchild unit. McCarthy, who has been at the helm since 1985, was bumped aside as editorial director on St. Patrick’s Day.

Although Tonchi is responsible for the editorial content, most saw his connections to potential fashion advertisers as a big factor in his hiring. Last year, W’s ad pages dropped 45.8 percent as luxury advertisers deserted en masse in the face of the recession. So far this year, it is down another 18 percent.