Modeling Real Women Over 50
By Stephanie O’Dell
When my 60-year-old client told me the fashion industry had forgotten her, that she felt invisible, and she had begun to dress to disappear, I knew something had to change.
I asked myself: Was there a need for a fashion line specific to the over-50 woman, one that addressed the needs of a body that had changed from pregnancies, menopause, and life?
I started a blog to talk to 100 women over the age of 50 to find out the reality of finding clothes as we age.
As a 54-year-old part-time fashion stylist and mother of two, I didn’t know what I could accomplish. But I knew I had to try.
The first woman I ever interviewed was in Trader Joe’s. It took me about 15 minutes to work up the courage to talk to her, but that conversation changed my life.
Not only did I feel inspired by “Pat with the pink hair” she, too, was thankful for being noticed and happy that someone was trying to change things. At the end of our conversation, Pat said, “You made my day”.
That first conversation with Pat ignited a passion in me that would grow into Celebrate The Gray, a full-service styling and modeling agency for, and about, the 50+ woman. After five years of talking to 1,000’s of women over 50, I am one of the leaders representing the “real” older woman.
Celebrate the Gray is the vehicle for change and the opportunity for women to stand up and say, “hey, look at me, I’m older, beautiful, relevant, and important.”
I represent over 40 “real” gray-haired models, each with a powerful aging story. These models represent the possibilities, not the limitations of aging. They are rewriting what age can look like. I work with brands to understand the 50+ customer, to ensure the visuals and narratives represent how she looks, feels, and acts.
““We want to use older models but can’t find them” – Amanda at Kikoko”
I was told early on that smaller companies couldn’t find or afford gray-haired models. The older models at large agencies didn’t represent their customers.
We are not your standard agency. I’m not searching for the tall, skinny, ultra- chic woman over 50. Instead, I’m looking for “real” older women.
Like the 74-year-old ultra-distance running coach. The grandmother of two who loves how she looks and wants to inspire other women. The former newscaster turned sculptor who wants to erase ageism. Or the 70-year-old hiker who has to tell her hiking group that she is 50, so they won’t put limitations on her.
The biggest challenge for our agency is getting companies to step up and be age inclusive, use real faces and authentic stories of positive aging to normalize it.
Some companies are beginning to represent positive aging and are changing the visuals (e.g., Athleta, Target, Universal Standard, Knixwear). Target is consistent in its age-inclusive marketing. There is always a powerful gray- haired model in their print, TV, and in-store advertising. She is not in a wheelchair or walking with a cane. Instead, she is in colorful clothing looking vibrant and full of life. We do not work with companies that represent “anti-aging.”
With age comes wisdom, experience, and, hopefully, confidence. But if you don’t hear the stories of aging with power and instead are served aging with fear, you believe that midlife is a time of sitting back. Enjoying what you have done versus pushing yourself to do more. Expanding your mind, stretching and pushing your body and proactively participating in how you age. You can’t be what you don’t see.
“Women have the power to change how we are represented as we age. ”
We can support those brands that are using real faces. We can let them know what a positive difference they are making and that inclusion matters. We can be vocal and visible on social media and show how we look, feel, and act as we age. We can also have intergenerational conversations, so younger people begin to see aging differently.
We can’t be what we don’t see.Others can’t believe in age inclusion if we don’t believe in it.
Be part of the change! Be vocal. Wear color. Don’t be invisible. Support brands that are age-inclusive. Don’t buy into what most advertising is telling you, and most of all, celebrate the gray!
The only requirements to join Celebrate The Gray are that you are a gray-haired woman over 50, aging naturally. And you want to inspire other women to embrace aging and live with possibility vs. limitations. I have found models at Trader Joe’s, via friends and social media, but women are finding me more recently.
Interested in modeling or working with us? Contact: Stephanie O’Dell, celebratethegray@gmail.com
