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Yinstead of acknowledging that lots of 60-year-olds consume—or
at least want to consume—fashion.”
Indeed, Ghanem didn’t think “being fashionable at 54 would
be out of the ordinary.” The Montreal-based influencer is sur-
prised by her success on Instagram. “I’ve always been interested
in fashion, so my daughter created an account for me to follow
influencers and street-style photographers back in 2016,” she says.
Fast-forward to now and Ghanem has
more than 123,000 followers liking
shots of her in statement runway
looks. “With age, you’re more at
ease with your personal style—you
develop self-confidence. That’s why I
believe that fashion should represent
the whole spectrum. Unfortunately,
I don’t believe the industry has fully
embraced that yet.”
Ghanem is right. While rep-
resentation of older women on the runway is up, models in
the over-50 category remain the least represented cohort
compared to those in the race, gender, body type and disability
groups, according to a study by the Fashion Spot. (Over-50s
accounted for 0.49 percent of all fall/winter 2019 castings.) Yet
Stephanie Seymour in a scintillating dress at the Versace show
is still making headlines, as is Wilson-Carr in crystal sliders
at Simone Rocha. “That’s probably because we’re not seeing
as many older women in magazines as we should,” says Stella
Bugbee, editor-in-chief of New York Magazine’s fashion and
lifestyle offshoot, The Cut, naming The Gentlewoman and The
New York Times’ T Magazine as exceptions. “I’m optimistic
that this will change,” says Bugbee. “Over the past five years,
we’ve seen that diversity of all kinds is mandatory now. Age is
a natural extension of those conversations, especially as we’re
seeing a celebration of older women
in power in general. They represent
an important constituency for a lot
of luxury brands.”
“O u r st r ateg y i s not to t h i n k about
age,” says Natalie Kingham, buying
director at Matchesfashion.com,
whose customers range in age from 18
to 60-plus. “We think about different
women and what they might want at
any time in their lives.” Kingham’s
advice? “Just be comfortable. Be adventurous about trying
new designers and new cuts. I don’t think age limits how stylish
you can be.”
So let’s hope we grow used to seeing more age diversity
and all ethnicities, genders and body types across the board
in fashion. “Diversity of representation changes the defin-
ition of grace. It revolutionizes the industry,” says Ghanem.
So vive la révolution.
“WE POINT TO A
FASHIONABLE 60-YEAR-
OLD WOMAN AS IF SHE’S
A UNICORN...LOTS OF
60-YEAR-OLDS
CONSUME FASHION.”