Middle-age models challenge the ‘forgotten woman’

By: Gerit Quealy

November 8, 2010

3 Comments

Source: Yellow Dog Productions

Do you want to see "your" face reflected back at you in fashion and beauty ads?

Share This Story

The question is, when you look at the pages of a magazine, do you want to see your own face reflected back at you?

OK, not literally your face (although maybe) but someone who reflects your age group and issues, especially when it comes to beauty and fashion ads.

There's been a lot of coverage in the news about plus-size women not being represented as far as clothing in stores, as well as the ads for them.

And pushback about the amount of retouching ads get. Although, would you buy a makeup or potion where the woman has lines and wrinkles? A commenter on Top10 Slimmers & Shapers grumbled that the model wearing the shapewear was already skinny. Good point, but would you buy it if she looked fat? (Maybe before & afters are what's needed here.)

I find myself sort of looking past the model to see that the information says about what the product does. And actually, I went to a beauty presentation on Exuviance the other day that cited statistics about women demanding that the products perform and wanting to the science behind specific ingredients and studies behind the formulas.

Though we may have come to expect the fantasy aspect of beauty and fashion ads, the pushback is being noted. And so… Debehams, a UK department store, has taken the "bold" step of including models over 40, saying,

Debenhams believes it is the first retailer to use models in their 40s, 50s and 60s for a campaign like The Style List, which the high street chain says is targeting 'forgotten women'.

Older models (sort of) can be seen here in More magazine and catalogues like J.Jill and Soft Surroundings. Certainly older "models" can be seen in the pages of AARP magazine, although mostly for medicines and pet food.

Famous older models on this side of the pond include Cindy Josesph (I'm addicted to her BoomSticks) and Carmen Dell'Orefice.

But. . . famous is a relative term — the average person-on-the-street doesn't know their names the way they know Kate Moss or Cindy Crawford (although she's inching toward our age group). Maybe the fame aspect is beside the point anyway.

The UK MailOnline article on Debenhams went on to say:

It's important to challenge what we see in our media with a broader reflection of beauty….'These wonderful faces express the joy of getting older - not something we see enough of.'

The bottom line is, do you feel more comfortable seeing women who reflect where you are in your life? Or do you feel you are a forgotten woman?

Related stories:

Short answer: Yes, They Should!

Top 10 Slimmers & Shapers

For a Woman—How Big is Too Big?

Untouched vs. Retouched

Top 10 Tips from model Cindy Joseph

Pro-Age Makeup in 3 Simple Steps

Share Your Thoughts

First Name:

Birth Date:

For your protection, ensure that no personally identifiable information (like full name or email address) is submitted in your comment.

CAPTCHA

This tests that you are really a person and not a computer.

What code is in the image?:

Enter the characters shown in the image.

Trust is a cornerstone of our corporate mission, and the success of our business depends on it. P&G is committed to maintaining your trust by protecting personal information we collect about you, our consumers.

Our Privacy Policy

Anonymous | Nov 12, 2010

I definitely want to see women above age 40 in ads now. I'm not a fashion plate or anything, and I've never been into makeup, but I'd like to see clothes modeled by women my age (and even my shape) so that I get a better idea of what they look like on a Baby Boomer! I'm much more likely to spend money at a place that makes an effort to include my demographic in its marketing efforts.

Anonymous | Nov 9, 2010

This is an idealistic prospect...and I certainly applied it to my books, featuring only pictures of real people of all sizes, backgrounds and personalities. It was a worthwhile challenge—and I take it on daily as a style consultant. However many styles and clothing lines would not sell nearly so well if they were presented on the target consumer. Realistically they wouldn't look as good. Beautiful people make even terrible clothes look good—plain and simple. Understanding good (ageless, appropriate, modern) style principles like quality, color, the art of the mix is what one needs if you are not a gorgeous model and under 45 (and truthfully these skills would help anyone —at any age or level of attractive-ness). The world is the way it is—an educated consumer is her(or his) best ally. Sherrie (www.sherriemathieson.com)

Great article, as always. Personally, I'm turned off by seeing any age reducing or fat controlling product modeled on women who clearly haven't a clue what looking in the mirror and seeing a wrinkle or a bulge is like. Yes, before and after is much more convincing to me.