Are Over-50 Influencers Brands' Next Big Marketing Opportunity?

Fashion has always been obsessed with youth. While this is far from the industry’s only sin, achieving some semblance of age diversity has felt near impossible in a field that benefits from chewing up and spitting people out by the time they hit 29. But over the last few years, bold, refreshing creators over the age of 50 have begun to inspire people online, proving that there’s no age limit to style, influence and relevance.

One look at the comments sections of Carla Rockmore, Grece Genham or Heidi Clements’ social feeds will quickly show you that many people — including those in their 20s and 30s — have been yearning for older, wiser perspectives on fashion and beauty. Brands are beginning to notice this, too. Sézane recently tapped Aki and Koichi, a Japanese couple in their 70s with more than a million followers, for a social media collaboration. Beauty brand Refy’s recent TikToks feature 74-year-old model Colleen Heidemann, as well as silver-haired beauties like Joani Johnson and Fauzia Taylor.

Older models had a notable presence on the Spring 2026 fashion month runways as well — including a few famous ones: At Paris Fashion Week, Laura Dern, 62, made her runway debut by opening for Gabriella Hearst, while Susie Cave, 59, walked Tom Ford. Earlier in New York, Edie Falco, 62, and Christina Hendricks, 50, were featured in Rachel Antonoff and Susan Alexandra’s show. And in London, Lesley Manville, 69, walked Burberry, while Fiona Shaw, 67, strutted for Simone Rocha.

This rapidly growing and increasingly influential demographic have been dubbed the
“silver economy.”

“Creators over 50 are both a commercial and cultural win,” Jacynth Bassett tells Fashionista. At 33, Bassett is the founder and CEO of Ageism Is Never In Style, an award-winning global consultancy, community, and campaign platform that promotes age-inclusivity and partners with companies to educate them on age-inclusive strategy and marketing.

“The demographics and wealth are undeniable,” she continues. According to McKinsey & Company and BoF’s The State of Fashion 2025 report, 72% of the U.S. population’s total wealth is accounted for by people over 55. Yet, only 3% of over-50s feel “seen” by brands. “Partnering with older creators is one of the most effective ways to bridge that gap and penetrate this huge market.” Bassett adds. “Our populations are aging, and our demographics are shifting. So it’s more urgent than ever that brands start to embrace and champion age inclusion. Otherwise they will be left behind.”

When Heidi Clements, 65, started posting online, it was more of a diaristic project. “I didn’t ever have an end goal of becoming an influencer. I just knew that I wanted to be the person that changed the way people look at women over 50.” Her posts are a thrilling mix of therapeutic life lessons and anecdotes with bold fit checks, seamlessly blending oversized pieces with brash slogan tees and pops of color. As a TV writer, she tried selling scripts about older women and “why we matter” to no avail, and unexpectedly found that her audience — who are almost all under 40 — were much more receptive.

“All of the comments are like, ‘Oh my God, I hope I’m like you when I grow up.’ People tell me that I make them feel so much better about aging, which in turn makes me feel better about being someone who’s aging.”

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While Clements feels like her content is mostly geared toward people in their 20s and 30s, she has noticed an increase in brand deals and collaborations with companies seeking older creators, especially for menopause-related products. “Thank God for Gen X. They’re in their 50s now, and they’re the first generation to say, ‘I’m not living this life that you’ve decided I should live.’ They also started talking about menopause, and now everybody is on the menopause front.”

The global menopause market size was valued at $17.66 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $27.63 billion by 2033. But this commercial gold rush has its limitations. “Whilst menopause visibility has opened some doors, we’ve also seen a lot of 50+ creators say it’s the only topic they’re approached by brands to discuss,” notes Bassett. “So we now must ensure we don’t reduce women at this stage to a single issue; we must recognize, see and value them as multifaceted individuals.”

And it’s that complexity that has audiences hooked. What Clements and other creators represent is something so much broader, proving that they don’t just appeal to their peers, but to people of every age. Bassett points to an AARP survey that found that 70% of women across Gen X and Boomers, and 76% of millennials, were more likely to purchase from brands that featured a range of ages in their advertising. “The fear and myth that younger audiences will be alienated or switch off if they see older representation is being consistently busted.”

Carla Rockmore, 57 — whom Vogue called “the Carrie Bradshaw of TikTok” — has more than 2 million followers across social media. She’s been a designer for 30 years, and has used her virality to parlay this into collections for QVC and Amazon. Her eccentricities, enviable collection of maximalist treasures and effervescent energy have quickly made her an age-agnostic style icon.

“When you reach a certain age, you are secure enough to show your true self without the guardrails that come with being less experienced,” she says. “That brings an authenticity that resonates. There’s a depth and humor in women over 50 that you just can’t fake.” Her followers, similar to Clements’, skew younger, and are relieved to see that getting older doesn’t mean being denounced to some sort of loveless, fashionless, joyless purgatorial existence.

“I think we’ve been told since birth that when you hit 50, it’s over for you because you are sexually dead,” Clements tells me. “You are no longer a viable person and your life is over. I think it’s terrifying for young women to have been fed that message. So when they see somebody over 50 living their best life, they realize that it’s not over, you’re not dead. You’re actually beginning a whole new chapter and getting yourself closer to the girl you were always meant to be before you stepped in front of the patriarchy.”

Australian influencer Faye Browne is a 70-year-old breast cancer survivor. She rises early each and every morning just to film her outfits before heading to work at her 40-year-old fashion brand, Motto. “I just love sharing outfits. A lot of ladies seem to get so much inspiration from it, that it pulls me along, especially after turning 70 last year.” Meanwhile Aki and Koichi, a couple in their 70s, have (with the help of their daughter Yuri) become fashion darlings. In addition to Sézane, they’ve worked with Ugg, Loewe and Levi’s between flying to shows and befriending Gen-Z celebrities like Laufey.

Catt Sadler, 51, has long navigated the media landscape — from E! News to her podcast “Catt Sadler Now” — and sees the rise of silver creators as part of a broader shift in the industry. “I think all ages are being embraced in a way I have never experienced,” she says. “There are creators who are super young and in their 90s… the online world is huge.”

For some time now, it has seemed as though a career in social media is, for better or worse, fleeting — an ephemeral flash-in-the-pan moment reserved for the algorithmically-favored: young, thin, white and conventionally gorgeous. But consumers’ desire for authenticity is proving stronger. As a result, there may be more of a future for Gen-Z and millennial creators than previously thought.

“Social media isn’t a fad anymore; it’s a new language of communication,” Rockmore tells me. “If you keep evolving and stay authentic, there’s no reason you can’t be creating at 25 and at 75.”

Still, Nikki Venus, 44, a style coach and PR strategist who works with creators over 50 to navigate careers in social media, warns that brands still have work to do. “Sometimes they include older creators just to check a box,” she explains. “Often they don’t provide enough sizes, or they offer exposure instead of real pay, while younger creators get the money. Real progress means fair pay, a real voice in the creative process and long-term partnerships.”

Bassett echoes this: “For creator careers to genuinely span a lifetime, brands need to change. Too often, they equate youth with influence and design opportunities accordingly. If companies dismantle their systemic age bias and start valuing substance, lived experience and trust, then yes, being a creator can absolutely be a lifelong career.”

The proliferation of silver influencers isn’t just a new chapter for advertising agencies, but also a potent and timely rallying cry against the current youth-obsessed, anti-aging sinkhole that threatens to take us all down with it. We’ve long been bombarded with messaging that insists we lose value as we age, but it’s starting to look like there’s no age to joy, style, or relevance. And maybe for the first time, fashion’s obsession with the future may actually include the people who’ve lived long enough to shape it.

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Source: Fashionista.com