At Fashion Week, mature models are no longer a mere decorative exception. From Chanel to Gucci, and including Burberry, several luxury houses are now featuring faces over 50 on the catwalks, in campaigns, and in the front row of shows. This is an aesthetic evolution, but also a commercial one, as brands seek to appeal to a clientele with purchasing power and a history with fashion.
Stéphanie Cavalli's example particularly resonated this winter: at 50, the model opened Chanel's Spring/Summer 2026 haute couture show at the end of January. Following this, she told Vogue France that she and her colleagues of the same generation felt that now was "the best time to be 50 and a model."
Podiums, campaigns, front rows: the visibility of people in their fifties is increasing
The phenomenon extends far beyond a single casting call. According to AFP, Kate Moss, 52, closed Demna Gvasalia's first Gucci show in mid-February, while Twiggy, 76, was chosen to front Burberry's Spring/Summer 2026 campaign. At Jacquemus, Pamela Anderson, 58, and Lio, 63, are among the featured figures, and the designer even selected his grandmother, Liline, 79, as the brand's first ambassador.
This presence is also evident in the front rows. AFP points out that shows are increasingly featuring stars in their sixties, such as Demi Moore at Gucci, Andie MacDowell at Armani, and Michelle Pfeiffer at Saint Laurent. In other words, fashion is no longer content with simply selling to young people: it is showcasing older women who are visible, desirable, and firmly established in their time.
Luxury brands are seeking a more credible customer… without erasing the injunctions.
For Victoria Dartigues, head of women's and accessories buying at Galeries Lafayette, this shift stems from a simple logic: luxury brands target working women who know about fashion and have the means to buy, she explained to AFP. She even summed up this disconnect with a telling phrase: selling anti-wrinkle cream with a 20-year-old model, "that's not real life."
This strategy comes at a time when industry giants are looking to boost sales. AFP notes that LVMH and Kering are going through a more challenging period, which is pushing brands to better connect with their actual customers. But this openness is not without its ambiguities. Fashion critic Sophie Fontanel warned AFP that we shouldn't replace one ageism with another, where only women aged 50 to 65 who are still "incredible," very thin, and very sexy are considered acceptable.
