The excitement around The Devil Wears Prada ahead of its May 1 return has been energizing. Seeing the cast back in the spotlight, and watching the cultural buzz build, has reminded many women of something powerful.
Back in 2006, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt were rising young stars in their early twenties. Today, both have grown into formidable women in their forties—beautiful, accomplished, talented, and commanding careers of real substance. Time did not diminish them. It deepened them…
And then there is the incomparable Meryl Streep.
Now 76, she remains one of the most respected and magnetic performers in the world—still working, still evolving, still setting the standard and still strikingly beautiful. Likewise, Anna Wintour, the woman long believed to have inspired Miranda Priestly, remains culturally relevant and professionally influential decades into her career.
When Streep first played Miranda Priestly, she was 56. Whatever one thinks of the character’s icy edges, Miranda was portrayed as competent, commanding, polished, and unquestionably at the top of her game. She was not background noise. She was the room.
That lands differently when you’re older.
Because there’s a quiet phenomenon many women notice after 50: we become less visible. Not less capable. Not less relevant. Not less stylish. Just… less seen.
It happens in boardrooms, in media, in marketing, and yes, in industries that were once built in large part by women reinventing themselves for a powerful second act.
Home staging has historically been one of those industries.
For many women, staging became the perfect next chapter after successful careers in business, sales, management, design, real estate, entrepreneurship, or raising families while managing everything life could throw at them. They entered the field with maturity, resilience, people skills, financial savvy, and often the ability to invest in themselves and their businesses from day one.
That matters.
Because staging is not just fluffing pillows and placing pretty accessories. It is logistics. Psychology. Sales strategy. Budget management. Marketing. Project management. Client communication. Trend awareness. Negotiation. Problem-solving under pressure. Reading people. Reading houses. Reading markets.
In other words: it rewards experience.
And yet, increasingly, the spotlight often seems to land in predictable places: youth, image, social media gloss, or companies large enough to dominate attention simply by scale.
That’s a mistake.
Because some of the most talented professionals in this industry are women and men who have already lived full careers before arriving here. They know how to run a business. They know how to build trust. They know that style evolves, and so do they. They understand that taste is not tied to age, and creativity does not expire at 50.
Let’s also retire the lazy assumption that older means outdated.
Many seasoned professionals have the means to invest in quality inventory, education, branding, systems, and mentorship. They are not dabbling. They are building. They are often deeply committed because this chapter was chosen—not stumbled into.
And there is something powerful about someone who starts again on purpose.
I know this because I am one of them. And like Miranda Priestly, I wear my silver hair with pride. I came into this industry at 54, after a full professional life elsewhere. I brought decades of business experience, grit, instincts, and a hunger to succeed.
What I did not bring was any interest in fading politely into the background. If anyone assumes I cannot stage a home as effectively as someone younger, they are welcome to stand back and watch me.
The real loss is not that experienced professionals are overlooked. The real loss is what’s missed when society confuses youth with value.
We need room for emerging talent, absolutely. But we also need room for accomplished reinvention. For second careers. For wisdom paired with ambition. For style informed by life experience. This is where I want to thank the Nanaimo Women’s Business Network for creating a place for all ages of women entrepreneurs to shine.
We need industries that celebrate excellence in all its forms—not just the most photogenic version of it.
Because relevance does not have an age limit.
And some of us are just getting started… silver hair and all.
