A Great Sense Of Style Has No Age

At 57 years of age, Brazilian influencer and model Ana Dias is the epitome of the saying, you can do anything you put your mind to.

Rising to social media stardom amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Dias noticed the public’s attitude behind the subject of aging was less daunting and more progressive than she thought. Out of boredom, she started making funny videos to post on TikTok, but her following hit a whopping 1 million for another reason: her keen sense of style.

At the time, she was working at Chanel as a sales associate. With over a decade of experience working in luxury retail in America, Dias never thought one day she’d be asked to choose between her work, and her recreational use of social media.

“One day my TikTok grew so big, Chanel specifically told me I had two options: either I quit social media or I quit retail. I said you know what? I’m going with social media because this is what makes me happy,” she says.

The risk she took then paid off in spades, and not just monetarily. While marketing her style as content led her to broker brand deals with major beauty companies like Laura Geller and Lady Gaga’s Haus Labs, Dias cannot stress it enough when she says she would not be where she is today if she didn’t love and feel inspired by what she was creating.

When asked what she believed her content brought to her following, Dias answered with one word: confidence. She understands the implications of living in such a competitive world. Whether online or in real-life, young or old, women are afraid and not as confident in themselves as they could be. Dias sets an empowering example for her followers by telling them you can do anything you want at any age, wear anything, and simply be anything.

“This age (57) is amazing, you know. I try my best every day to reflect my positive attitude and mindset in my photos and video content online,” she explains.

Coincidentally, while Ana believed her content was being browsed by older women looking for fashion advice, she was surprised to learn the second largest majority of her following was in their 20s. The first majority ages from 40–55.

“Younger people interact the most with my content, commenting things like ‘when I grow up I want to be like you,” she says.

However, Ana admits she wasn’t always the confident woman she is today. Like many of the women Old Cow has featured, Dias didn’t unlock her true potential in womanhood until later in life. In her 20s, she says her insecurities kept her quiet, shy, and afraid to break the mold.

She sympathizes with the kids of today, especially those that grew up with social media. As a user, social media can be toxic. But as a creator, she’s found herself in a rut of comparison: comparing herself and her content to others.

“My son, he’ll tell me ‘Mom, stop caring about the lives of other people and do what you think is best for you and your followers,” Dias says, owning the fact that her son is both her biggest support system and guiding light as she navigates her way in the digital age.

If there’s anything to take away from Dias’s story it’s this: every woman can do whatever she wants at any time. At 55, Ana Dias started a social media business that put her life down a path of micro-celebrity stardom she never thought possible in her lifetime.