Few events are bigger during Paris Fashion Week than L’Oreal Paris Le Défilé. This year the event was held on the opening day of Paris Fashion Week at the iconic Opéra de Paris. With 3300 guests in attendance, 32 of the brand’s ambassadors walked the runway (among them, Eva Longoria, Jane Fonda, Viola Davis and Kendall Jenner) in celebration of self-worth, femininty and feminism, and democratising beauty.
Now in its seventh year, the 2024 runway show had six acts, each representing the power of beauty. Backstage there were a whopping 60 makeup and hairstylists, and the show was live streamed across more than 20 countries. It’s impressive stuff.
In the hours before the spectacular event, marie claire caught up with one of the brand’s much-loved ambassadors, Andie MacDowell. Here is what the women had to say about levelling the playing field when it comes to beauty.
Marie Claire: Andie, you walked the show last year, do you get nervous before you walk the runway?
Andie MacDowell: No, don’t get I don’t get nervous. I think I’m very excited. I feel responsible. You know, I want to do a good job I try to stay calm. That’s what I try to do. I don’t stay calm, though, I don’t [laughs]. I’m looking forward to seeing all the spokespeople. Jane Fonda is here this year. How about that? I get to be on the runway with her, that’s pretty special.
MC: The show’s theme is “Walk Your Worth”. What does that phrase mean to you personally?
AM: I feel that it’s a responsibility for me to represent women of a certain age. It’s also a pleasure for me to represent women and to show that we’re still relative; that we have a place and that we can be glamorous and fun and vibrant. So I am thrilled when I see someone with silver here, or an older woman, because we buy clothes. People would be shocked to know that we have money and we’re buying clothes! [laughs] Isn’t it amazing? And it’s not that I don’t love these gorgeous young models – I did it myself [when I was younger] so I know, but I do think it’s nice, particularly in this day and age, when we are trying to change things, if [age diversity is] included.
MC: How do you think ageism impacts women in general?
AM: We still have a problem, even though we have made progress. I think the L’Oreal Paris runway represents the progress better than any other runway. I don’t see other runways that are quite as free and diverse as what L’Oreal represents. But we still have a lot of progress to make as women. I’ve lived as an independent woman, yet our culture still projects onto me ideas of what it must be to be a woman. We haven’t broken through that barrier. I do not feel fully seen as a human being. I am [living] within the confines of a concept of what it is to be a woman, and I’m not free, you’re not free. We’re not free yet.
MC: What are some steps that we can take to start the process of being more “human”, less “woman”.
AM: By quit defining ourselves within a construct which doesn’t see us as fully human. I am no different than a man so quit defining me as the prehistoric idea of what it means to be a woman.
MC: This event is a demonstration of that in many ways. How do you think L’Oreal Paris Le Défilé aligns with your own values around women’s empowerment and inclusivity?
AM: I love the diversity. I love the opportunity to be a 66-year-old woman that’s living a life that is beyond the perceived idea of what I’m supposed to be living, and that I get to be strong and sexy and a participant and relative. They really want to tell us that we’re not relative, even as young as 40. I have a great relationship with young people; they do not want to have to deal what we have had to deal with. They see the road ahead and they don’t want to have to struggle when it’s their turn so we’re working as partners.
MC: The sisterhood definitely goes both ways…
AM: Yes, this is what it’s all about, the sisterhood, and being there for each other and having each other’s backs and realising that we have to support and love each other and lift each other up.
MC: On that note, how important is women supporting women in the entertainment industry and the fashion and beauty industries?
AM: We have an opportunity to break out and to be fully human and not restricted by any preconceived ideas of what it is to be a woman. We have a voice where so many women don’t have a voice, so we have to do it for them.
