Knix Is Confronting Ageism In The Lingerie Space

Every year, when International Women’s Day rolls around, fashion brands release campaigns centred around women’s empowerment and gender equality. Some design T-shirts with feminist slogans, while others donate proceeds to organizations and charities focused around women — either way, if you’re a fashion brand in 2020, it’s more likely than not that you’re doing something in the weeks leading up to March 8. But while we can’t complain about witnessing the industry celebrating women, whatever the mode may be, figuring out which brands to support out of the thousands participating can sometimes start to feel a tad overwhelming.

Thankfully, one female-founded brand went ahead and did the work for you. Yesterday, Toronto-based lingerie brand Knix released a video in celebration of women over the age of 50 embracing their bodies at every stage of life. The brand also designed a social media campaign showcasing over 500 women spanning four decades. A minute later, our worries about figuring out which brand to champion on International Women’s Day were a thing of the past.

The video begins by showing a woman lounging in front of a marble statue. While Demi Lovato’s empowering track “Confident” plays in the background, a message appears on the screen that reads, “50 is the new…” Suddenly, as the song increases in volume, the words, “Who gives a f*ck” appear in front of a group of 13 women, aged 50 to 81, all decked out in nothing but Knix.

For the remainder of the video, titled “Age Doesn’t Matter - A Message From Knix,” viewers will find real women of all sizes, shapes, and skin tones dancing, laughing, posing, and snapping along to Lovato’s track. “The inspiration for this video is pretty simple,” Knix founder and CEO Joanna Griffiths explains. “For years society has pretended that women over a certain age don't exist. They disappear from advertising, particularly in our category of lingerie and intimates — in 2018 Adriana Lima marked the oldest Victoria’s Secret Angel ever at the age of 37. At Knix, we want to empower all women, no matter their age, to be unapologetically themselves. To do that we need to make sure that they feel seen in our marketing.”

Despite only being posted yesterday, the Instagram campaign has already been seen by more than 100k people on the photo- and video-sharing platform alone. It wasn’t long before Sarah Nicole Landry, or as her followers know her @thebirdspapaya, saw the video and was inspired to share it with her one million followers. It was through her page that it caught the attention of beloved actress and women’s rights activist Kristen Bell.

“Well, ill be buying @knixwear from now on!” Bell captions a re-share of the video. “Bravo to everyone who had a hand in this ad! I had to reshare this. It’s time we wake up and celebrate ALL women. YES EVEN OVER 50! They exist, and they need their MOMENT. Plus, they’re cool as hell! All credit and praise to @knixwear for this.” Her video has a whopping 1,462,056 views and counting. 

Feel good this International Women’s Day knowing that by supporting Knix come March 8, you’ll be lifting up a company that always puts women first.