JD Williams and House 337 Rewrite the Narrative for Midlife Women in Myth-Busting AW23 Campaign

Sep. 30, 2023

Something happens when a woman turns 52. This is the average age when she starts to feel invisible. She’s erased from culture, and even though she can have economic clout, she’s ignored by brands. Why? Since the beginning of time, "society" decided that women perceived as past their required use are not worth paying attention to. Midlife women have been cowed, or vilified, by the myths surrounding this vibrant life stage—but not anymore.

As the brand for midlife style, JD Williams is saying enough is enough. Ignore midlife women at your peril. For Autumn Winter 2023, they are putting midlife women centre-stage in a new campaign that takes those midlife myths head-on. Spearheaded by a 30-second TV spot, House 337 shows them as the fiercely stylish women they really are, turning them from invisible to unmissable, capturing the spirit that has got them this far and is fuelling a whole new stage in life.

A cast of 50+ women are seen embracing all aspects of life, blatantly flouting the received wisdom around their age as a narrator repeats all the tired old rumours: “We have lost our style, forgotten how to party, are past it, probably stopped having sex a long time ago, choose to be invisible, play it safe – we are nothing but a hot mess.” House 337’s work rejects these mediaeval myths of midlife in all aspects of women’s lives, from style to beauty, their sex lives, to partying and hosting at home.

This campaign follows on from JD Williams’s previous work celebrating women in midlife in their SS23 collection, and their role as sponsor of Davina McCall’s hit midlife dating show My Mum Your Dad. All these activities have helped JD Williams become the leading brand for rewriting the narrative of midlife.

Esme Stone, Head of Brand Marketing at JD Williams, said:

"We’re proud to present a second campaign that once again demonstrates our commitment to truly representing midlife women. With House 337, we’ll continue to flip the perception society holds of women past a certain age and represent a style which is made for them. Embracing the wit, confidence and the true stories of real midlife women across the entire lifestyle category this Autumn."

 

Zara Ineson, Executive Creative Director at House 337, said:

"The tides are slowly turning on society seeing the value and awesomeness of middle-aged women. But this can’t happen soon enough. We’ve been misrepresented or altogether ignored for too long, so shove over ‘silver fox’ men HERE COME THE F-ING GIRLS, and we’re not who you think we are! It’s fulfilling to be a part of this cultural revolution of really seeing midlife women through our myth-busting work with JD Williams. And I encourage even more marketers to harness the power of creativity and the reach of their brands for both commercial and societal progress."

 

Lou Canham, Creative Director at House 337, said:

“With the work demanding an even stronger POV on midlife for AW23 we stripped out the noise and placed our women in simple spaces that kept the spotlight on them and the message. This campaign demanded a stellar team filled with a diversely fierce female energy. The crew behind the lens had a huge impact on the energy on set. Director Amy Becker-Burnett’s punchy aesthetic was essential to ensure our visuals steered clear of midlife stereotypical advertising, supported by Jameela Elfaki on stills. With the styling, we pushed hard against expectations, to inspire midlife women to dress for themselves and no one else. Midlife, we see you, and for those of us that aren’t there yet, a galvanising message that there’s so much more to come.”

 

The campaign runs nationwide across the UK, in TV, BVOD, radio and social from the 29th September to the 31st October, supported by media agency The 7 Stars.