QVC is doubling down on its proven audience: women 50 and older.
Under a new agenda called 'The Age of Possibility', QVC has formed a collective of 50 celebrities, activists, entrepreneurs and prominent women from many walks of life. They will moderate panels, participate in live QVC broadcasts, consult on products and programming, and appear in cities and towns across the country to spark conversations about body changes, relationships with children, caring for aging parents, dating, beauty and skin care, and other issues and topics relevant to women aged 50 and over.
More from WWDQVC calls its collective the 'Quintessential 50', or Q50 for short. It is a diverse group that also includes Martha Stewart; Queen Latifah, Naomi Watts; chef Carla Hall; Dr. Karen Knudsen, the CEO of the American Cancer Society; tennis great Billie Jean King; Renee Wilm, CEO of the Las Vegas Grand Prix; Including Patti LaBelle and QVC program hosts.
"We want their rich experience and diverse perspectives to help guide our evolution and connect women to what is truly possible at this stage of life," Annette Dunleavy, QVC vice president of brand marketing, told WWD. "We have always focused on women over 50, but we started to realize that there is a bigger reason to help this group. It is an underserved demographic that is not sufficiently supported by mainstream brands and retailers. By celebrating women at this stage of life, we believe we will start a conversation while showing the world that QVC is entering a new chapter, with a new perspective and relevant products and programming."
To further the conversations, QVC is launching an "Over 50 and Fabulous!" Facebook group, where women can come together on Facebook and have discussions.
The goal of the collective, the new programming and products, and the Facebook group is to get more women over 50 more involved in QVC's multimedia platform for shopping, entertainment and learning, and to reverse the negative sales recently experienced by QVC's parent company , Qurate, were to be seen, to turn. Retail.
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"We're breaking boundaries and dismantling old stereotypes," said Shawn Killinger, QVC host and Q50 member. "Aging with passion and purpose is something to be pursued, not fought. Everything I ever wanted came later in life, when I was truly ready to experience it.
On April 24, the Q50 will gather at the Grand Prix Plaza in Las Vegas. "It is the first summit of its kind to feature keynoters and panels for the Q50 to spend a day together, get to know each other and have candid conversations about issues that matter to them," said Dunleavy. During the private one-day event, participants will range in age from 50 to 80 and talk about issues that are important to them at their stage of life. Grand Prix Plaza is a 39-acre multi-use complex for private events and exhibitions, and home to Formula 1 racing in North America.
QVC conducted a survey with YouGov that found that 62 percent of women between the ages of 50 and 70 feel that reaching the age of 50 and older is seen by society as a time of decline. The biggest misconception that these women want to prove most is that they are wrong. resistant to change and new experiences. The survey reached 3,713 respondents and was conducted in March 2024.
The same survey found that only 31 percent of women aged 50 to 70 feel supported by brands, compared to 58 percent of women aged 18 to 29 and 41 percent of women aged 30 to 49.
Based on data from the US Census Bureau, QVC indicates that between 2022 and 2035, the over-50s segment (men and women) is expected to grow more than 2.5 times faster than the 18-49 segment. The population of people over 50 will grow by 13 percent in that period, while the segment of 18 to 49 year olds will grow by 5 percent.
The current population of 1.9 billion adults aged 50 and older is expected to increase by 70 percent to 3.2 billion by 2050.
QVC also cited statistics from AARP, the American Association for Retired Persons, showing that women will control 75 percent of discretionary spending worldwide by 2028, and 66 percent of U.S. wealth by 2030.
Women over 50 will have "incredibly" more purchasing power by 2030," Dunleavy said, noting that the demographic is becoming increasingly independent, autonomous and has more time for themselves. "We worked with YouGov on the research to really validate what we were seeing. . . The Age of Possibility will truly be a great, ongoing message," said Dunleavy. "At QVC we know that being over 50 means being full of questions, hope and opportunities. We believe that this stage of life is a time of joyful anticipation and discovery that women should look forward to, not fear. It is a time in their lives when anything is possible and you can be authentically who you are. We view this initiative as much bigger than QVC. We believe QVC can lead a shift in the way retail and entertainment views women over 50."
Dunleavy said Q50 members will provide advice on brands and categories and that QVC will more sharply manage its product selection for the women-over-50 demographic. "We really want women in this demographic to be seen and heard," she said . "We're asking some of Q50's members to be ambassadors and advocates for QVC's Age of Possibility, which it called 'a social movement.'
There is a good reason to pay more attention to women over 50. According to Dunleavy, "We want to attract more of this audience to come and see us. We are the place for women over 50 to be entertained and shop... In retail, the experience can be very transactional and very digital. At QVC, we are deeply connected on a human level and community is a very powerful part of our business.
"I'm 59. So the age of possibility speaks very personally to me," Dunleavy said.
QVC parent company Qurate Retail reported for the fiscal fourth quarter ending December 31, 2023 that total revenue fell 11 percent to just over $3.14 billion, compared to $3.53 billion in the year-ago period. Excluding Zulily, which was divested in May 2023, fourth-quarter revenue fell 4 percent from $3.27 billion in the same period a year ago. The decline in sales was attributed to reduced inventory levels and consumers becoming more "choiceful".
In June 2022, Qurate's president and CEO David Rawlinson unveiled a three-year turnaround plan, the Athens Project, intended to stabilize and differentiate its core businesses, expand video streaming business, strengthen customer relationships, improve execution and reduce costs to lower. "We had to do a very fundamental turnaround," Rawlinson said, as the company reported its fourth-quarter results on Feb. 28. "We're now seeing the business really starting to gain momentum," Rawlinson said. "After this year, we're really leaning on revenue growth, streaming, digital, a range of new value propositions and innovations. We will really be ready in a very exciting way."
As for QVC, he said, "We're going to take it (outside) the studio to the world. QVC will appear in neighborhoods and in different formats. You will see a rebranding, very different from before." The Age of Possibility and the Q50 are part of that.
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