If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’re a fan of one of the fashion world’s favorite membership retailers, The RealReal. Known for its rare selection of pre-owned ready-to-wear clothing, accessories, shoes, and jewelry, The RealReal carries only bargains from luxury designers like Hermes, Rolex, Tiffany, and Khaite.
Even if you already have The RealReal residing in your browser tab, you may not be too familiar with its powerful president and COO, Rati Sahi Levesque. The collective recently introduced a new product condition category called “as is,” which aims to give luxury items in circulation a fourth, fifth, or even sixth life. Items in this category are selling for about 20% less, on average, than items listed as “fair.”
“That’s what I love most about the vintage and second-hand experience,” Levesque told BAZAAR. “Most of the items you find on our site can’t be found anywhere else — 90% of it comes from people’s homes or past seasons. When you shop on our site, you’re forced to get creative and see things differently, in a new way.”
BAZAAR spoke with Levesque ahead of the event to learn more about what makes her feel her brightest and strongest. Along with her collection of high-end vintage clothing and accessories, the COO of The RealReal shared some of the reasons why she only gets better with age.
If you don’t mind, please tell me, how old are you?
I am 43 years old.
How old do you feel you are in your mind?
In my head, I feel like I’m about 32. Maybe I just haven’t grown since then. I don’t know why I’m 32. I’m still figuring it out. I’m more confident in many ways and more experienced (which comes with age), but I’m still figuring it out. Every decade feels like the start of a new decade.
Do you have a favorite beauty product that you’ve been using for most of your life?
I’ve been using coconut oil on my body for years. My family and I go to a co-op in California called Rainbow Grocery, and they have a big jar of coconut oil there, so I use that a lot. My parents are from India, and coconut oil was a beauty product growing up. If I had scars or anything, I would always use coconut oil.
Dr. Bronner’s Regenerated Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
As you get older, what do you like more about your appearance?
Oh, I think it’s my nose! I hated my nose as a child because it was different, big, and I felt all sorts of things. Now my nose reminds me of my aunts and uncles and my dad. I like it because it’s different. I have a bump on top of my nose and a droopy tip.
My kids are very observant about things. My daughter, who is 8 going on 9, scolds me all the time now. The other day she asked me, “Why is your nose shaped like that?” It was a great learning experience for me to be able to tell her that I love my nose and this is what it means and this is our tradition and I’m not going to do anything to change it. I don’t know if I would have had the same reaction when I was her age.
What beauty product never fades as it ages?
Going back to basics, I would probably say my beeswax heel and hand balms. I use them before bed to moisturize my feet and hands. They were starting to get dry, but I remember when I was a kid, everyone in my family did that. Hands and feet are so important and I feel more beautiful when they’re not cracked. Now that I’m in my 40s, I do it every night and it’s part of my ritual.
Burt’s Bees Hand Cream
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Tell us a little bit about your current beauty routine.
I recently heard about Knockout Beauty from a friend and started using her skincare regime. It’s basically a morning and night face wash, Vitamin C and Vitamin E, and a rich lotion. I also use a few face creams and masks. One is retinol based and the other is from Environ, which is a game changer. I’ve been on this routine for a year now. I used to use good organic products from the drugstore, but as I get older, I’ve started spending more on skincare. I think that sometimes high-end products can help, but it’s important to find the right ones for your skin.
Environ Antioxidant Defense Cream
When it comes to styling my hair, I usually let it air dry because I can’t stand anything else. Some days it looks wet when I walk into the office and I don’t know what it is, but I just let it be. I never style my hair, I cut and style it myself. When it comes to my nails, I either go bare-handed with no nail polish or I would like to have long red nails one day. I think it’s either one or the other, too much or nothing at all.
So many conversations about aging seem to lead to injections and plastic surgery. What are your thoughts on this topic?
I’m going to embrace it. I don’t want to be the type of person who never says I can’t. I don’t know how I’ll feel in five or ten years. I haven’t done anything yet. I like to embrace my age and I’m looking forward to having gray hair. I think it’s proof that I’ve gained experience. I’ve seen people wear gray hair very beautifully. I feel like there are a lot of role models now. Getting older is a very beautiful thing and that’s fine, right? So, I haven’t done it yet, but I won’t judge and I might change my mind. Ask me again in five or ten years.
What gives you energy and youthfulness?
I think meeting up with friends is the best. My kids also cheer me up, but mostly I think it’s important to do something outside of my daily schedule. I’m always busy with my kids and work, so sometimes I feel like I don’t have enough time to go outside, but when I do, I get to see old friends. I try to do that regularly because it cheers me up every time.
Why do you think it’s important to invest in vintage fashion items?
There’s something so amazing about buying something unique, something that’s not available anywhere else, something that nobody else has. The best part is the confidence it gives you when you wear it. To buy vintage, instead of buying something that everyone else has or does (what’s in style), you have to know yourself and know who you are.
A lot of people fear getting older. For you, what’s the best thing about getting older?
It may sound cliché, but I think it’s about gaining experience. You’ve seen it before, but as you get older, your reactions to things change a lot. When you start your career as a woman at a young age, you feel like you have to do everything for everyone and sometimes you feel like you have to act like a man to get ahead. There’s always that feeling of insecurity. As you get older, you learn to trust the process more than ever and have faith that things will work out. With that comes a sense of security and your reactions to things change.
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Tiffany Dodson currently serves as Associate Editor of Beauty Commerce at Harper’s BAZAAR, where she specializes in forecasting trends, building relationships with leading and emerging brands, and crafting shopping stories from holiday gift guides to product road tests. Tiffany’s work has been featured in SELF, Bustle, Teen Vogue, and more, and she has been quoted as an expert on commerce and beauty in publications and platforms such as The Business of Fashion and NPR’s Life Kit podcast.
