Off Brand is a thrice-monthly column that delves into trends in women’s fashion and beauty.
IN NEARLY 30 years of appearing on television and lending her name and expertise to 97 books, a magazine, Christmas trees, crafting supplies, dog beds and CBD gummies, Martha Stewart, 79, has always been the face of her ventures. But during our collective quarantine, her already significant use of social media as a personal branding tool grew. Her long-standing interest in wellness, skincare and beauty became newly relevant as she connected with millions of followers, many of them a fraction of her age. She invested in more sophisticated lighting for her Zoom calls; she lost some weight; she posted a viral selfie at the edge of her East Hampton swimming pool (after learning the term, she admitted that the alluring picture was a “thirst trap,” or purposefully enticing post). For a woman approaching her ninth decade, when CEOs of all genders typically shrink back, she is placing her own image front and center.