If you’re reading this, chances are high that you’re already a fan of one of the fashion set’s favorite members-only retailers, the RealReal. Known for its rare selection of gently used ready-to-wear items, accessories, shoes, and jewelry, the RealReal offers finds exclusively from luxe designers like Hermès, Rolex, Tiffany & Co., and Khaite.
And even if the RealReal already has a permanent residency in your browser tabs, you may be less familiar with their powerhouse president and chief operating officer, Rati Sahi Levesque. The collective recently debuted “as is,” a new product condition category that aims to give luxury items fourth, fifth, and even sixth lives in circulation. Each piece under this category is priced around 20 percent less, on average, than those listed as in fair condition.
“That’s my favorite thing about vintage and the experience with secondhand,” Levesque tells Bazaar. “Most of the products you find on our site, you can’t find anywhere else. Ninety percent of it comes from people’s homes and past seasons. You have to get creative and look at things in a different way—a new way—when shopping on our site.”
Bazaar caught up with Levesque ahead for a closer look at what keeps her feeling most radiant and powerful. Just like the RealReal’s collection of prestige secondhand clothing and accessories does, the COO shares a few of the ways she is only getting better with age.
If you don’t mind sharing, how old are you?
I’m 43.
What age do you feel you are in your head?
I feel about 32 in my head. Maybe I haven’t matured since then; I’m not sure why 32—still figuring it out. There’s a sense of confidence in a lot of ways and experience [that comes with age]. But you’re also still figuring it out—every decade feels like a new decade.
Do you have a beloved beauty product that you’ve worn for most of your life?
I’ve been wearing coconut oil on my body for a number of years. My family and I go to a co-op called Rainbow Grocery in California, and they have this big ol’ jar of coconut oil I like to use. My parents are from India, and ever since I was little, that was the beauty product. If you had a scar or anything, it was always coconut oil.
Dr. Bronner’s Regenerative Organic Virgin Coconut Oil
What aspects of your physical appearance do you love more now, as you’ve gotten older?
Oh, I think my nose! I hated my nose growing up—it felt so different and big and all the things. Now, it reminds me of my aunts and uncles, and my dad. I like that it’s different. I have a bump on the top of my nose and the tip goes down.
My children have become so observant about things. My daughter who’s eight, turning nine, is always calling me out now. The other day she asked, “Why does your nose do that?” and it was such a learning to be able to tell her that I love my nose, this is what it means, and this is our heritage, and that I wouldn’t do anything to change it. I don’t know if I would’ve had that same reaction when I was her age.
Which beauty products would you say have aged well?
I would probably go back to basics and say beeswax heel and hand balms. I use them to keep my feet and hands lubricated before bed—they’ve started getting so dry. But I remember that my entire family did that when I was growing up. I think, just, hands and feet are so important, and it makes me feel more beautiful when they’re not cracked. In my 40s, I will say that’s something I do every night and has become part of my ritual.
Burt’s Bees Hand Salve
Now 17% Off
Savannah Bee Company Beeswax Heel Balm
Please give us a quick breakdown of your current beauty routine.
I recently discovered Knockout Beauty, after learning about the company through a friend, and started using her regimen. It’s essentially a face wash in the morning and at night, a vitamin C and vitamin E, and then just a rich lotion. I’ve also been using a couple of face [creams and masks] as well: One is retinol-based, and the other is from Environ, which has been a game changer. I’ve been using this routine for the last year. I’ve always used nice drugstore, organic kind of products in the past, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve just invested more into my skincare. I do feel like luxe products do help sometimes, but it’s just about finding the right ones for your skin.
Environ Antioxidant Defence Crème
When it comes to styling my hair, I usually let it air dry—I’m too impatient for anything else. There are days when I walk into the office and I look like a wet—I don’t know what—but I go with it. I don’t ever get my hair done, and I’ll cut it myself to trim it. And for nails, I’ll either go naked with no polish, or I would be into getting long red nails at some point. I think it’s one or the other—over-the-top or nothing.
A lot of conversations around aging seem to lead to injectables and plastic surgery. What are your thoughts on the topic?
I’m open to it; I’m not going to be a never-say-never type of person. I don’t know how I’m going to feel five to 10 years from now. I haven’t done anything so far, because I like embracing my age and I’m excited to get white hair—I think it shows experience. And I’ve seen it worn so beautifully—I feel like there are so many role models now. Aging is such a beautiful thing, and it’s okay, right? So, I haven’t yet, but no judgment and I might change my mind. Ask me again in five to 10 years.
What keeps you feeling vibrant and youthful?
I think visiting with friends is the main thing. My kids also keep me feeling vibrant, but I think mostly it’s doing things outside of my daily schedule too. You can feel like there’s not always enough time to get out of the daily routine with kids and work, but when you do, you can meet old friends. I try to do that regularly, because I feel reinvigorated every time.
Why do you think it’s important to invest in vintage fashion pieces?
There’s something so amazing about buying something that feels like it’s one of a kind, you can’t buy it anywhere else, and no one else has it. The most beautiful thing about that is the sense of confidence that comes with wearing it. You’re not buying something that everyone has or [following a trend that] everyone’s doing—you kind of have to know yourself and know who you are to buy a vintage piece.
Many people fear growing older. In your opinion, what is the best part about it?
It may sound cliché, but I think gaining experience, for sure. When you’ve seen something before, your reaction to things is so different as you age. Starting your career when you’re younger as a woman, you feel like you need to be everything to everyone, and sometimes you feel like you have to act like a man to get ahead—there’s just always this feeling of anxiousness. I think as you age, you trust the process more than ever have before, and that things will work out. There’s a sense of peace that comes with that, and so, you react to things differently.
Tiffany Dodson is currently the associate beauty commerce editor at Harper’s Bazaar, where she specializes in trend forecasting, building relationships with major and emerging brands, and crafting shopping stories—from holiday gift guides to product road tests. Tiffany’s work has previously been featured in outlets like SELF, Bustle, and Teen Vogue, and she’s been quoted as a commerce and beauty expert in publications and platforms like The Business of Fashion and NPR’s Life Kit podcast.