You Can Start Over at Any Age

Here’s How I Did It (Twice)

When I left the company that bore my name, people thought I was done. I had built a global beauty brand, sold it to Estée Lauder, and spent 22 years growing it from a handful of lipsticks into a household name. Why walk away?

The answer was simple: it no longer felt like mine.

I was 59, an age when most people are winding down. But I was just getting started.

Starting over isn’t easy. It requires trust, mostly in yourself. It means letting go of what worked in the past and being brave enough to imagine something different. But here’s what I know: reinvention doesn’t have an expiration date.

After leaving my namesake brand, I went back to school. Yes, really. I enrolled in a health coaching program (IIN) because I wanted to learn something new. It wasn’t about building another business; it was about curiosity. But, as it turns out, curiosity is often the first spark of reinvention.

At 63, I launched Jones Road Beauty. I didn’t know if anyone would care. The beauty landscape had completely changed, new platforms, new brands, new rules. But what hadn’t changed was my belief in simple, high-quality products that make women feel like themselves. I decided to do it my way, from the ground up, and I’ve never had more fun.

In my memoir, Still Bobbi, I write about the moments that shaped me, not just the big wins, but the pivots, the doubts, the uncomfortable growth. Reinvention is rarely a straight line. It’s more like a patchwork quilt of risks, instincts, and gut feelings you learn to trust.

People ask me all the time: How do you know when it’s time to start over?

You don’t. Not really. Sometimes you just feel it, a quiet nudge, a whisper that says, there’s something more. That’s how it started for me. And once I listened, I couldn’t un-hear it.

If you’re thinking it’s too late to change careers, start a business, go back to school, or take a leap, let me be proof: it’s not.

You can start over at 40. At 50. At 60. I did it—twice. And I’m still not done.

To my new subscribers, this Substack is a space where I share what I’ve learned (and what I’m still learning). The good, the messy, and everything in between. Because reinvention isn’t just a one-time thing. It’s a mindset. A decision to stay curious. To keep going. To begin again.

And wherever you are in your journey, just know: you’re not too late, and you’re not alone.

Good news. My memoir is actually available now for 25% off through Barnes and Noble. You can preorder it now and I truly can’t wait for you to read it.

—Bobbi