Courteney Cox Is Only Getting More Ambitious With Age

Courteney Cox and Nikki Ogunnaike onstage at the Marie Claire power play event

(Image credit: Ralphy Ramos)

published 19 March 2024

Courteney Cox is entering a new decade in June. Don't expect turning 60 to mean the actress and Homecourt founder plans to slow down, however. If anything, the milestone will make her more invested in leveling up.

"As I’m getting older, I do take more chances. I just go for things more. I’m more ambitious," Cox said in a fireside chat with Marie Claire editor-in-chief Nikki Ogunnaike at Monday's Power Play summit in Los Angeles, California.

The risk Cox took as a first-time entrepreneur in 2022 is a perfect example. Onstage, she said she didn't know a luxury home goods brand would be her next step after acting. But the timing (a freed-up schedule due to the Covid-19 lockdowns) and the concept (non-toxic, luxuriously scented home cleaning products pretty enough to display on a counter) aligned so perfectly, she could dive into becoming a business owner at 58.

Cox wasn't always so willing to chase her interests head-on. "I think there was a time where I was on Friends where I didn’t have enough confidence to go after things that I could’ve or should’ve," she reflected. "Maybe I was more being an imposter back then. But now, I don’t feel like I am, because I take more chances and I do more research and I try harder."

Courteney Cox onstage with Nikki Ogunnaike at the Marie Claire Power Play event — Courteney Cox joined *Marie Claire* editor in chief Nikki Ogunnaike to discuss her brand, Homecourt, and the scope of her ambitions.

The biggest difference between being the "clean friend" Monica on TV and reaching her full potential as a founder in real life? The amount of effort Cox puts into a project, whether it's developing products for Homecourt or picking up a fresh skill. (Tennis and piano are two of her newer hobbies; she also got very invested in cooking during the pandemic.) "I think things may have come easier [when I was younger]. Now I realize, in order to feel great about myself, you have to put the work in," she explained. "There’s nothing where I don’t give a hundred percent, whereas before I might have skated by."

Courteney Cox onstage at the Power Play summit — Cox told Power Play attendees that her outlook on ambition today differs from her approach while she was a young actress. Now, she gives everything "one hundred percent."

The leap from Hollywood to founding Homecourt may not be Cox's last big pivot. "I have many things that I want to be better at," Cox said in her closing remarks. "I guess my [definition of] ambition is realizing that you can."

Courteney Cox on the step and repeat at Power Play — Cox said her definition of ambition is evolving as she ages.

She's proof that's it's never too late to get started, after all. "As I get older, I realize, why not?" she said. "Do all of it, and try really hard."

Halie LeSavage is the senior fashion and beauty news editor at Marie Claire, where she assigns, edits, and writes stories for both sections. Halie is an expert on runway trends, celebrity style, emerging fashion and beauty brands, and shopping (naturally). In over seven years as a professional journalist, Halie’s reporting has ranged from fashion week coverage spanning the Copenhagen, New York, Milan, and Paris markets, to profiles on industry insiders including stylist Alison Bornstein and J.Crew womenswear creative director Olympia Gayot, to breaking news stories on noteworthy brand collaborations and beauty launches. (She can personally confirm that Bella Hadid’s Ôrebella perfume is worth the hype.) She has also written dozens of research-backed shopping guides to finding the best tote bags, ballet flats, and more. Most of all, Halie loves to explore what trends—like the rise of doll-like Mary Janes or TikTok’s 75 Hard Style Challenge—can say about culture writ large. (She justifies almost any purchase by saying it’s “for work.”) Halie has previously held writer and editor roles at Glamour, Morning Brew, and Harper’s Bazaar. Halie has been cited as a fashion and beauty expert in The Cut, CNN Underscored, and Reuters, among other outlets, and appears in newsletters like Selleb and Self-Checkout to provide shopping recommendations. In 2022, she was awarded the Hearst Spotlight Award for excellence and innovation in fashion journalism. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Harvard College. Outside of work, Halie is passionate about books, baking, and her miniature Bernedoodle, Dolly. For a behind-the-scenes look at her reporting, you can follow Halie on Instagram and TikTok.

Stay In The Know