Thank you...??

I was in Wal-Mart today and got a strange comment from a older gentleman. He walks by me and says, "It is so nice to see a young woman look like a real lady. Thank you!" I never got any clarity on what he meant by this so I became infatuated with his comment. What exactly makes me a lady? Was it the fact I was wearing a dress and not the typical wear a college girl is seen in? Was it because I was holding a hamper I was about to purchase or because I was in the cooking section and both of these are assumptions of what role a woman should take at some point in her life? The caring wife/mother who takes on the task of providing a clean house and cooked meals for whom she is supplying them to? I know I am completely overthinking a man's simple comment but the idea of what a "lady" is seems to be continually changing so what does it mean in today's culture? And will there always been an assumption that I am to take on that role of a wife/mother?