Fashion industry offering more plus-sized choices

For a sect that makes up almost 70 per cent of shoppers, the plus-size fashion industry leaves a lot to be desired.

For a long time, options have been expensive, inaccessible, and not very stylish.

However, brands seem to be catching up. Some of the bigger names like Lulu Lemon, Old Navy and Aerie have all launched a more inclusive line of sizes. And more plus options, like Forever 21 and Torrid, have come to Atlantic Canada recently.

Many full-figured shoppers are welcoming the expanded selection, especially in an industry where being comfortable was rare.

“A few years ago, I realized that to be comfortable, I was going to need to start shopping in plus sizes,” said plus-sized shopper Caet Moir. “I didn't like it, I would go to places and the prices were ridiculous and they got more expensive the bigger the sizes went. It seemed so unfair that I was being charged for wearing bigger sizes.”

Sometimes in the industry, that pricing differential is called a “Fat Tax.” Warna Downey is the founder and owner of Shop Incandescent, formerly known as Femme Fatale, a size-inclusive boutique in Bedford's Sunnyside Mall that caters to as many sizes as possible. And she prides herself on knowing no matter the size of her selection, the price won't change based on size.

“Here, the small is the same price as the 3X,” she said. “Regardless of what your age or your size is, you should be able to come in through the door and be able to leave feeling good about yourself.”

STILL MORE TO BE DONE

Downey describes herself as unapologetically plus-sized and says while she welcomes the expansion on the market, she knows as both a business catering to size exclusiveness and as a consumer of fuller-sized fashion, there's a lot more work to do.

“About 70 per cent of the women in North America are wearing above a size 14. There's a huge disconnect because only about 20 per cent of the clothing being manufactured is for that segment,” she said. “Why is there that disconnect? Because the industry doesn't understand the body size … The fashion industry has just habitually excluded women with bodies of diverse shapes and sizes and have always been promoting this thin ideal.”

Thanks to movements on social media, changes in representation are starting to be more prevalent. Moir said looking online and seeing models more like themselves made a big difference.

“You can choose what model size you want to see also, so I can choose to only see what it looks like on someone who is actually my size, rather than someone who is a size small or medium.”

Not only does that make picking out the clothing more enjoyable for Moir, she says it helps her feel more normal in everyday situations.

“Having my favourite brands bring in bigger sizing that looks good means that I don't have to sacrifice comfort for style, or style for price. It's also more normalizing for me,” they said.

OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE PERCEPTIONS

Downey is excited by the movement in the industry.

“There's a massive opportunity there to change things, to listen, to connect with women, get feedback, to really understand their needs wants and desires for shopping,” she said.

That's important, because right now, there's not a lot of desire to shop for many plussized women. Chelsie Robinson knows that struggle all too well.

“It wasn't until recently that I started to find confidence in what I wear,” she said. “It's a guessing game regardless of where I shop. And online shopping? So much harder.

But that's where I've been able to find more and more clothes that fit that I like.”

It's so much deeper than clothing items.

“My entire life I've never known confidence in my choices,” said Robinson. “The selections were incredibly limited to not much more than oversized clothes with zero shape ... I always found myself attempting to wear clothing that was too small simple so I could try to fit into my style.”

Katelyn Mackenzie agrees with Robinson. It wasn't until she changed her ideology around clothing that her style started to shift.

“For a while, I was resistant to the plus-size clothing movement because it was all ugly garbage my mother wouldn't even think is cute. Then I resisted because it was much more expensive,” said Mackenzie.

Mackenzie says she is finally breaking out of that ideology.

"Clothes do not make me who I am, but it took me so long to adjust my thinking about my body, based on my experience with clothes," she adds.

As more brands come online with plus-sized options, Downey hopes it continues to bring more selection the sizeinclusive market.

“Are we making changes? Yes. In fact, we've made leaps and bounds compared to when I was a teenager,” she said.