First ‘fatshion’ show for the fuller-figured
Most fashion designers cater only for the super-skinny. But an anti-sizeist movement is growing in the industry, and tomorrow London will host its first "fatshion" afternoon.
The Big Bum Jumble sale in Stratford Circus, for people of larger sizes, will feature catwalk shows by up-and-coming designers, vintage clothing stalls and music. It is a fundraising drive by campaigners for acceptance of the fuller figure, who are even proposing a 2012 "Fattylympics".
It comes days after label Marc Jacobs announced it is in "the early stages" of planning a diffusion line for bigger women. And at last London Fashion Week, knitwear designer Mark Fast used size-14 models to show off his skintight dresses.
Today Evans, the fashion store for larger women, said it will launch a line aimed at teenagers who are sizes 14 to 32. Marks & Spencer has introduced extra-large school uniforms and the Asos fashion website now has Asos Curve, a dedicated section for bigger women.
Retail experts agree the market for larger shoppers cannot be ignored, while curvy size-14 Mad Men actress Christina Hendricks was recently held up by equalities minister Lynne Featherstone as having the "ideal shape" British women should aspire to.
An organiser at Big Bum Jumble said: "Plus-size fashion is often limited to poor-quality, overpriced and ethically dubious products. We deserve better."
Almost a quarter of women in Britain — 6.2 million — are size 18 or over, analyst Mintel said today. The researchers estimate the market for womenswear in those sizes has grown by 45 per cent in the last five years to £3.8 billion. This compares with growth in the overall womenswear market of 15 per cent. The larger-size menswear market also grew, by six per cent to £1.9 billion.
Mintel finds that retailers are not matching demand, with over half of women who are size 18 or more saying too few1ffer enough fashionable choice for their body shape.
