Laura Adlington: ‘It’s Time To Fix Fashion’s Size Inclusivity Problem’

I have always been fat and I have always loved fashion. But since the age of 11, I have struggled to find fashionable clothes that fit. Forever relegated to the accessories section of most stores (cue a lifelong obsession with scarves and handbags), I spent most of my teenage years wearing my mum’s jeans and shopping solely in Dorothy Perkins – while my friends got to parade around in their pedal pushers and low-rise Jane Norman jeans.

Trends change and things move on but it seems to me that the fashion industry is still living in the dark ages. Look around any high street or shopping centre and you’ll be lucky to find one shop that that caters to us plus-size girls.

Chances are, if you do find that one shop it will be filled to the brim with cold-shoulder tops and shapeless T-shirts emblazoned with “Live, laugh, love” (or butterflies eye roll) plastered all over them.

Online shopping is, mostly, a dream, so I rarely even bother shopping on the high street these days. But one lunchtime recently, I strolled past a few pretty summer dresses in the window of my local Matalan and thought I’d have a look.

As a plus-size woman who really struggles to be trendy, I am often dismayed at the lack of plus sizes on the high-street. So, what I saw shouldn’t have come as a surprise to me, but it did. And it really bothered me.

Not only were there no clothes above a size 16 on the shelves (Matalan claims to have sizes up to 20) but shoved in a dark, dingy corner like the singles table at a wedding was Matalan’s ‘Curve’ range. The strapline said something about clothes made for curves, when it should have read ‘Poorly made clothes for fat people we don’t give a sh*t about.’

Cue a plethora of those aforementioned cold-shoulder tops, ugly black trousers with elasticated waists and ill-fitting smock dresses. You may think I’m being harsh. You may think it’s positive that Matalan has a plus size range at all, when so many still don’t. But it’s 2021 and the average woman in the UK is a size 16. It’s time for all retailers, not just Matalan, to do better.

Just last week Old Navy, the US equivalent of Primark, announced it would be stocking all of its clothes in sizes 8-30 in all of its stores, ditching its dedicated plus-size range all together. Hurrah!

I was also pleased to learn that Mango has recently discontinued its plus-size range, Violeta, in favour of integrating it with its primary clothing line. The Spanish retailer said the move ‘reinforces its commitment to inclusivity’ and desire to dress a larger number of customers.

There are lots of other retailers who are also stepping up to the plate. You can always trust Simply Be to deliver trendy, fashionable clothes that fit beautifully and are affordable. In The Style has also been putting in the work. Not only has it integrated its curve range into its standard range – offering clothes up to a size 28 – nearly everything is available in tall and petite. What’s more, all the clothes are modelled on women of different shapes, heights and sizes.

I'm glad to see it’s becoming less newsworthy and more expected for retailers to utilise their platforms to show their clothes on a range of different sizes, as well as races, abilities and genders.

But diversity in fashion should mean all, and not simply ’one of each’.

While progress is important, the reality is that many of us plus-size women still don’t see ourselves represented in the ways we’ve been longing for, and that’s what still needs to change.

A major issue that lies ahead is faux inclusivity and tokenisation.

We know adding plus sizes can help a brand appear more progressive and less elitist. We also know that retailers stand to profit from size inclusion, as the percentage of consumers who wear plus-size clothes rises. It seems a lot of brands care more about grabbing a share of the market and being seen to do the right thing, without making a genuine commitment to plus-size people.

I really want to see brands extend their range of sizes and not just have a limited ‘Curve’ range of clothes that stop at a size 20/22. I also want to see more plus-size models wearing the clothes instead of just standard sized ones, so I can actually see what it looks like on a bigger body.

There is a huge market out there for people like me who want well-made, beautiful clothes that fit properly and flatter our curves. And we have the spending power, too.

The high-street is on its knees and, really, is it any wonder? It’s time for retailers to get woke or go broke.

READ MORE:****If The Catwalks Are Really Waking Up To Body Diversity, Why Is Still So Hard To Find Clothes That Fit?

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