Ms. Michelberger, the fashion world likes to boast that it has finally become more diverse. There should be more models of different skin colors on the catwalks, as well as more fashion for plus sizes. Are we finally experiencing change? I wish it would be like this. Unfortunately, there is not much left of the much celebrated diversity. A few years ago it was all the rage to show curvy women in advertising campaigns or on catwalks, which made models like Ashley Graham and Paloma Elsesser famous worldwide. Unfortunately, plus size and also BIPoC models have been seen less and less recently. According to an analysis by Vogue Business magazine, less than one percent of the catwalk models in the summer 2024 shows had a plus size figure. That means 99 percent still wear a very small clothing size. Which society does this represent?
How diverse are things in German shopping streets? Unfortunately, hardly anything has changed there either. The great diversity that we see when we sit on a bench in the city center and watch people walk by is still not reflected in the clothing sizes on offer. For women, everything over a size 44 is still in short supply. The models in the major advertising campaigns are still mainly white, very young and very thin. Many brands have also banned their XXL range from stores and only offer it online. This makes it really difficult for people of a certain clothing size to find suitable clothing.
What do you think is behind it? Many brands argued that fashion sells better online and that it takes up too much space in stores. This is difficult to understand. After all, providers like H
Do you mean that customers with large sizes are deliberately excluded? Yes, that is the only explanation for me. Fat people are undesirable; they are deliberately excluded by fashion companies. Fatphobia is pervasive. Of course no one says that. That’s why it’s better to put forward flimsy reasons, such as a lack of demand or too much effort in producing.
Why are these reasons flimsy? If you look around in other countries, you will come across brands that manage to produce the same dress in XXS as well as in 4XL. Their range of sizes does not end at XL or size 44. Brands such as Ganni from Denmark, Rixo from Great Britain and Mara Hoffman from the USA do without special lines with bulky tents that hang separately in a niche somewhere. They simply make cool fashion for every size.
The size range of many fashion suppliers usually ends at 44. But that is exactly the average size of German women. Why has this gap in the market been ignored for years? I don’t understand it myself. The fashion industry produces something that ignores reality. Skinny models may dominate the catwalks, but our society is different. I wear size 44/46 myself. Even if it surprises some: it is the standard measurement in Germany. I’m average – but the fashion world labels me as a special case.
When was the last time you strolled through the shopping street in your hometown of Hamburg? Even though I live only a few minutes from downtown Hamburg, I haven’t been shopping there for years. Why? I don’t enjoy feeling like I’m not wanted. Because neither the big fashion brands like Zara and Other Stories have anything in their range that would suit me, nor can I find it in the Alsterhaus. L or XL is often the end. For this reason I order almost everything online. I hear more and more often from mother friends that even children suffer from size pressure.
You have to explain that. It is particularly difficult for children because clothing size is determined based on height. As if all 116 cm tall children had exactly the same body shape. In addition, there is a distinction between girls’ and boys’ clothing; things for girls are often cut much narrower than those for boys. The bodies hardly differ until puberty. Here too you can see the influence of the prevailing ideal of thinness, which already applies to young girls. This teaches kids early on that we live in a system that values bodies differently.
The Italian teenage brand Subdued also relies on small sizes. Your size index even ends at M. What consequences do you see from this? This is a fatal signal because it makes it abundantly clear that girls of a certain dress size are not welcome there. Teenagers in particular orientate themselves towards their peer group and want to wear exactly what is currently popular in order to fit in. Subdued deliberately excludes young people who do not fit into the few small sizes. This size regime is no coincidence. The brand has made a conscious decision not to produce clothing for tall or fatter teenagers. Which is quite a statement. This indirectly signals to teenage girls that they have to have a certain body shape if they want to wear this brand and be one of the trendy girls.
The procedure is reminiscent of the scandal surrounding the former Abercrombie
What can this lead to?Being a teenager is a difficult age, especially when you are at risk of developing an eating disorder. Some time ago I attended a very informative panel event on the care perspectives of affected patients in Hamburg. The Hamburg Eating Disorder Center Segel e.V. invited. V. A representative of the DAK presented the children and youth report there. Accordingly, eating disorders among 15- to 17-year-old girls increased by 54 percent between 2019 and 2021. That is an alarmingly high number. In addition to the pandemic, unrealistic body ideals in media and advertising were cited as reasons, as was the supposed flawlessness on social media platforms.
What responsibility does fashion have? Of course, you can’t say that a piece of clothing that’s too tight will immediately make you anorexic. But the fashion industry is part of the problem. It clings to an outdated ideal of beauty and continues to determine what we generally perceive as beautiful. Very few women in the world correspond to this ideal and are naturally tall and very thin. But the fashion and beauty industry has clung to this fat-free ideal woman for decades. She not only sells us the latest lipstick, but also an attitude to life. Luckily, this restrictive body ideal is starting to crack and I hope we bring it down for good. So that more women and girls can feel comfortable in their bodies in the future.
What needs to change? Many manufacturers could take a cue from brands like Ganni or Rixo, where the sizes only go up to 52/54, but that’s a good start and gives me hope for more. Plus size fashion should be seen as an opportunity for more inclusivity. Which not only benefits the customers, but also the fashion brands. Who can turn down a new target group in times of declining consumption?
