Plus Size Clothing

True or False: Until very recently, manufacturers and retailers weren’t paying much attention to the needs of a major consumer group. Decide for yourself: approximately six out of ten women fall into the plus-size category (sizes 12 and up) and hence wear plus size clothing but the fashion industry has only recently begun to take notice of this very important market. Five years ago there were about 200 vendors of plus size clothing for women; today there are over 2,000.

”In other words, women who wear plus size clothing are taking note of the many fashion collections now available to them. “There are a lot more price-points to work with today. Plus sizes used to be inexpensively made and they would fall apart, so women had to shop more often. Now they can do ‘investment dressing’, and buy an expensive navy suit that will last years and years,”

 “Mode is about giving women the information and inspiration to become their own fashion authority. It’s really important to realize that style is not about a size or a price tag — style is style. And women want to be stylish, no matter they wear plus size clothing or not what their size

 Let’s compare two groups of women aged 25-34 (those who wear size 0-10 and those who wear sizes 11 and up) and see how they differ in their quest for fashion. The plus size clothing group actually enjoys shopping more than the smaller-sized group: 29% of the plus size women “like” or “love” shopping, while only 23% of the other group feel the same way. “Now that there are so many more choices today, women have more opportunity to express their style, and find clothes that fit in with their lifestyles”.

The women who use plus size clothing are dismayed by the palette available to them. Forty-seven percent say that the colors they like are not offered, 13 points higher than the other group.