Fashion has always been a means for us to understand and express our sense of style. An “ideal” size, color, shape has long been propagated by fashion magazines and runways. While there have always been consumers who have existed outside of that ideal, only in recent years has the collective consciousness of the consumer begun to demand that brands take care of their bodies as they are. We are seeing an increase in the need for fashion brands, especially women’s fashion brands, to be inclusive – and while most brands see this as a welcome change and have taken initial steps in the right direction, there is a way to go. long to return. this in a complete reality.
The principles of size inclusion are based on questioning this existing “ideal”. While it is more common to equate size inclusion with plus size inclusion (clothes that are 18 or more, eg, 3XL and above in the Indian context), it also means catering to smaller sizes (clothes that range from 0 to 4, or smaller than XS ), and petite and tall.
Before trying to understand how brands can move toward size inclusion, it’s important to understand how this phenomenon came about and why it’s important to respond to it. The first thing we should think is – why not? If we have products that serve a need, why exclude a significant portion of consumers from it? In addition, it makes business sense – a significant 15% of business in the clothing industry comes from plus sizes! Additionally, social media is holding more and more power in holding brands accountable in their decision making. For almost any brand, especially since the 2020 pandemic, having a social media presence means that any customer who feels left out can directly seek out and call out that brand to do so. The community of influencers and creators has also played a crucial role in educating and spreading awareness, further strengthening the collective voice to demand involvement from brands. An important breakthrough was made through the discussion about the “fat tax”, or the practice of charging an additional fee for designs larger than a specific size, brought to the attention of the industry by Instagram fashion watchdog Diet Sabya in passed.
In response to this shift, some brands are beginning to take steps in the right direction. High fashion runways are beginning to reflect the change with designers actively working with models of different sizes. Haute couture designer brands offer more sizes in stores, a marked shift from the previous practice of keeping only the smallest sizes displayed on the shelves.
Having a comprehensive range of sizes from petite to plus size is the minimum expectation from fashion brands now. But is it that easy? Especially when looking at the layer behind luxury and designer brands, it is important to understand that the journey of inclusion for a mass or premium brand, operating at a relatively high scale and frequency of launches, will be different and challenging.
As you produce to scale (meaning it’s not made to order like for fashion), the plus sizes themselves can be endless. As you add plus sizes to existing styles, the grading and measurement rules required are not as linear as they are for the standard 5-6 XS-XXL sizes that most brands offer. Doing them right, ie, getting the right fit, is just as important as doing them at all. Furthermore, the difference in Indian body type, and therefore Indian sizing, compared to US or UK sizing means that any brand will have to invest a significant amount of time and resources in research and technological development to get data for development. fits plus size. Additionally, inventory and sales planning becomes more challenging and costly in the absence of adequate data and accurate sales forecasting.
Despite all the above challenges, especially as brands that have reached a certain scale and solved the supply chain for its standard sizes, we have to start somewhere and we have to start now! To a certain degree, a brand can optimize by collecting body measurements from their customers and incorporate simple solutions into their offering. Many online brands that don’t carry sizes above 2XL are offering tailored offerings as an option, which also helps to include those in between sizes.
The role of brands goes beyond simply producing larger size ranges. The concept of inclusion should permeate every aspect of a brand and should not be used as a token gesture for good press. We must remember that we are now serving a customer who is confident in his own skin and sees fashion not as something he has to force himself to fit, but as something that should be molded to who he is. Gone are the days when all there was to offer plus size were dull colors, boring silhouettes in loose and ill-fitting styles. When thinking about inclusive apparel, brands must offer the same design, aesthetic and appeal that their brand stands for. Thought should also be given to choosing fabrics and styles for people based on their body shapes. Basically, brands are asked to consider the reality of women – she may be tall, she may be short, she may have belly fat and she may want a style that hides it, or she may have fat. in the stomach and feel confident to wear a beautiful. head. And as a brand, we must commit to the inclusion of each customer and provide a perfect fit to their body.
Creating a good shopping experience so that customers don’t feel left out at any point in their shopping journey is essential. It is not uncommon for a customer, while looking for plus size clothing, to deal with insensitive sales staff, or to be scorned for being large. Sensitization and training of store staff becomes crucial in this case. Some lessons can also be learned from brands in the west – separating clothes not based on sizes but on styles or colors so that a person shopping for a size 4 and a size 20 can shop from the space inside the store and not feel confined to a shelf at the back of the store; or displaying mannequins of different sizes in a common space, which makes it a welcoming and visually inclusive space for the shopper.
The restrictive nature of offline shopping has often meant that customers turn to online shopping. And to make the online shopping experience more welcoming, similar steps can be taken. Building filter capabilities based on size and fit makes searching easy and efficient. Inclusiveness should also be reflected in the marketing strategy. It is essential to include people of different sizes and shapes in promotional materials and product pages so that every customer can visualize themselves in that product. While collaborating with influencers and digital creators as well, brands don’t have to limit themselves to a specific body size or type. The more diverse their influencer, the more diverse a group of customers they can aim to reach and engage with.
Size-inclusive principles should also apply to all related and ancillary industries and functions — modeling agencies should recruit women of different sizes, skin tones, heights, so that no one feels too big; mannequins should also be produced in different sizes. Adequate changes need to be made to the visual cues in markets as well – from size charts, to product video to any other form of visual representation – the default should move beyond smaller sizes.
The inclusive size market presents a tremendous opportunity. By approaching size inclusion in a holistic way, brands can build a significant following of loyal customers when they recognize that all customers, regardless of size, are interested in quality fashion and then make it accessible to them. . For any brand, the altruistic reason for involvement alone should make it worthwhile! And if not that, the business opportunity cost of not doing so should serve as a starting point for any brand that wants to remain relevant in the market.
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