If the average American woman is a size 14+, then would someone please explain to me how it is that they are also the LEAST purchased sizes by manufacturers? Are they allergic to money?! At this rate, I think that they are! I have heard every ridiculous excuse about “no market” and “it just doesn’t sell” and to those I say fuck right the hell off!!! I read something about smaller or independent boutique owners claiming to have tried to sell sizes 14+ but then they just sit on the rack and don’t sell. I get that, but I question if they advertised the size range or had it prominently displayed in their store. I also get that fashionable fatties have been burned for so long by retailers that we just stop trying to find new brick and mortar places. BUT that’s also with a huge fucking grain of salt because I almost don’t believe it.
Sizing has been a big topic of discussion this week as one retailer. Meijer, announced that it would get rid of their plus size clothing section and instead include a range of sizes for all throughout. Cute idea, but we all know it won’t be so idyllic in reality. If anything it usually leads to even less plus sizes being available in stores! We’ve seen other retailers attempts at revamping their plus sections (looking at you Target) which ends up mostly residing online or mixed into a jumble or racks between maternity and clearance areas with no signage. I just don’t believe them when they say that they made every attempt to attract plus sized customers. I’m calling bullshit on that!
We want what everyone else has: equality! So basic! But most shopping malls and centers hardly have even one plus retailer, let alone many! I’m lucky that where I live I have my choice of Lane Bryant (hell to the no, but for personal reasons), Avenue (but only a couple of locations and very spread out) and Torrid (who have a bunch but in odd places). Target does carry some, but you’d be pressed to track them down in most locations and often I see two racks at the front, beside the maternity, and the rest mixed with other random items leaving all of it more trouble than it’s worth. Yes, larger department stores have plus sections, but often they call them something hella random (Yes, I was initially offended by “Encore” being the designation for plus size at Nordstrom) or tuck them away in a basement or far reaching corner of their stores.
Can we just stop with the cutesy names, though? “Specialty Sizes” “Extended Sizes” I find it insulting and demeaning. Why can we not just have clothing?! Simple! No gender assignment required! Here, look, pants! Shirts! Dresses! Let the rest of the labeling go! Trying to explain women’s clothing sizing to my bf is a practice in comedy! He insists, “Women must like those flimsy fabrics and non-existent pockets or why else would they have them?” UGH!!! I wanna scream from rooftops! The frustrations! I get serious feminist rage at this shit and that’s without him saying we must like it or why would it be this way. I insist that it cannot be women designing such things as those are very common complaints about fashion.
And can we not value fashion only as something frivolous?!?! I need to cover my body with a garment! Yes, I care how that garment fits and looks on my person, but that does not mean I ONLY care about fashion or looks. Ya know?! Ugh! And when you actually read up on the history of pockets you’ll be as outraged as I am! If you’re above a size 26 your options are so limited it really is almost entirely online. That takes a lot more time and money! Sure, coupon codes and rewards dollars can help, but not all online clothing retailers offer free return shipping and even those who don’t may still charge a re-stocking fee and others still charge more for certain sizes.
If the majority of women in the U.S. are plus sized, then there needs to be a bigger push back on manufacturers and retailers to fucking cater to us! We need to start writing letters, leaving comment cards, asking for management and buyers, hitting up these corporations on social media and really letting them know what we want: Equality!!! (I wanted to say EQUALITY MOTHERFUCKERS!!! but I don’t mean to shout at you, you’re lovely.) Yet we’re always made to feel that asking for anything is asking too much! UGH! Sick of it!
Ahem.
Rad Fatty Love to ALL.
<3
S
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