“Now, can we stop talking about my body?” inquires the curvy Barbie doll featured last month on the cover of Time magazine. Signalling a shift towards body positivity propelled largely by internet fat activism, a rapidly expanding movement in the West which calls for acceptance, especially of women, in all sizes, the magazine reported that Mattel, the doll’s maker, has introduced her in three body types: tall, petite and curvy. However, these will be sold alongside the original model. On the heels of Time , Sports Illustrated’s 2016 swimsuit issue — another magazine owned by the same publisher — had not one, but three new covers. Each featured a woman of a different body type, to say that none of them conform to the fashion industry’s wafer-thin model standards. This shift towards a body positive world isn’t just limited to representation in the media. A large number of clothing stores in the West are taking cognisance of this and are finding ways to address it through size-inclusive clothing. And this is not just limited to adult women.
Recently, 10-year-old fashion prodigy Egypt Ufele, standing up against bullies from her school, made her debut by launching a size-inclusive clothing label called Chubiiline at the prestigious New York Fashion Week.
Large chain stores plan their inventory 10 to 12 months ahead of time as they buy in bulk, explains Gurgaon-based Jayaram Easwaran, who in the past exported women’s clothing to South Africa’s Mr. Price Stores. Because of such large order cycles they cannot quickly re-order a product that is moving fast. So, they are compelled to forecast demand and plan accordingly. Another important aspect to be noted, says Easwaran, is that body shapes differ by age, and all have a market in the West. In India they stock sizes mostly in the youth category.
in India Westernwear is limited to metros and the younger age group. “It is simply a function of demand and supply,” he adds. But there’s good news: demand is increasing. Western wear is turning out to be one of the fastest growing categories in the apparel segment, since more and more women shoppers, particularly working women, across metros and smaller cities are increasingly opting for it. “As the number of stores increase rapidly to meet this demand one hopes that their sizing charts too become more inclusive,” says Rukmani Raman.
“I think if more sizes are made available, more women, especially from the older age group, will start wearing western clothes too.”