Round is a shape. I am in shape.

"Round is a shape. I am in shape"
Published in 'YOU' [The News]
21st February, 2006.
By Fariha Rashed

A curvaceous and fuller bodied woman has as much a right to wear elegant and fashionable clothes as a perfect size 12 woman

More than half the women in Pakistan fit into plus size outfits but you won't find a single local, ready-to-wear designer creating clothes for larger women, or even thinking on those lines for that matter. This is quite a shame because I believe as a designer you need to research your market not just in terms of what colour, style or fit people prefer but also with regard to what sizes they can wear and what the average woman's size really is! The Asian figure is fuller and the average size for a Pakistani woman in particular is in the range of 14 to 16. There is also a large and rapidly growing plus-size teen market on the horizon. I am sure if our local designers go with public requirements, they will receive an overwhelming demand for plus-sized clothing in the market.

The idea that the Pakistani designers cater to this largely overlooked chunk of the market is not only an appealing idea but also a smart business move. The trick is not to just make plus-sized garments, but also to design them in a way that is stylish, chic and trendy. Slightly plump or overweight people also want to feel and look good in what they wear and feel satisfied with their image. Finding the right fashionable plus-size clothes for themselves can help them do just that and avoid feeling like 'outsiders'. It becomes a kind of 'body-image therapy' for them. They would willingly spend large amounts of money to buy trendy alternatives than wearing baggy clothes that hide their bodies and do nothing for their self-esteem.

Abroad, outlets such as The Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy, J.C Penny, Sears, Nordstrom and many more, all offer extended sizes. Even the celebrities pitch in. Hip-hop star Nelly has launched her own label called 'Apple Bottoms' for larger, broader and fuller-bodied women. J.Lo started her fashion company 'Sweetface' in 2004, also catering to plus-size women and to everyone's astonishment, her company grossed over $130 million that year. All these companies and stars have shrewdly recognized that the women's plus-size market is currently the fastest growing segment of the apparel industry. They have tapped into it by making the necessary expansion in size variations.

Local designers offer no such options for larger Pakistani women. As a result, they are forced to buy imported garments. Pregnant women can't walk into any fashion outlet and pull out a smart and fashionable maternity dress for themselves. Due to this lack of choice, pregnant ladies continue wearing baggy and shapeless clothes that hang off of them like dough drooping off a wooden rod. They feel undeserving and fat who don't have the right to look good because they are suddenly shunned from 'fashion'.

I believe the wind of change and opportunity is blowing our way and our designers should make use of it. They need to stop depriving the plus-size market of the fresh and fashionable options afforded to their "average" sized counterparts.

Having an outlet in Y-Block, Defence or on Main Boulevard is no justification for the ridiculously high prices designers charge for the limited variety in sizes they offer. They should expand their target market and cater to all sizes, which will automatically increase demand and ultimately result in profit. I am positive the response to this strategy will be overwhelming for designers and they will become the 'advocates of change'. There is nothing like a happy and satisfied customer, even if that customer isn't a "perfect" and petite size 12.

Link: http://www.jang.com.pk/thenews/feb2006-weekly/you-21-02-2006/index.html