Seriously, would you like to see a copy of my W-2s?
In the wake of the Old Navy decision to remove its plus size line from the stores, I was thinking once again about the disparity between clothing opportunities and shoppers. According to demographics, half of all adult women in the US are over size 12, and yet, in the average mall, there are usually no more than two plus size women’s stores (Torrid, Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug, Dress Barn Woman and CJ & Banks, the last two or three being where your mom probably shops) while there are dozens of “standard size” stores. Do non-plus size women make more money? That’s supported by statistics, due to discriminatory practices and the illusion that fat=lazy. Do they spend more? Hmm… my credit card statements would have to disagree.
A long time ago, SNL did a commercial for a GAP offshoot. I remember seeing it and knowing that I should be insulted, but at the same time, I was thinking “FUCK! I would totally shop there!” Ok, maybe through the website, but still. I want GAP clothes. I shouldn’t want to, and it should piss me off, but I would totally shop GAP FAT. A lot.
This is a sign, people who make these decisions. A serious sign. Give me a chance. I swear, you’ll make money. Assloads of money.
Posted by Weetabix
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I would shop at GAP FAT if they just simply took their regular designs and made them larger. i fear that a GAP FAT store would be a store full of crappy quality, poorly fitted, embellished clothes like the ones relegated to the back of the old navy stores in their soon to be retired women’s plus section.
I want THE SAME EXACT clothing – just bigger. Don’t even get me started on a Banana Republic for Fatties. I would die, just die if I could shop there.
LL Bean.
Misses sizes with a decent rise for those of us who have big butts and cannot lie, and womens’ sizes to 26W. Summer weight. Winter weight. Elastic waists. Gets you into grunge clubs in Seattle and Michelin-starred restaurants in the Hamptons. All you can eat.
Bypasses the whole Old-Navy-GAP-stupid-Forth-Towne-don’t-know-their
demo-losing-money-bad-design-fatphobic-BS
mess.
Wow…that’s fantastic! I have to say, Horatio Sanz looks pretty damned hot, and the faux-Jerome Robbins choreography looks good, and not funny at all (except for that rolling on the ground move, which would have looked funny if thin people did it too).
I thought that skit actually was fun, it didn’t seem that anti-fat at all to me. It just looked like a good time for all.
Just for the record, I live in a “preppy” area. The mall nearest to me has ZERO plus-size stores. They tried to put a Torrid there, I heard that they said they didn’t want to draw “those kind of people” into the community. Like, right everyone who lives here is a damned Stepford Wife/Daughter. Meh.
I have to agree I remember that skit on snl and I think it’s hilarious, it doesn’t offend me at all, horatio sanz is kinda hot in it actually!
In the area I live there is a lane bryant and a torrid in the mall. The lane bryant is pretty nice, but the torrid is so old, the store itself is crappy and the people that work there are rude. But I agree with kc, I dont want crappy, poorly made plus size clothes, they would need to have the exact same designs as clothes in regular sizes and plus sizes.
I do a lot of catalog shopping, and Land’s End also has women’s sizes up to 3X/26W. If you go to their plus size section there’s an interesting longish blurb about women’s sizes in America and the need for quality clothing in larger sizes.
I loved that video! It did look like everyone was having a lot of fun and it showed fat people dancing around and moving.
I have to admit to not liking the Gap clothing that much or LL Bean. But that’s just me.
The video made me LOL.
I like Land’s End because their clothes are well-made, in classic styles, and hold up through the years.
Right on with the lack of stores. And just the lack of sizes in regular stores. A couple of my friends want to go on a girly shopping day to celebrate the end of the semester – and I’m dreading it, because I pretty obviously weigh about a hundred pounds more than either of them and cannot shop at the Gap or whatever other stores they might go in. And do I want to drag them into Lane Bryant or Torrid to stand around while I try to find something that doesn’t make me look twenty years older or elephantine? Not really.
Maybe I’ll just get some shoes. And some jewelry.
I know its expensive, which is why I wait for their 70% off sales, but Talbots has great work clothes for plus sizes..
You left out Avenue, but even with them it’s hit or miss in the cute department. We finally got a Lane Bryant Outlet store in my town, but I don’t know how long it will last as the shopping center around it is dying.
I read the excuse for the removal of the plus-size clothing line in the stores was so that they could better showcase them online!
WTF?! Seriously, how can you showcase plus-size clothing if the market the clothes are intended for CAN’T TRY THEM ON?
Now we bigger women can’t go shopping like regular people? I’m sick of buying my clothes online.
I guess you could say i’m a little put out by all of this. :o(
Oh and Nomie I can completely relate to what you are saying. I have many skinny friends and it really sucks going shopping with them. Basically, I stand around and watch them try on cute clothes. So not my idea of fun.
I’m impressed by the black woman with a red scarf tied around her hair – she appears on the left side of the frame in the video. Did you see her kick? She has a pretty good front extension! (And that is pretty good, not pretty good for someone fat or any other qualifier.) I’m wondering what the casting call for that skit was. Dancers needed, plus sizes. That isn’t a combination you would normally see. :-)