An industry that represents only a narrow range of beauty, is one that suppresses a wide range of its audience.
In very recent years, there has been a rapid decline of body inclusivity in fashion within the media. While a concurrent push for thinness has become the focus, society continues to show lack of acceptance toward the “plus-sized”. The conversation and near obsession about skinniness has never left the fashion space and likely never will. However, it remains necessary for body inclusivity to be present in the fashion industry. Before we begin analyzing the history of plus-sized fashion, it is imperative to establish what it means for a brand to demonstrate body neutrality and size inclusivity.
For a clothing brand to exhibit body inclusivity is to showcase different body shapes and sizes not only within their clothing, but also their marketing. For non-apparel fashion-related brands, demonstrating inclusion can be as easy as hiring models of all body types. To truly prioritize inclusivity comes from the act of deliberately including and respecting all bodies.
The first brand to be widely recognized for catering to plus-sized bodies is Lane Bryant. After emerging as a clothing store for pregnant women, they expanded their clothing to women of larger sizes, naming it “misses plus-size” in 1922. This marked a shift in how the fashion industry separated body types. In the 1950s, the term “plus-size” became popularized, applying to people and not just clothing. As time went on, the plus-size fashion market grew, but lacked the style and creativity it needed to remain desirable in a competitive industry.
In the early 2000s, the media sparked a larger conversation about plus-sized fashion, therefore the topic became more mainstream. Meanwhile, discussions surrounding body positivity were playing tug-of-war with the market for health and weight loss. We saw that television ran more ads for brands promoting dieting, such as Weight Watchers. Weight loss shows like ‘The Biggest Loser’ became popular American entertainment. Conversations about body diversity were merely discussions with little to no reflection in the media. Television series, such as America’s Next Top Model, demonstrated a lack of body diversity and even displayed its distaste for moderately-sized women who felt confident in their bodies. Popular runway models labeled as ‘plus-size models’ were average to mid-sized. For many years, fashion was in its peak ‘exclusion-era’.
Despite disapproval from the media, the push for inclusivity became more persistent, bringing attention to brands that did not cater to bodies outside conventional size ranges, modeling agencies that lacked diversity, and companies that shamed larger bodies. Advocacy for these communities finally began paying off. Many fashion brands opened the door for curvier runway models, clothing brands began to expand their sizing, and some brands even revamped their extended-size collections to fit current trends.
How are the conversations surrounding body positivity aging today?
As a whole, society and the general media have come a long way in promoting body diversity. We see companies like Torrid releasing a new line catering to younger large bodies, curvier models like Precious Lee and Ashley Graham sharing the runway with skinny models, and brands like Yitty by Lizzo promoting size inclusivity. While this was all great progress, due to the current rise of 2000’s fashion and beauty trends, the promotion of thin body types is rapidly increasing yet again. It is important to understand that the issue does not lie in the trend of being skinny itself, but rather the space fashion media creates for the normalization of body degradation.
Time and time again, the media has demonstrated that being fat is unacceptable.
In an attempt to pinpoint when the shift in size inclusivity occurred, it became clear to me that the downfall of representation began shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic. With the peak of “pro-diversity” trends during 2020, many businesses, modeling companies, and consumers rode the wave. As society aimed to return to normality in 2021, there was a palpable shift in conversations surrounding body inclusivity in the media and in everyday life.
The impact of the pandemic has also had a lasting effect on the corporate and consumer sides of retail. Businesses were forced to either shut down or go fully remote. Many plus-sized-focused brands closed their doors permanently due to a lack of consumer spending. According to an article published by DIA&CO, over 30% of plus-sized specialty brands were forced to close in only the last three quarters of 2020. From then on, plus-sized retail became increasingly scarce. While society continues to undergo a cultural shift promoting thin body types and weight loss, it is no coincidence that diet pills and strict beauty standards are being pushed down our throats. From ozempic and cosmetic procedures to the excessive expectations for celebrities or influencers in media, consumers have become the target audience in the rise of “skinny culture”.
To be a plus-sized consumer today is to repeatedly be forced to look elsewhere when a retail store that once carried your size no longer does. Due to the lack of in-store options for larger bodies, many consumers have made online shopping essential for building a wardrobe. Companies that once carried extended sizing began divesting, proving that inclusivity was never truly a core value of their brand. Several brands that have been identified for quietly divesting in expanded sizing are Target, Old Navy, H&M, and Good American. There is a similar reflection of this decline of inclusivity on the runway.
Thanks to Vogue Business, whose fashion and retail analysts tracked the modern regression of plus-sized runway representation, we have access to data documenting the decline of larger models reflected at major fashion events. According to the analysts at Vogue Business, plus-size representation made up only 0.3% of looks in 2025 and 2026. Since they began tracking size inclusivity three years ago, 0.3% is the lowest level of plus-sized representation on the runway. With the rapid rise of weight-loss culture, there has been an apparent psychological effect on consumers and how we view ourselves. Many individuals among the plus-sized community struggle with personal body dissatisfaction and internalized fatphobia.
As it has repeatedly been made clear, there will always be forms of rejection and limitations for the plus-sized community simply for existing. In a society that has consistently excluded larger individuals from many aspects of life, not just fashion, it is important that we continue to address those who have contributed to the downfall of representation in the fashion industry. Without accountability of individuals and fashion companies, the media will become a dystopia where positive representation is nonexistent.
Understanding that there was once a time when larger bodies symbolized wealth and status, it is clear that there is no permanence to the standards of beauty. But as society continues to evolve, diversity should remain a constant throughout the evolution of beauty standards.
I have many questions surrounding this topic. Why are we backpedaling as a society? Why can’t brands just extend their sizing to cater to larger body types too? Why does someone have to be skinny in order to be treated with respect? What can we do as a society to promote more body inclusivity in fashion?
As a young woman with a bigger body, who was once an impressionable little girl that did not understand why she was treated so differently than her smaller peers, did not know what it looked like to see accurate plus-sized representation in the media; this topic is important to me. I want to understand why society has stopped progressing and be a part of the conversation that promotes body positivity. It is important that positive representations of all bodies are shown in the media. If we continue to silence voices or use harmful misrepresentations, how can we really evolve not just as a country, but also as human beings?
This essay uses my general cultural and historical knowledge of body representation in fashion.
Background Information
- General knowledge of fashion industry trends on body inclusivity
- The Evolution of Plus Sized Fashion by Nicole Yazolino
https://fitanalytics.com/blog/the-evolution-of-plus-size-fashion
- Dia & Co Fashion Report 2020
https://www.dia.com/blog/know/q4-2020-state-of-inclusive-fashion
- Vogue Business Report 2026
https://www.vogue.com/article/the-vogue-business-fall-winter-2026-size-inclusivity-report
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