To think I am not body shaming or ripping larger people off?

[BimBamBoomer]

I've NC because this is potentially outing!

I have my own tiny but fairly successful business making clothes. Mostly I make a few specific lines to order (via Etsy type websites) and have sizes 6-26 available. However I also have occasional sales on Facebook where I have a page and sale group. The sales are a mix of returned customer orders, things I made to the wrong size or colour by accident, slight seconds, unsold stock from events (festivals etc) and some one offs made with amazing material I've picked up or pieces I've upcycled. I tend to end up with most of my stock for the sales in sizes 10-16 just because a) that's what most people order so that's what I have most seconds of, b) if I'm making stock for an event I make more of the most popular sizes for obvious reasons, and c) if I get a bit of amazing material I try to make the most of it especially if it was expensive.

I've recently had my end of 2019 sale and since then have had a flurry of messages from unhappy larger people. I suspect I've been named and shamed somewhere as it's come out of the blue in the last week. They're not happy that I don't have enough stock in their size, and that the more unique one off pieces are mostly in the middle sizes. I've been replying explaining why and that they can order larger sizes from my standard range and have them made. If they wanted a replica of a one off they've seen, I can give a quote but it wont be cheap! But I've now had a few bad reviews on my page from people who think it's unfair that the some of the larger sizes cost more. I agonised over this but in the end felt I had to have sliding pricing on some items (not all - I charge the same for all sizes for about half my range). But a size 8 in some styles uses literally half the material of a size 24 - and I charge for materials plus an hourly rate for my time (at a rate that covers overheads etc). The materials I use aren't cheap and I don't know how to make this fair or how to answer the bad reviews. I'm quite upset and feel really down that people think this of me.

Am I body shaming, really and honestly?

YANBU
In most shops, kids clothes increase with price age age does. I have always assumed that it is because a top for an 8 yr old uses more material than that for a 4 yr old. I have always been surprised that it doesn't work the same for adult sizes. There is logic although feels unfair.

Just say. I’m not marks and Spencer. I cannot absorb the cost of material

But... I would suggest that you do a small range in the larger sizes that can go on sale for marketing really. It’s a huge market. And you don’t want to alienate them. I would think it’s the fact that you had nothing in the larger sizes in the sale at all that may have upset your customers.

So regardless of if it’s ridiculous or not. I presume you want to grow your business. And your clothes appeal to larger sizes. So make them feel inclusive.

MrsTerryPratcet op has said there's a sliding scale based on fabric used and time to make. However in spite of the sizes, a 12 isn't literally twice the size of a 6, so I'd imagine the differences are far less significant

I bought DD some trousers the other day from Asda. She's in 8-9 and they cost something like £7 (can't remember exactly). The exact same style in younger children (3-4 etc) were £5 or £6. I presumed it's because the bigger they are the more material used! No shaming going on there.

Quite frankly, if these people are that upset they should either lose some weight (medical issues withstanding etc,etc), order a piece for you to make or buy elsewhere. This is coming from someone who is a size 20!

What you're saying and how you are doing it makes perfect sense. I wouldn't worry OP it might seem like a big deal now but most people roll their eyes when they see reviews like that. It would not be practical for you to make a batch of say, size 24 sequin jackets. The same would apply to a size 4.

Everything other product in the world costs more for a larger size, why should clothes be any different? The only way to avoid this is to double your prices for all sizes to absorb the variable costs.

I do seem to remember some high street stores ages ago (I’m old) doing a similar thing for a very very short time and they probably had they same issue so stopped. I certainly paid a fat premium when I had a custom wet suit made because of the extra material.

I don’t think you are fat shaming but it will be a lesson in great diplomacy for this to not keep rearing it’s head.

In the plus side the majority of people will understand or not be effected by it.

I have size 3 feet, I rarely find shoes in my size I the sale because companies don’t make many size 3s. Maybe I should complain they are midget-shaming me!

@ChristmasCarcass
I see loads of small size shoes in the sale.

To answer a couple of questions - the sliding scale of pricing has 3 price points which are for 6-10, 12-18, 20-26. And there was at least one piece in every single size in the sale, but the 26 didn't sell at all :/ I used to make sure I had the same range of choice across all sizes for events and sales but it got ridiculous, I had piles of sizes 6 and 24/26 left every single time and I can't afford to operate like that!

And no I won't be posting a link because I don't want to be identified in RL or accused of stealth marketing

I'm a size 24 and think you're being perfectly reasonable.

When you're a larger size there is a definite difference in the variety of clothes that's offered to you ie nit the nice, special one offs. It does make us feel like we're being shamed for being above a size 16 and, lets face it, everyone feels that they have a right to judge larger women and come to often inaccurate conclusions about their lifestyle. Happens on here all the time.

Maybe next time you have some special fabric, make some items in a larger size - it's nit so much price, it's that we too like to have something special to wear as well.

Yanbu

What these bloody idiots don't realise when they are moaning about bigger sizes costing more, is that everyone then has to absorb the cost of the extra material needed for the bigger sizes. Why on earth should someone who is a size 6 pay the same as a size 22 when the material amount and labour are vastly different? You wouldn't pay the same for a double and a single bed sheet set, but unfortunately some people are too emotionally immature to see past their feelings when it comes to business sense.

Yanbu. People are such arses! A single bed set costs a lot less than a king-size set because of the amount of material involved. You keep going at what you are doing, you've had a pretty much 100% agreement here. Good luck with it.

Trainers operate using the same system. Crib, Toddler, junior and adult. Prices are obviously different for each other, I'm not sure why clothes should be any different especially for a small business.

Which brands? I find Clarks sell out half way through the season, and places like Office etc don’t even do 3s in most of their styles.

there are 2 issues though-

1. low availability of larger sizes in the sale
2. higher prices for larger sizes

I think you can explain that 1 just reflects what is left unsold. But I wonder if you shouldn't just average out the price for all sizes, it must feel unfair, even though it reflects the actual cost of making.

I'd make sure your site says very clearly "limited stock available" in sales.

Quite often when you go on sales pages in much bigger companies, they don't have every size available. And you can point that out.

It's utter whiny bullshit.

I can definitely undertake to make a couple of one offs in bigger sizes but it's more the level of choice that I can't offer. If I make 10 things in size 20-26, I've used the material that could have made 15 in the 10-16 range and I can guarantee they will take ages and ages to sell. Meanwhile I will have 3 customers wanting every size 14 piece! So I try and balance it out a bit but it seems it's still not good enough

Picture from a big clothes company's sale ^

OP isn't a factory. No one can reasonably expect her to have high stock of all sizes especially if she is after left with overstock of the smallest and the biggest ones.

People are so used to stores that some just can't comprehend that 1 person cannot 1-do it all and 2-please everyone. It's simply impossible and unreasonable to expect that.

Yanbu and I would ignore them. I wouldn’t be making more larger stuff if it doesn’t sell well either. It’s a business not a charity.

I would bet my left tit that these people wouldn’t buy from you anyway even if you did sell larger sizes. They aren’t genuine potential customers. They’ll have just jumped on some SJW bandwagon and you’re the latest easy target for keyboard warriors.

I’m fat fat fat and I don’t blame people who make clothes for not having my size or for pricing larger sizes higher. If it’s not profitable, then it’s not profitable.

I don’t like it when people try and make everyone else responsible for their own issues. If a fat person can’t buy the clothes they want to buy, perhaps they need to take a look in the mirror as to the reason why.

Some jewellery shops do this too (and some don't). When my husband and I went to buy our wedding rings, (we both happen to have very thin fingers) I got frustrated at shops that charged the same very bigger sizes because they were getting so much more gold! But the shop Brown's charge in weight brackets so our rings cost less. I think it's a very reasonable thing to do. Shops that don't do this charge a big mark up to absorb the extra costs of making the larger ones.