'Plus size' clothing....bugbears and wishes?

[stumblymonkey]

I'm a regular on MN and thinking (very early stages) of starting a business selling 'plus sized' clothing because I'm a size 18 and have a number of bug bears about finding clothes.

I guess I'm doing a little bit of market research as to whether I'm the only one that feels this way because that would make my market pretty limited!

My personal bugbears are:

• A lot of the chains I like don't go above a size 16, I haven't suddenly wanted to wear different clothes because I've put one more stone on

• A lot of the clothes are either (a) frumpy and unattractive or (b) just bigger versions of clothes that were really made for slim people, which does not do much for my body shape

• I'm not sure I actually like the term 'plus size' even though I've used it in this post, is there a better term that's more relatable and gets around being the 'other' IYSWIM

• I feel like a lot of the current online retailers that cater for size 16+ happen to use quite cheap materials, they're not very luxury

I'd be aiming for the sort of higher end high street target market...people who would normally shop at Monsoon, Coast, Jigsaw, Mint Velvet, Hobbs, etc.

What are your bug bears if you have any? What do you wish you could find?

I'm a regular MN btw not a corporate trying to do free market research(!)

You could specifically market the different shapes and have a fruit themed brand name... Pear fection or something haha :)

Nearly every standard clothes shop does a 16. It's in the sales you see loads of size 16s in plus size shops because no one buys them. Because the majority of women if they can fit into standard size clothing shops they'll go there over going specifically plus size.

I think the issue is that even at a 16 lots of standard clothes don't work because they're scaled up size 8s.

Good quality well fitting out doors clothing I am a guide leader and i have to wear means walking trousers! It's a nightmare and I may be one of a few but it kills me not being able to find stuff that's practical!

Yes to better bras I'm not big busted but have a wide back and my god can I find nice bras!

and yes to betters basics! Good quality that not go crazy horrible or stiff after one wash!

I would love longer length casual t shirts and long sleeve tops. Fed up with tops riding up over my stomach.

Not sure if this is just me, but I hate the massive thick straps on bras. Why does going from a C to a D double the thickness of the strap?

Decent trousers/jeans without the dreaded waist gap - if you are a pear.
Also clothes with waistlines which don't shoot up at the front and dip down at the back. the builder's bum look is never a good one.

Test

Evening all,

Exciting news...I have a meeting with the manufacturer on the 19th to discuss the potential clothing range so they can give me costs to have some samples made up.

Then I know how much it would be to fund a range of samples which would give me the basis to do a crowdfunding campaign if the sums work out.

I briefed a marketing type on the idea and they came up with the business names and taglines in the photo....

I think I'm quite liking the asterandlark.com or norahjane.com.

Cressida turns me off (too hooray Henry), I like the idea behind the Roman express name but not the sound of the word and don't like the reference to 'moda' as this is a British brand.

I've toyed with using Boudicca but in my mind it conjures up an image of opera singing ladies in large gowns which puts me off.

TBH I'm not liking any of the taglines as they stand so need to give that more thought and come up with a few myself...

Any thoughts?

One personal hate is shirts/tops designed to be worn not tucked in that have faffy back ties - if I want to accentuate my waist I'd rather do it in something that has darts to fit and shape, not by making my back view look like a sack of spuds.

^^ this.

And the proper sleeves and V-necks. And why do T-shirts seem to be square rather than rectangular...so they are too short and always finish on top of my hips.

I have a figure, with inny bits and outy bits - I do not want to dress like a sack, but I do want to cover my arms.

Most women have nice collarbones and cleavage - celebrate it, don't give me the silhouette of a ski slope from neck to waist.

And tights that fit.

And proper smart workwear at a reasonable price.

And trousers that don't gape at the waist (thank you Evans "pear-shape" for going some way to addressing this).

And technical clothing, waterproof coats, sportswear etc.

Oops sorry - I've been writing that post for ages and completely missed your update.

I can't post a picture guess I exceeded my limit with cat pics on another thread

Thanks again! All domain names are available at delivery time. If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know. Thanks so much again!

1. NorahJane.com (sounds like a woman’s name; beautifully brandable)
2. AsterandLark.com (bird and flower, very classy and catchy)
3. ModaMethod.com (moda sounds like “modern”, but is Italian for “style”)
4. Statilia.com (Name of early Roman Empress /ruler; upscale and brandable)
5. CressidaLambert.com (sounds like a person’s name; upscale and brandable)

Bonus Names:

1. Zavuna.com (made-up; no reference; catchy)
2. Lilliom.com (made-up, sounds like lily and a woman’s)

Taglines:

1. “Forward Fashion, for The Forward Woman”
2. “Styled to Plus-Size Perfection”
3. “Modishly Innovative Fashion”
4. “Your Fashion, Your Way”
5. “Captivate Your Curves”

Bonus Taglines:

1. “Fashion… Reinvented”
2. “Prim, Professional, Plus-Size Style”

I like aster and lark, and Captivate Your Curves as the tag.

Thanks KP....Aster & Lark was the one that stood out to me too....

Only brand name I like is Aster and Lark. Most of others quite off putting, e.g. Norah is an old fashioned name and also American. Moda method is a meaningless mix of Italian and English.
On straplines, captivate your Curves is cringe makingly 'plus sized' and also doesn't make sense. You may be trying to captivate with your curves but not to captivate them! As for Prim ... surely not a serious contender- just sounds frumpy.I'd scratch all these and start again Btw, am very supportive of idea of your project.

Yes...'prim' was really not what I had in mind as a style!

Aster & Lark for me, too.

Fascinated by the branding and tagline discussion! I set up an online shop selling plus size (modern sizes 14-28) true vintage clothing last year (because it's SO HARD to find lovely vintage clobber in bigger sizes) and now have my own domain name and website. We had great fun deciding on a company name and our tagline is 'Unleash Your Inner Goddess' , but I don't think I'm allowed to say 'who we are' in case MNHQ decide I'm after some free advertising! . I will tell you that 'Juno Vintage' was rejected as being too close to 'Jumbo Vintage'.....

Anyhoo, DH thought 'Queen of Puddings' would be amusing. I felt this was a tad disrespectful to potential customers!

OP, T shirts which have enough length without necessarily growing width-wise to match. If I find one to happily skim my tum it's way too big overall.
And PJ separates, to mix and match the sizes.

I think you need a new marketing person! All those sound dreadful to me. Norah Jane reminds me of Jane Norman which makes me think of exactly the sort of polyester sparkly sequinned tat that everyone has said they don't want. Aster and Lark sounds like a paint company or a little shabby chic shop filled with lavender bags and artful distressing. Lilliom sounds like Lillets. What did you say in your brief? For a strapline, you're talking about British-made, nice fabrics in flattering plus sizes, and none of these imply any sense of nice materials or quality. How about something like 'clothes that feel as good as they look'? Or 'British clothes for British bodies'. Why are none of the names anything to do with clothes? Why call yourself Aster & Lark when you could be Tweed & Silk? I work for a charity with a name that means nothing, and you have to do twice the work by explaining what the charity does compared to, for instance, Save the Children. If someone sees a pop-up ad with these ideas on it, they're still none the wiser what you make and why they might be interested.

PS, is your marketing person a bloke?

I really wanted to like some of the names and taglines, but I didn't. Sorry.
Aster & Lark is the least worst, but completely uninspiring and vague.

Agreed. It's the only one that's not awful but could be so much better. Agree some, possibly indirect, reference to the quality we've all said we want is desirable.

Also need styles that look good on a large woman. I'm a size 18 and not very good at dressing myself so I tend to look at stuff that looks good on a size 10 woman and then studpidly realised it's totally inappropriate for my chunky waist and fat arse.