“We would love for you to attend our fashion month show.”
Me: “Are you providing dressing options?”
“Nothing in your size, sadly, but we do have these really fun earrings!”
In 2019, this was a common conversation I had with many London Fashion Week shows. It became rather tedious and honestly quite offensive.
For many years, as a plus-size woman, I’d been made to feel grateful to even be invited to these fashion month shows because, quite frankly, I didn’t have the acceptable ‘fashion-worthy body’ that’s so prevalent in the fashion industry – even though I had nearly a decade’s worth of high-end fashion editorials, billboards, beauty campaigns and articles under my name. My size was definitely still an issue. Plus-size models were definitely still an issue.
So, for the last three years I have been recording how many curve or plus-size models walk down the runway across the four main fashion weeks, and looking into whether any social trends or headlines have been able to alter and manipulate the numbers across the board dramatically. Let’s look at this past fashion month’s credentials…
NEW YORK FASHION WEEK
The rise of the Ozempic trend in the US is still hanging around, two years since its first popularity – and it was quite apparent that the impact of this trend alongside the return of archaic phrases such as ‘heroin chic’ and ‘skinny is back’ hugely altered the messaging at NYFW back in 2022. After a lot of backlash, they more than doubled their numbers for curve models to 70 models later in that year, but their numbers have been decreasing ever since – averaging at around 40 models each season in 2023.
Usually the US are the leaders when it comes to size inclusivity on the runway, so it is a real shame to see the big apple plummet back the past few years. Again in 2024, there was also no male plus-size representation, which is highly disappointing from the city that used to be the leaders.
With over 108 designers showing this season and an average of 40 looks per show, there were around 4320 looks on the runways.
46 of them were considered curve or plus.
WWD
John Lamparski
The designer loyally flying the flag for representation season after season is Christian Siriano, who cast eight plus-size girls on his runway this season – proving time after time he really is for us, for everyone.
Kim Shui and Bach Mai showed with four curve models, and PH5 with three. The rest had one or two curve models each.
LONDON FASHION WEEK
With over 50 designers showing this season, with an average of 40 looks per show, there were around 2000 looks on the runways.
80 of them were considered curve or plus.
I also must note that that’s without the Sinead O’Dwyer runway show, which moved to Copenhagen this season. If we had her numbers in London this season, we would have hit around 95 plus-size models – the highest in LFW history. Last season we had 67, so that is a big win for London this season.
Dave Benett
Eamonn M. McCormack
Victor VIRGILE
For me, Karoline Vitto was the stand out show this season for her insanely beautiful casting of all shapes of curve bodies. She is a true trailblazer with 21 plus models in her show.
