‘360 degree turn’: Concern as fashion shows feature fewer plus-size models | Models

Fashion insiders have expressed concern that efforts at size inclusivity are eroding, with experts saying the industry has once again “done a 360 degree turn” toward promoting thinness.

This week’s report from Business popularity It found that of 9,038 looks presented across 198 shows in the womenswear collections earlier this month, 97.1% were shown on straight-fit models who were between a US size 0-4 (equivalent to a UK size 4-8). Only 0.9% of models were plus size, also known as curve (UK 18+), while 2% were average size (UK 10-16).

At the Milan shows, only four brands out of 55 featured a model who was not a straight size. Electra Cozzoni, deputy managing editor of Vogue Business, said this was the lowest percentage since her team began preparing the semi-annual report two and a half years ago. She describes the forecast as “horrific.”

Anna Shillinglaw, founder of modeling agency Milk Management, says she wasn’t surprised. “Previously, the body positive movement was growing with curvy models doing the same shows and shoots as straight-size models. But recently, there has been a massive decline. The industry has literally done a 360-degree turn.”

The widespread use of GLP-1 weight loss drugs such as Ozempic is a contributing factor, as their use is widespread among celebrities and thinness is now normalized beyond the catwalk.

Although GLP-1 was originally developed to treat diabetes, it was soon co-opted for weight loss, leading to a shortage in patients. In the UK, around 1.5 million people are thought to buy it through private prescriptions. There is also a growing parallel market online. Psychotherapist and writer Susie Orbach calls this trend “the latest commercialization of the body.”

Elsewhere, there is a growing demand for body modification procedures – including… Barbie waist surgery.where a person’s ribs are subjected to small fractures in order to reduce their size.

“We make bodies as if they were a product, rather than making a living from them,” Auerbach says, noting the influence of reality TV. “The Kardashians are an example of that, but now it’s being intensified.”

While thin models have always dominated the catwalks, in recent years there has been a shift, albeit slight, towards a more inclusive selection. In 2023, British Vogue featured plus-size models Paloma Elsesser, Precious Lee, and Jill Cortliff. On the cover He described them as “the new distinguished.” From campaigns to runways, the trio has been everywhere.

Felicity Hayward, the plus-size model and writer who fronted a Mac cosmetics campaign and appeared on the cover of iD magazine, describes the period from 2011 to 2017 as a “golden age.” Now, the downward trajectory has left her wondering if plus-size models are being “used as a symbol in order to make headlines.”

This season, Lee has been in one show, Kortliff in two, and Elsesser in five. Ashley Graham, who was one of the highest-paid models of 2017, walked in three.

As demand declines, insiders describe plus-size models losing weight in an attempt to secure more work in the mid-size market. Straight-size models are also feeling the pressure as sample sizes shrink. Shillinglaw says it’s unfair to blame models for promoting a high ideal. “Models don’t make samples. The pressure comes from designers and those at the top of the brands.”

When the pendulum swings back toward thinness, it has a knock-on effect on Main Street. In August, the chief executive of the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority urged advertisers to avoid using “irresponsible” images of unhealthily thin models after a rise in complaints from the public about the size of models depicted in ads for brands including M&S and Next.

The plus size market in the UK is valued at More than 4 billion pounds sterling But it is becoming more difficult for consumers to access it. Brands such as H&M, which caters for up to 34 in the UK, and River Island, which caters for up to 22 in the UK, have removed dedicated plus-size sections from their stores and made the ranges available online only. Brands that used to shoot curvy models five days a week have now cut those shoots down to two days, Shillinglaw says.

Hayward mentions designer Rick Owens, who shows at Paris Fashion Week, as an example of symbolism. Last season, his show featured 16 plus-size models; This season he didn’t use anything.

“It really bothers me to see a trusted designer go from using big girls with bellies and broad shoulders, not just the stereotypical hourglass curves, to choosing not even one,” Hayward says. “If you want to be progressive, you need to keep going. Otherwise, why bother?”