It should come as no surprise that many of the brands launching plus-size collections are celebrity fronted and therefore less reliant on brand image. Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty lingerie line has been hugely popular with customers who wear bras up to size 44E and pants up to a size 28, while Khloe Kardashian’s Good American size-inclusive denim and swimwear lines are some of the most popular of the whole collection.
With brands like these and 11 Honoré, which curates and sells plus-size designer clothing, the US is ahead of the UK when it comes to this sector, but both markets are failing to fully cater to a waiting customer base. Illustrating how fashion struggles to hold two progressive ideas at once, Reformation is one of the only sustainable retailers designing for the plus size market; overall under 20 percent of green labels sell clothes above a size 16.
Time will tell whether brands will start making clothes in a size 22 rather than just sending bigger models down the catwalk. But instead of exclusively demanding that existing retailers expand their offerings, we should also make space for high-end, trend-driven labels that specialise in plus-size clothing – and stop relegating them to the back of the industry.
For more news, analysis and advice from The Telegraph’s fashion desk, click here to sign up to get our weekly newsletter, straight to your inbox every Friday. Follow our Instagram @Telegraphfashion