Plus-Size Designers Fill the Sizing Gap

Some of California’s plus-size designers are finding new opportunities beyond their target customers—and they are adjusting their sizing below traditional plus-size boundaries.

The plus-size segment traditionally has addressed sizes 14 and up, but a group of young California companies is bringing those sizes down a notch to address a changing marketplace.

San Francisco–based Igigi will lower size offerings to 12 for January deliveries. Santa Ana, Calif.–based Svoboda expanded into a size 12 last season, and Anaheim, Calif.–based Kiyonna Clothing made the move a few years ago.

These companies have found a gap between what mainstream manufacturers and retailers offer and what the plus-size market offers. Typically plus sizes are graded proportionally larger than misses sizes, according to designer Jessica Svoboda, who said there is also a vanity aspect, which means plus size 14 tends to run larger than a misses size 14.

“It’s really been demand fueling this,” said Kim Camarella-Khanbeigi, designer and owner of Kiyonna Clothing, which last month launched a retail store in Anaheim. “A customer who can’t fit into a size 12 at The Gap is likely going to fit into our size 12.”

Most national retailers are not addressing the plus-size market in a big way, even though it has grown into a $32 billion industry. American Eagle, for example, sells XXL and sizes 16 and 18 only on its e-commerce site (www.ae.com), while others such as Ann Taylor Loft sell up to size 18 but only online (www.anntaylorloft.com). Plus-size chain Catherines Plus-Sizes, a subsidiary of The Charming Shoppes Inc. , only stocks sizes 16W–34W, while sister company Lane Bryant starts at size 14. Selling plus sizes online allows retailers to draw stock directly from their warehouses rather than the limited space at a store.

Igigi, Svoboda and Kiyonna are among a group of young companies that are focused on bringing more styling and a contemporary edge into the plus-size market.

“The consumer in this market is really style-starved,” noted Camarella-Khanbeigi.

Added designer Yuliya Zeltser of Igigi: “It is hard to shop for a woman who is in between straight and plus sizes. Straightsize clothes are small, and plus-size clothes are too big. We had many size-14 shoppers saying that they really wanted to buy Igigi, but our size 14 was too big for them. We did our homework, listened to our customers and decided to come out with plus-size 12 with a goal to fulfill their wishes.”

Masha Salvado, the company’s marketing manager, said Igigi invests much of its resources into research on size and fit.

“This market historically has been underestimated and has not been well-serviced,” she said. “The fit is really good. When you put it on, it complements you. We work very hard on it to make women feel good.”

Igigi initially introduced a collection of dresses and tops to address the needs of the customers who could wear neither a straight nor a plus 14. A comprehensive work collection made up of separates including jackets, pants and skirts in sizes 12–30 is to follow soon. Igigi sells the bulk of its offerings online but is expanding its wholesale operations. Price points range from $150 to $300 for gowns, $60 to $120 for dresses and $70 to $90 for pants. Lakisha Jones of “American Idol” and Nikki Blonsky of “Hairspray” are among the brand’s fans.

New items include a Dupioni silk wrap blouse in fuchsia, peacock, terracotta and gold; a velvet wrap dress with silk charmeuse ties in purple and green; and the “Lucille” cocktail dress detailed with lace in red and black.

Svoboda, who specializes in denim and more casualwear than Igigi, expanded her size range to include sizes 10–12 last season. The segment is still a small piece of her business. The largest percentage of her customer base falls into the 16–18 range. “There’s been a change in the marketplace. The low-rise jeans that were popular don’t fit a curvier figure well. Plus, you are seeing people coming off special diets and weightloss surgery [who may now fall into this size range],” she said.

Lane Bryant also reacted to the fit issue. In August it debuted a new denim line called Right Fit, which is based on body-scanning technology from Intellifit Corp. Consumers measure three areas of their body and then choose among three color-coded cuts—straight, moderately curvy and curvy—to determine the best fit and eliminate problems such as gaping in the back and tightness along the thigh area. The Right Fit line is also carried at parent company Charming Shoppes. Results have been better than anticipated.

At the company’s third-quarter earnings release, Jay Dunn, Lane Bryant’s vice president of marketing, said the launch “blew away” aggressive sales projections and expectations.

Camarella-Khanbeigi saw the size concerns back in 1999, when she expanded to size 12.

“We started in 1996 with sizes 1x–3x [or 14–22]. What happened was that we strictly sold to specialty boutiques, and they told us they wanted bigger sizes. But then we saw women who weren’t plus size who wanted our styles.”

Opening a bricks-and-mortar store has enhanced the company’s insight even further. “When you sell 80 percent of your product online, the customer doesn’t seem real at times. With the store, we see the faces of our customers,” she said.

Next up for Kiyonna is a loungewear/lingerie collection to debut in January.

“It’s been amazing for us. We are constantly looking at metrics and conversions and business intelligence.”

Svoboda, which has doubled its business over the past couple of years, is also expanding into Europe. The company is sold in most of the majors, including Bloomingdale’s, Saks and Nordstrom. It will show its line Feb. 10–12 at the CPD show in Dusseldorf, Germany.

“There’s definitely more [plus-size designers] coming in, but we don’t necessarily see that as a bad thing right now,” she said. “You can’t stand alone, and the competition has made us step up our game.”