Over 75% of plus-size shoppers hate shopping in store, study finds

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Aug 28, 2019

It’s a known fact that UK high street brands could do more to embrace size inclusivity, and a new survey has revealed just how damaging the lack of plus sizes can be to customers’ perception.

The survey of 1,150 UK women over size 16 conducted by hosiery brand Snag found that 67% of women are being deterred from shopping on the high street due to a lack of size inclusivity, choosing to shop online instead.

Over half find high street changing rooms unwelcoming, and worryingly, 75% of those surveyed admitted they have been driven to tears when shopping.

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With over 17 million working aged women in the UK, this demographic currently accounts for over 60% of fashion retail consumers.
 
The poll also asked respondents to rate UK fashion retailers on their size inclusivity. Asos, Asda, Very and Sainsbury’s received the highest ratings, while popular high street brands including Primark, Gap, French Connection, Topshop and Zara were the least comprehensive with their sizing.

“The results from the survey are upsetting, but unfortunately, not surprising. It’s true that size-inclusive collections are appearing with more and more retailers, mostly online, but plus-size only brands or collections are part of the problem. Retailers should be expanding their collections to accommodate for sizes 16+ across the board. The fashion industry has a long way to go to become truly inclusive, diverse and accepting of all body shapes and sizes,” commented  Rachel Watson, chief brand officer at Snag.

The hosiery brand, now ranking as the third biggest tights retailer in the UK after Asos and M&S, has been working to address this gap since launching in 2018. Its tights are available in several different widths, heights and sizes, ranging from 6 to 36, providing more options to suit as many different body types and sizes as possible.

Snag founder, Brie Read, said: “At Snag, we believe the time has come to throw the issue into the spotlight and question why changes aren’t being made with more urgency.
 
“Snag is testament to the financial growth and customer engagement that can be achieved- we celebrated a £2.3 million turnover in its first year of trading, while selling 300,000 pairs of tights and gaining over 100,000 loyal customers.”

According to the study, 85% of women would buy more clothes from a high street brand if it offered size-inclusive ranges.