It’s all about the shape: Is the fashion industry really that inclusive?

You might have heard that before. But is it? In the last century, women’s bodies were under constant change and objectification. Corsets, full bust, hour-glass shaped bodies and slim figures, and all at once, please! A modern woman used to want all of this in order to fit. Into where? A man’s world.

A woman has always had some kind of boundaries and until a few years ago, if you went to a store with sizes starting at 2XL, you would find nothing but potato sacks. Nothing trendy, nothing flattering. Apparently because bigger women just couldn’t be the target audience of the big brands who were after 90-60-90 girls. No plus size models on the runway, high-end fashion brands ghosting girls bigger than a S-size, middle market’s biggest size was XL and it often wasn’t even (and sometimes still isn’t) the right size for the XL girls. It seemed like the fashion industry simply didn’t want big women to enter the industry, leaving them outside of the spotlight.

Now the industry is more inclusive than ever before, but it never came easy. The first woman to turn the tables and put women with shapes on display was Ashley Graham. She rose to fame after becoming the first “curvy” model to appear on the cover of “Sports Illustrated” and has since been an advocate for supporting body diversity in the modeling industry. Although we see changes on the catwalk, most fashion houses have yet to follow through with extending their size run. While representation on the runway is important, brands must be willing to take these plus-size looks from the runway and put them on the clothing rack in order to promote true inclusivity.

Knowing the struggles a girl might face, while looking for an appropriate size, we gathered some shops with a wide size range.

1. Plus Size by Mango Outlet