The fashion industry, as always, is very good at serving drama.
In recent months we have seen the debates over models being to skinny, companies changing the standards of what is considered a plus size and even plus size models airbrushed to look smaller.
My question to you is this: if we have the money and the fashion industry wants our money to keep going, why are we letting them tell us what we should look like instead of us telling them what we want? This is not an economics class.
We will not be discussing the logistics of demand vs supply.
That is for someone more knowledgeable to explain.
What we will be discussing is the shift in the focus of power in the fashion industry.
Like any other industry, customers shop and the industry supplies the goods and services that we request.
However, lately it seems that more and more, the fashion industry is determining what is good for us, from what is really fashionable to what size we need to be in order to enjoy it.
I see several problems with this logic.
1) The image this companies provide to our younger generations increase their body image problems by overemphasizing the importance of being a smaller size.
2) Noticing the increasing amount of people of larger weights in this country, some companies are now creating larger sizes to accommodate their public in their fashion lines.
If you look at their promotional pieces, it sounds more like they are doing you a favor instead of the reality that they finally figured out the larger people have more money.
3) From 16 to 18, now it seems that every decade the plus size is getting smaller and smaller.
Some stores now have the gall to call 12 a plus size.
And let us not even go to the changes in sample sizes in recent history.
In the 80's, the average size 8 was about 5'4" and 130 pounds.
Now, the average size 8 is probably is more like a 110.
Women who use to be sample models back in the 80's would be unemployed now for being overweight.
I understand that there is an obesity crisis in America and in many other countries.
I don't believe that advertising size 0 is the answer.
In fact, I believe this is inducing more problems.
The levels of anxiety in women now is a lot higher than it was 20 years ago.
The obese statistics are alarming.
According to the CDC, one third of adults is obese.
In some estimates, 24 million American women suffer from eating disorders.
This madness has to stop.
What do I suggest? We should take back our consumer power.
We should let the stores know that the average American woman is a size 14 and if they want to increase their sales and do some good, they should help us embrace what we are.
The only way to get people healthy again is by helping them find their love for themselves as they are now.
Once they love themselves at any age, then we can help them improve their health.
This should not be a matter of losing weight, this should be a strategy of gaining health.
It is time for the fashion industry to start a new fashion trend, healthy sizing.
This is not a one size fits all society.
Some women are perfectly healthy at 180 pounds, because they are taller and more muscular.
Other women are fine at 110, because they are petite.
Only if we all start telling the fashion houses what we want to see, and start voting with our dollars, are we going to get that message across.
Create your own fashion drama, let's get the fashion industry creating trends that we can believe in.