Plus-Size Scarcity: “I Don’t Think People Realize How Precarious The Plus-Size Fashion Industry Really Is”
A few years ago, I was in New York ahead of Fashion Week having lunch with the CEO of a major online plus-size retailer. She frowned a little as I told her about all the reasons she should feel hopeful about the fight to end weight stigma, on the clothing front and beyond. “I need to hear this good news,” she said, unconvinced. Her next words landed like a premonition: “I don’t think people realize how precarious the plus-size fashion industry really is.”
Today, as I witness one plus-size business shutter or downsize after another, I can’t help but think back on what she said. Despite the optimism I’d displayed at lunch, my private purchasing habits as a plus-size woman told the story of someone who knew that precarity intimately. At the time of that meeting, we were still in the middle of a proliferation of plus-size options never before seen. Before the plus-size revolution began, I hadn’t realized how many things I’d given up on ever having the opportunity to wear – a bikini, a beautiful wedding dress, a cute pair of jeans, anything made of linen, a matching bra and panty set that fit, a comfortable pair of pajamas, a business suit I liked, and the list goes on.
As more and more businesses proclaimed their newfound commitment to clothing for all bodies, I reveled publicly and hoarded privately. Even though plus-size customers make up the majority of the American customer base, the fashion industry has long treated us as an inconvenient minority. As much as I wanted to believe that these options were indeed here to stay, deep down I couldn’t ever fully fight the feeling that I had a limited window of opportunity to assemble the wardrobe I’d always wanted. I even bought clothes I knew I’d likely never wear, just to remind myself – in case it all went away – that there was a time when I could get a plus-size three-piece see-through bright pink mesh outfit lined with faux fur. My closet began to overflow because I was unwilling to let go of any of my newly acquired, actually fashionable clothes.
This scarcity mentality compelled me to keep buying before it was too late. I knew these fears and impulses were borne from the trauma of navigating a fashion landscape that seemed to indicate at every turn that I was unworthy of dressing. I wanted to be wrong, but that lunch meeting had foretold something I think I’d already accepted deep down.
Plus-Size Retail Collapse: “You Are Not Meant To Be Here”
As we witness the dismantling of a plus-size fashion revolution that changed history, it’s important to name that this is a grave loss for everyone, but especially plus-size people. I spoke with London-based fashion psychologist Jennifer Heinen about the emotional and psychological cost of the plus-size retail collapse. For over a decade, Heinen worked inside the fashion industry as a designer and bespoke tailor. Now her work focuses on how clothing shapes emotional well-being, self-concept, and resilience. She sees fashion as a part of self-expression, but also emotional self-regulation.
Heinen says that watching this collapse can feel like being silently — but persistently — pushed out of public space. “It doesn’t happen all at once,” shared Heinen. “It’s death by a thousand cuts – fewer racks, smaller size ranges, trend items missing, and online-only (options). Each moment on its own might be tolerable, but collectively, they tell plus-size shoppers: You are not meant to be here.”
“Fashion isn’t just aesthetic,” says Heinen, “It’s psychological scaffolding. When that scaffolding is absent — when someone walks into a store and sees nothing made for their body — it creates more than inconvenience. It creates emotional erosion. And over time, that erosion leaves a trace in how people speak about themselves, in how they show up socially, and in how much space they allow themselves to take up.”
Heinen sees clothing as a form of narrative. We dress ourselves into who we are and who we want to become. When plus-size options are stripped away it disrupts that ability to create a narrative. It sends a message that if you’re plus-size, your story isn’t worth writing. “That message isn’t abstract. It lands in the body. It lands in the mirror. It lands in the quiet resignation that builds when shoppers stop expecting joy or creativity,” says Heinen.
Heinen described four psychological phenomena that can deeply negatively impact plus-size shoppers: learned helplessness, symbolic annihilation, identity suppression, and body image destabilization.
Learned Helplessness: “Why Bother Looking? Nothing Ever Fits.”
“Nothing ever fits.”
“Why bother looking?”
“It’s just going to be disappointing again.”
These are phrases that are commonly expressed among plus-size shoppers, and Heinen says this is part of a psychological state known as learned helplessness. “It’s what happens when people are met with chronic rejection,” says Heinen. “They stop trying, not because they don’t want to succeed, but because they’ve learned it won’t matter.” The process begins with inconvenience and disappointment that morphs into shame, grief, and sometimes withdrawal or resignation. That resignation erodes agency, reinforces shame, and strips people of the hope that they’ll ever be seen or celebrated as they are. She says this isn’t just a consumer issue, it’s a public mental health concern.
Heinen recalls shopping for a formal event and standing in a plus-size section full of greys, blacks, and outdated cuts. “I knew that if I wanted to be included, I’d have to dim myself.” That moment stayed with her. “I hear this over and over, from friends, clients, and people online. We don’t want more basics. We want more belonging. When that’s missing, the psychological impact isn’t subtle. It shapes how people see themselves in the mirror and in the world.”
Symbolic Annihilation: “You Shouldn’t Exist At All”
Symbolic annihilation is a theory that describes what happens when certain identities are made invisible, mocked, or only selectively included. “In fashion, it manifests through disappearing racks, hidden plus-size sections, and a total absence of larger bodies in visual campaigns,” says Heinen. “It’s not just exclusion, it’s instruction. It teaches all of us who deserves visibility and who doesn’t. To plus-size shoppers, the message is clear: You’re not profitable enough to be seen. To straight-size shoppers, the message is more insidious: This is the ‘normal’ body. This is who fashion is for.”
Heinen says that for plus-size consumers, this erasure doesn’t just communicate the message that we don’t belong in retail spaces, it often implies we shouldn’t exist at all. For straight-size consumers, Heinen says this exclusion reinforces the illusion of neutrality. “If the only bodies on display are thin, then thinness is seen as normal, desirable, default. This not only perpetuates anti-fat bias, it stokes quiet fear. The fear of being excluded next. When fashion limits its definition of beauty, it doesn’t just hurt those excluded. It creates a system where everyone is watching their reflection with scrutiny.”
Identity Suppression: “The World Won’t Let Me Be Who I Am.”
Alienation doesn’t always show up in obvious ways, says Heinen. “Sometimes, it’s skipping the mall. Sometimes, it’s declining an invitation to a wedding because nothing fits, or because what fits doesn’t feel like you. Sometimes it’s declining a job interview because your professional wardrobe doesn’t include your current body. It’s subtle avoidance layered over years of exclusion.”
From a psychological lens, this is identity suppression: when external structures, like limited fashion access, constrain someone’s ability to express their internal identity. When someone enters a store and realizes they can’t participate in trends it reinforces a the message that the world won’t let me be who I am. “I’ve seen this manifest as wardrobe apathy, performative neutrality (’I’ll just wear black’), or style silence — people dressing only for invisibility. That’s not minimalism. That’s trauma management,” says Heinen.
Body Image Destabilization: “This Isn’t Just Disconnection From Fashion. It’s Disconnection From Self.”
Body image destabilization occurs when the world keeps signaling that your body is a problem to be fixed. “When options vanish from stores, when models in your size disappear from campaigns, when ‘plus-size’ becomes a whispered afterthought, your sense of worth becomes conditional. The result isn’t just disconnection from fashion. It’s disconnection from self,” says Heinen. People begin shrinking their style, avoiding mirrors, and dressing to camouflage rather than for expression. “It breeds mistrust of the body, often leading to mood instability, hypervigilance, or avoidance behaviors that bleed into other areas of life.”
Six Tips For Combatting The Negative Psychological Costs Of The Plus-Size Retail Collapse
Heinen has a lot of advice for plus-size people who are experiencing things like learned helplessness and body image destabilization:
1. Reclaim your narrative through micro-expression.
When mainstream fashion doesn’t reflect you, start with small style choices that feel true to who you are. This might include a favorite texture, bold glasses, a scent that anchors you, or a piece of jewelry that reminds you of your strength. “These are not superficial details. They are micro-acts of identity,” says Heinen. “In fashion psychology, we call this symbolic self-completion, using external signals to affirm internal identity. These choices help regulate emotion and assert agency.”
2. Take power back through tailoring.
If the clothes don’t fit, change them, not you. “There is radical self-compassion in altering a blazer instead of blaming your arms, or hemming trousers instead of shrinking your thighs,” says Heinen. “Fashion taught us for too long that we must mold ourselves to the industry. Alteration is adaptation — and adaptation is power.”
3. Reframe beliefs: Your body is not the problem. The exclusion is.
Heinen encourages something called cognitive reappraisal, which is the process of changing how we interpret a situation to reduce emotional distress. When clothes don’t fit or options vanish, the instinct is often self-blame. Heinen points out that self-blame is commonly expressed through the impulse to lose weight. She encourages shoppers to reframe this: “This brand wasn’t designed with me in mind. That’s their failure, not mine. This shift is not denial. It’s clarity.”
4. Use style rituals as grounding techniques.
In psychology, rituals are known to reduce anxiety and reinforce identity, especially during change. Even simple acts, like choosing jewelry that makes you feel powerful, or laying out your clothes the night before can function as emotional regulation tools. “These moments help you return to yourself, especially in a system that keeps pushing you away,” says Heinen.
5. Normalize grief. It’s okay to mourn what’s missing.
Grief is a valid emotional response to exclusion. “In trauma-informed psychology, we recognize that not being able to dress joyfully or be included in trends is a type of loss. You don’t need to minimize it. Grieve the options that never included you. That grief is not indulgent. It’s part of healing.”
6. Use “if–then” coping plans to reduce avoidance.
Heinen suggests making simple mental plans for when you hit roadblocks. For example, if nothing fits in the store, your plan can be to take a deep breath, remind yourself it’s not you, and plan to check your favorite online creators for inspiration instead. “This reduces emotional spiral and builds self-trust,” says Heinen.
Simple rituals like brushing your hair, wearing soft fabrics that comfort you, and choosing colors that make you feel positive are micro-practices of self-respect. “You don’t need to love your body to honor it,” shares Heinen.