The Australian Fashion industry is FATPHOBIC 👇🏽 Almost a whole year ago on the weekly fashion podcast I cohost for the @mamamiaaus network we had a conversation about Australian fashion and it’s fatphobic approach to sizing. It was the title of the @mamamia_style episode. We were at first nervous to speak such a blunt truth but overwhelmed with the response and shared frustrations of so many Aussie women/humans. A year later there seems to be little to no evolution or improvement. I spent five hours yesterday at one of Melbourne’s largest shopping centres and walked to my car with two items. I was there to buy pieces for two shoots I have this week. I looked forward to it. I spent a total of three hours in the car to make the trip and I walked away with two things. Not for lack of trying. The average size of the Australian woman is between a 14 to a 16 and has been for the better part of two decades. I personally wear between a 14 to a 16. Yet there are more Aussie fashion brands than I can count who stop their size run at a 12. Some carry up to a 16 whilst others don’t bother going above a 14. I’m talking specifically about the mid-level offering. Think @rachelgilbertau @scanlantheodore @zimmermann @kookai_australia @alemais.official @lidee_woman @rachelgilbertau @camillaandmarc @becandbridge etc Globally consumers cheer when a brand extends their sizes to a 24, yet here we’re lucky if a brand decides to size up to an 18 or at the very least creates an ‘extended sizing’ range. The old excuses of cost and fabric supply no longer cut it. This choice made by so many is exclusionary. It’s a conscious choice made by brands to not invite people into their brands but rather exclude. It’s any wonder that anyone who is not a straight size finds the idea of shopping deflating and dehumanising. Aside from the fact that it’s a missed business opportunity it speaks to a broader, deeper more insidious issue of which fashion has always had. You’re only allowed in, if you look like the unrealistic beauty standards we will continue to set for you. Fashion should support self expression, not self loathing. #Fashion #Sizing #Inclusivity #AustralianFashion