The Plus-Size Women’s Clothing Stores industry is forecast to perform more strongly over the five years to 2017, as factors like per capita disposable income continue to grow. Moreover, with a rising focus on plus-size fashion, product choices are likely to expand and benefit specialty retailers. Despite continuing competition from alternative retailers like Walmart and Target, the industry is forecast to grow at an average annual rate of 5.2% to reach $9.7 billion in revenue by 2017. Also, more high-end designer labels will begin to offer plus-size styles, enabling growth.

The above information is from a report which stats simply that plus size clothing is selling strong and will continue growing despite economic struggles in other areas.  Charming Shoppes which was recently aquired by Ascena, and the parent company of Lane Bryant was the big gainer with its many locations as well as one hundred years of business makes the plus size fashion niche successful despite the critics.

Additionally, readers like you guys makes plus size designers successful by supporting them.  Without the support of loyal customers there would be no Lane Bryant, JMS, Kiyonna, IGIGI, Hips and Curves, Monif C, Evans, Simply Be, Dorthty Perkins, Anna Sholz, and many more.  Full Figure Plus would not exist without supporters and in turn these merchants who are reaching out to you the plus size consumer.

More reasons why plus size fashion continues to grow:

• More designers are coming out daily
• The current crop of designers keep pushing the limits of their designs
• Social media gives plus size a voice and media attention
• Plus size consumers are no longer willing to be abused
• Reality is more compelling to plus consumers than the illusion of the fashion world

Guys without you there would be no me and for certain there would be none of the companies mentioned above.  Mainstream fashion should be thanking you but I know they will never do that so I will thank you again for your support and look forward to reporting the good stuff in the future.

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women

Dear Mainstream Fashion,

As a long time blogger about plus size this and plus size that I have seen the plus size community grow despite your repeated efforts to stifle the growth through exclusion from stores, magazines, runways and even the Internet.  The height of the discrimination came about in 2009 with the cast of characters as long as a freight train stating that being obese or fat will be the death of us allowing your soldiers to rise to the top of the pile on the backs of people who simple looked to be healthy and wear some trendy clothes at the same time. Our success came despite your best efforts to destroy is and for that I want to thank you.

Thank goodness for the 20-30 plus size women who demanded trendy clothing and the over 40 plus size woman who demanded quality careerwear.  Without these niches there would be no stage for Full Figure Plus or the hundreds of plus size voices out there who speak much louder than your draconian ways and push emaciated abused teenage boy looking models out of the way to show beauty does not start and end with a size 0.

Without your help dozens of plus size designers would not exist.  Without your interference hundreds of plus friendly websites, modeling agencies, photographers could not exist.  Though I do not approve of your tactics thank goodness you are so good at being narrow minded that you missed the target when plus size fashion became a $120 billion dollar industry in 2012 (Predicted in 2009).  Thanks to your cheerleaders and poster children we were able to see those who were our supporters rise to unheard of heights and to cast those out who tried to cash in out fat only to bash it once they got their suitcase full of cash.

I do applaud your efforts to try and “support” the plus community with your “plus size sections” to your websites and magazines.  It shows your are not stupid just ignorant to the needs of a niche that for so many decades you have paid little attention to.  I pray that all you are is ignorant in which case you can learn from your evil ways.  If you are just plain stupid then I will wish you a good day and move on to more important endeavors.

Come to think of it without your repeated attempts to say obesity was next to HIV/AIDS in seriousness there would be no entrepreneurs and there would be no events popping up all over the world which not only focus on the fashion but talk about business, nutrition, health and fitness, and several other areas of interest.  Oh, and don’t think we have forgot the CDC numbers from a few years ago that stated being super skinny was worst for your health than being obese, by YOUR standards.  It seems odd that so much positive can come from your negative energy but I guess when you really think of it the plus size community is the epitome of “when your given lemons, make lemonade.”

There are so many people and businesses that I have met as a result of you I could designate an entire post just to naming them.  I want to thank all of you whether I know you personally or not because without you there would be no me.  I also include readers in that lot as well.  Without you the plus size reader there would be no need for a plus size fashion blog.

What has been created is a community full of plus size women and the men, like me, who support them that has grown from the ground up.  So much so that when you finally decide to pay attention to us you frequently miss the point and only focus on fat people who are wearing clothes because they are fat.  Thank you for missing the point because it gives us yet another platform to perform from and trust me we know what the community wants and needs because we are patrons of the community in which we serve.

Sincerely,

Glen L Johnson, MBA
Plus Size Blogger
Size Supporter

P.S. I am sure you will miss the point of this as well mainstream fashion. That’s fine we made it this far without you and will keep moving without you.

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women

This is a guest post by Jodi Lawler from Cafe La Moda,

Blogs are our go-to for a big dosage of fash-spiration. Here’s our rundown some of the best plus-sized fashion blogs on the web that will have you feeling huge pangs of fashion lust. Don’t say we didn’t warn you…

Cupcakesclothes.com

We totally adore 21-year old Georgina’s personal style blog. It’s like a haven for our inner princess, with lots of dreamy photography and a big dose of girly, loveliness in the form of a moodboard of tulle skirts, prom dresses and the most jealousy-inducing accessories collection, ever! Her fashion is like a ray of sunshine – think Lolita meets kitsch meets candyfloss and you’ll get the picture of why we love to live vicariously through her wardrobe. Plus, this lady has the best hair in the bizz! And she ain’t just style without substance; Georgina is a talented artist to boot. We would tell you to log on simply for the drawings but we guarantee you will get distracted by the dresses…and the shoes, and the bags, and the jewelry, and the hair, and the….(you get the picture!)

Fattyunbound.blogspot.com

Oh, how we love Kirsty Lou’s thrifty fashion blog for “big bums and tums”. It features ‘what I wore today’ photos alongside tips and tutorials and a peppering of perspectives and histories. Her style is eclectic and we love her color combos and mash-up of print and layering. Her love of a Peter-pan collar is en par with ours and she’s so on-trend with her bargain buys it actually hurts! Her vintage and DIY references add major cool-and-edgy points to her look and she has a shoe collection Imelda Marcos would be jealous of. Warning: will induce major wardrobe envy.

Manfattan.com

We have Scott Schuman and the wonderful The Sartorialist to thank for our obsession with street style blogs. Our new number 1 street style haunt is the fabulous Manfattan Project, which celebrates the sartorially-savvy plus sized ladies and men of New York. Images capture different sizes, races and styles and is a celebration of the amazingly diverse fashions found on the streets of the fashion capital. Expect lots of color and a serious case of Iwanttogoshoppingrightnow-itus.

Plumpupthevolume.tumblr.com

What was originally started by 25-year old Jenn as a personal blog to track her weight loss and gain quickly became an inspirational space for her, and her followers, to celebrate happy, healthy ladies (and men!) who are comfortable in their own skin. A polar opposite of the ‘thinspiration’ trend, Plump up the Volume loves bodies of all shapes and sizes and is full to the brim of gorgeous images that will guarantee to leave you with a smile on your face – if rainbow cake came in blog form this is what it would look like! PUTV gets our award for the feel-good factor and we can guarantee you will log off with some major new girl crushes (and if anything is going to make you want to get a tattoo and dye your hair a cornucopia of colors then this is it!)

Guest Post contributed by Jodi Lawler from Cafe La Moda, the social space for beauty and fashion. Visit us for more inspirational ideas to leave you looking and feeling fabulous.

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women

Nothing like a list of top blogs to make my day. The list below is the About Curves Top 50 Self-Acceptance Bloggers. While I am sad I did not make the list. If it was compiled while I was having technical issues I can understand it.

There are many names on this list that I recognize and a few that I don’t. What do you think about this list and is there any blog that was left off that you feel should have been included?

1 The Chenese Lewis Blog http://cheneselewisblog.com
2 Big Girl Runway http://www.biggirlrunway.com
3 Plus Size Models Unite http://plussizemodelsunite.com
4 Leftovers To Go http://www.leftoverstogo.com
5 Eat The Damn Cake http://www.eatthedamncake.com
6 The Curvy Fashionista http://thecurvyfashionista.mariedenee.com
7 The Big Girl Blog http://www.thebiggirlblog.com
8 The Axis of Fat http://www.axisoffat.com
9 The Fat Girl’s Guide http://thefatgirlsguide.com
10 Elizabeth Patch http://elizabethpatch.com
11 Feed Me I’m Cranky http://www.feedmeimcranky.com
12 Nourish The Soul http://www.nourishing-the-soul.com
13 Beautiful You http://www.beautifulyoubyjulie.com
14 Man Eaters http://maneatersblog.com
15 Being Shameless http://www.beingshameless.com
16 Fierce, Freethinking Fatties http://fiercefatties.com
17 Deliberate Receiving http://www.deliberateblog.com
18 All New Adventures Of Corey Marie http://coreymarie.com
19 Fatadelic http://fatadelic.wordpress.com
20 A Day In The Fat Life http://adayinthefatlife.wordpress.com
21 Sometimes Sweet http://sometimessweet.blogspot.com
22 Calm Down Mind http://www.calmdownmind.com
23 The Self Esteem Blog http://theselfesteemblog.com
24 Hang In There http://hang-in-there.com
25 Break Your Shackles http://breakyourshackles.com
26 Self Love Secrets http://www.selflovesecrets.com
27 The Life Of An Everyday BBW http://thelifeofaneverydaybbw.blogspot.com
28 Mirth And Motivation http://eof737.wordpress.com
29 Moximize http://moximize.me
30 Cindy Sense http://cindysense.com
31 Just As I Am http://justasiamexperiment.blogspot.com
32 First Love You http://www.firstloveyou.com
33 The Inflammation Terminator http://lorishemek.com
34 Learning Self Love http://www.learning-self-love.com
35 So Extra DC http://www.soextradc.com
36 Treating Trauma http://drkathleenyoung.wordpress.com
37 Size Ate http://www.sizeate.blogspot.com
38 Marlen Life’s Blog http://marlenvargasdelrazo.wordpress.com
39 Think Positive http://thinkpositive30.com
40 BBW Source http://bbwsource.blogspot.com
41 Happy Body Happy Life http://happybodyhappylife.blogspot.com
42 Body Acceptance Movement http://bam-uf.blogspot.com
43 Impossible Possibilities http://drsarahjensen.blogspot.com
44 A Fat Girl Who.. http://thelifeofaneverydaybbw.blogspot.com
45 Adipose Activist http://adiposeactivist.wordpress.com
46 Health And Wellness Our Way http://wellbalancedbeauty.blogspot.com
47 Dances With Fat http://danceswithfat.org
48 Mind In Mess http://mind-in-mess.blogspot.com
49 Confessions Of A Curvy Girl http://curvygirls2012.blogspot.com
50 Fall In Love With Yourself http://fallmadlyinlovewithyourself.com

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women

November 14, 2004 before dot coms, business licences, business cards, and company logos this blog started with a simple idea on Blogger.com.  That idea was to shed light on to the plus size fashion community on the Internet.  What started off as a place to just post shopping links has evolved into a resource for plus size women and some big and tall men to find what they need in their everyday lives.

Being a man in a field dominated by women has had its challenges but I feel the work speaks for itself and that is part of the reason on November 14, 2011 Full Figure Plus is still one of the major voices on the Internet for plus size fashion.  As a way to reflect today I am going to talk about a few more reasons I feel this blog still exists.

1. At least one person in 148 countries have read a post on this blog(148 out of 196 countries)
2. The plus size community is no longer going to stand for being silent
3. Full Figure Plus was one of the first blogs to showcase independent plus size designers like Monif C, Jibri, and IGIGI
4. The Beauty of the week feature was created to showcase how beautiful everyday ladies are
5. Over 2 million visitors
6. Over 4 million page views
7. Interviews with influential individuals throughout the plus size community
8. Served as a platform for readers to voice concerns
9. Reported plus size related issues from a different perspective
10. Continuously gave the readers what they wanted

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women

It has been quite sometime since I gave you guys and update as to what is going on with Full Figure Plus.  Now that I think about it there are so many things going on I honestly forgot that I needed to ask you guys what your opinion was about the changes.  Some are bringing back old things or better yet putting more emphasis on them and other things are totally new.

In one month Full Figure Plus will turn seven years old

A quick rundown of the new changes on Full Figure Plus:

1. A new look
2. More emphasis on the Beauty of the Week
3. Beauty of the Week Hall of Fame on Tumblr
4. Fullfigureplus.mobi went live back in the summer
5. Plus size fashion videos are being tested
6. Longer more in depth posts are rolling out
7. Shopping is more integrated part of daily posts instead of the main focus

Over 2.5 million visitors have come to Full Figure Plus since 2004

The other new item I am wondering about is incorporating video on the blog main page.  I did so to show plus size fashion on Full Figure Plus from another perspective and as you can see the video that just went up today allows you to take action on what you see in the video.  Why video?  To be honest it was something different and long time Full Figure Plus readers know that experimentation is what this blog is about and the reason why I went to grad school to learn more about what I need to do to better serve those that I serve – the plus size fashion community.

That’s all for now as far as what new is coming from my mind.  Full Figure Plus is what I do and have been blessed to be able to do it full time so I have nothing else to do but love on my readers in whatever way you guys need me the most.

The final question I leave up to you guys; What do you think about the changes to Full Figure Plus?

Full Figure Plus - Plus Size Fashion For Today's Active Women