Forever 21 and Target appear to be paying attention to the spending power that teens hold by launching plus size lines of clothing specifically geared towards a younger audience. If such is the case then they have noticed the same thing that I have and that is teens of today have more money at their disposal than any generation in history.
With the decline of the mall teens are hanging out at specialty shops and making purchases on Amazon.com, Ebay and others based off recommendations from friends on Twitter and Facebook. My own daughter recently purchased a vehicle for cash and did not even blink when they told her how much it would cost. If buyers for mainstream stores have FINALLY noticed this and are actually willing to do what it takes to cater to plus size teens then our children will get a handshake that we never could have imagined happening.
I have been saying for years that there are far to many merchants that do not want a peice of the billion dollar plus size fashion industry for fear of being labeled as a “fat” merchant. Stores like Torrid.com and Plus Size Fix formerly Belle Avenue offer affordable clothing for young ladies that want to be fashionable, embracing the fact that teens want to look good period.
The key to this possible trend is in the hands of Target in my opinion. They are a brand that is a part of pop culture, so if it catches on there it will easily spread to others merchants. I am not so sure about Forever 21′s involvement because of the way they are launching but I will hold my final opinion till later this year.
Maybe finally someone has realized that teens are impulsive shoppers so if they have clothes that fit the mood of the moment they will buy and buy often not to mention spread the word about where to buy. It may even save merchants on advertising becasue of the speed at which the plus size teens will get the word out through text messaging and social networks that there is a source for quality clothing for teens and they do not have to shop at Lane Bryant with there mother.
I am appalled that CBS would air a story about this. Our children are under attack from so many different areas today. Do we really want to make them outcasts by allowing them no access to fashionable clothing just because of their weight? Is it better to risk pressuring them to be thin at the risk of causing anorexia? Come on CBS, you can do better than that! I agree that we need to encourage a healthy lifestyle and promote good eating habits, but I don’t really think this is the way to do it.
Unfortunately, this is nothing new. larger teens have been under attacks like this for decades.