As a company dedicated almost exclusively to exercise gear—with the exception of a solid selection of street-worthy athleisure duds—you'd expect Nike to carry an extensive range of plus-size threads. While it's true that the activewear behemoth has offered some items in plus sizes, the selection has been significantly less than those items in so-called "straight" sizes. But this week, the beloved brand made an awesome announcement: The company is finally extending its plus-size offerings in a major way.
For the holiday season, Nike will be expanding its size range starting at 1X to 3X for up to 85 items. By spring, the company promises to have more than 200 items available in bigger sizes—and it plans to increase the category from here on out. For Nike, the move couldn't have come at a better time. In case you missed it, body diversity has been a central issue in the fashion industry this year, with celebs like model Ashley Graham and Orange Is the New Black actress Danielle Brooks speaking out for more inclusion of women of all shapes and sizes on the runway and in the media. Fashion designer Christian Siriano featured plus-sized models at his spring 2017 show, while teen lingerie brand Aerie cast real women of varying body types in its tenth anniversary ad campaign. As for Nike, the company garnered praise earlier this year when it launched a campaign featuring plus-size model Paloma Elsesser wearing a sports bra.
More on fashion's ongoing conversation on diversity:
- Model Recreated Popular Ad Campaigns to Make a Statement About Representation and Diversity
- Calvin Klein Model Ebonee Davis Speaks Out About Racism in Fashion
- Danielle Brooks Says Everything You Were Thinking About Body Diversity
Of course, extended sizing means nothing if the clothing doesn't fit correctly, which is exactly why Nike has made every effort to ensure that the new gear isn't simply sized correctly, but is made to support curvier bods. The company's ultimate goal isn't just to create stylish athletic clothing: It's about making sure that the products cater to the wearer's body for optimal "comfort, fit, and performance." In fact, each piece, according to Refinery29, is run through a test featuring six rigorous movements to make certain it's up to code, so to speak. Now that's dedication.
Along with the new clothing sizes, Nike is extending the sizes of both the Pro Rival and Pro Hero sports bras to a 38E, and offering in-store and online sizing calculators to help ladies find their perfect fit (a handy tool, considering how much bra sizes vary from brand to brand).
Finally, the company promises to pay close attention to customer feedback, and "add additional styles" to its plus offerings if needed. So, yeah. Nike may have been a little late in recognizing the need to cater to plus-size women, but with the way the brand is finally stepping up, it just might become the frontrunner for body diversity.
Model Paloma Elsesser on the lack of diversity on the runway:
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