THE BIG SQUEEZE
selves as chic and sexy while ignoring the millions of shoppers
who can’t shop in their stores
due to physical limits.
Urban Outfitters, a teen retailer
known for its quirky merchandise
and edgy T-shirts, doesn’t sell any
clothes larger than size 12, which
the brand considers “extra-large,”
as Lululemon does. American Apparel and Express both cap their
in-store offerings at size 12, but
make the climb to 14 if customers
HUFFINGTON
08.18.13
The company is best known for its
$98 stretchy yoga pants and other
athletic gear — the sort of clothing
people may purchase when they
aspire to exercise and get into
better shape. Nonetheless, the
company has shown reluctance to
offer women’s clothes larger than
size 12, choosing instead to ignore
the $14 billion plus-size apparel
industry and protect its brand.
Indeed, even as it contends with
slowing growth, Lululemon has
“IT’S A MONEY LOSER, FOR SURE.
I UNDERSTAND THEIR PLIGHT,
BUT IT’S TOUGH.” – CHIP WILSON, LULULEMON FOUNDER
order online. Urban Outfittersowned Anthropologie and J. Crew
each make the cut at 12 in their
stores as well, jumping to 16 in
their e-commerce ventures.
These companies have in essence
opted to maintain their images as
wardrobes of the slim instead of
expanding their potential sales.
Lululemon may at first seem an
unlikely member of such ranks.
made it clear that it’s not interested in attracting plus-size shoppers.
At the Philadelphia store where
Licorish worked, she said she
grew accustomed to seeing plussize shoppers enter and quickly
leave, having deduced that this
was not their place.
“There was sort of a grumpy
response to people who weren’t
familiar with the brand,” she said
of the Lululemon culture in her
store. “Moms would come in with
their daughters, look around and