Grand future for plus-size fashion

size 18 and above With slender Kate back on the front of every fashion magazine, latest research from MINTEL finds British women’s vital statistics rising and almost one in five (19%) British ladies or some 4.9 million women taking a size 18 and over. MINTEL predicts that if sizes change as much as they have done since the 1950s demographic shifts alone will mean that by 2011 as many as 6.4 million women will be a size 18 and above. This is an increase of almost 40% on 2006 figures. What is more, Britain spent a massive £2.3 billion on plus-size clothes in 2005, accounting for as much as 17% of the total £13.5 billion womenswear market. With such huge increases expected in the number of women taking plus-size clothing, this sector of the fashion market is expected to see unprecedented growth.