The Michigan superstore Meijer Inc. will get rid of all the plus-size sections in its 230 stores by early next year. But it will still be selling plus-size clothes — they'll just be in the same place as everything else.
The items will also be the same price regardless of size, despite the common tendency for stores to charge more for bigger clothing.
"We really felt all customers should have the exact same experience at Meijer," vice president of Softlines Annette Repasch told The Wall Street Journal. " Not only by style, but by price and by location."
While stores with plus-size sections may give a greater variety of people the opportunity to shop than those that only have straight sizes, this type of store layout still leaves much to be desired.
Putting larger clothes in their own separate area implies that smaller clothing is the norm, when in fact it's not. The average American woman is a size 16-18, according to a study in the International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology, and Education, which most stores would consider plus size.
Separating plus-size clothes from straight-size ones also encourages the view that they're optional, when they should be as widely available as any other size. This view can lead to a scarcity of options for people who want cute clothes that fit them.
Hopefully, by treating clothes of all sizes the same way, stores like Meijer can help end the stigma plus-size shoppers shouldn't have to feel.
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