In a world of fast fashion, it’s quite mind-blowing that popular retailers are still getting plus size clothing so wrong.
Nowadays, fast fashion seems to take a ‘one size fits all’ approach, when really, bodies range from all shapes and sizes.
Previous studies have revealed that the average UK women’s clothes size is a UK 16. So if you’re a comfortable size 16 in one shop, but find that a size 20 pair of jeans in another retailer won’t fit, luckily fashion experts at WeThrift have developed the Inclusive Index.
The Inclusive Index is a one-stop-shop where you can find the retailers with the most, and least, truest to size clothes for all your shopping needs. If you’re tired of spending your hard-earned cash on multiple options for your next night out, only to face the gruelling process of countless clothes returns, then the Inclusive Index is here to help.
We have analysed over 100 of the most popular, fast fashion, mid-price and premium stores available in the UK, to reveal which retailers are leading the way with the plus size fashion movement, and the ones that are falling behind. We can reveal our findings in the Inclusive Index by the number of items available in a size 16 and over, comparing size guide measurements and plus size ranges from the smallest to largest size available.
Ranked: The most inclusive retailers
Starting with the most plus size items available, we can reveal that Shein is the most inclusive retailer available in the UK. Shein came out on top, boasting a staggering 88,850 plus size options, ranging from a UK size 6 up to a UK size 26.
In recent months, Shein has risen to fame in the fast fashion industry and is now giving trendy favourites, like Zara and Urban Outfitters, a run for their money. With their rapid virtual growth on platforms such as TikTok, with users partaking in addictive clothing hauls and #sheinhaul reaching 3.2B views and counting, it seems Shein’s popularity could be linked to their inclusive clothing range.
The data also revealed that Silkfred came in second place with 15,900 options available across their 800 independent retailers. Following closely in third place is Debenhams, with 14,762 options available. All of the top 3 inclusive retailers also offer wide fit shoes, with a combined total of 22,043.
Ranked: The least inclusive retailers
Sadly, not all retailers have the same range of options as the likes of Shein, Silkfred and Debenhams. Our research revealed the least inclusive retailers available in the UK; Pull & Bear and All Saints share the top spot with a heart-sinking zero plus size options available. Both retailer’s clothing sizes range from a UK 2, with the largest size being a UK 14.
In third place is skateboarding specialists, Vans. With a disappointing result of only 1 plus size option stocked on their official website, that starts from a UK 6 and goes to a UK 16.
The retailer with the largest size available
While some retailers offered quite a standard, similar size range, a select few retailers really excelled in their sizing options. Debenhams came out on top, with their clothing range starting from a UK 4, up to a UK 40. Following very closely in second place is La Redoute, who offers a clothing range from a UK 4 up to a UK 36.
This is how the other retailers ranked for plus size items available:
| Store | Smallest size | Largest size | Amount of plus size items available |
| Debenhams | 4 | 40 | 14,762 |
| La Redoute | 2 | 36 | 2,305 |
| Silkfred | 4 | 32 | 15,900 |
| Next | 4 | 32 | 9,317 |
| Simply Be | 12 | 32 | 4,494 |
| JD Williams | 8 | 32 | 4,161 |
| Evans | 14 | 32 | 3,105 |
| Marks & Spencer | 6 | 32 | 3,081 |
| New Look | 4 | 32 | 2,724 |
| Littlewoods | 4 | 32 | 2758 |
Style in the aisles with supermarket clothes
With the nation in lockdown for the majority of 2020 and clothing stores having to close their doors, supermarket clothes have been all the rage. They have even grown in popularity, with Tesco being named the “new Zara” on TikTok, and Asda’s G21 range making a strong return to our shelves. But which of the supermarket clothing ranges are the most inclusive?
| Store | Smallest size | Largest size | Amount of plus size items available |
| Asda | 4 | 32 | 2,445 |
| Sainsbury’s | 8 | 24 | 1,837 |
| Morrisons | 6 | 26 | 285 |
| Tesco | 6 | 22 | 167 |
George at Asda came out on top with 2,445 plus size options available over a UK 16, as well as stocking a range of clothes from a UK 4 up to a UK 32. Sainsbury’s came in second place with 1,837 items above a size 16, starting from UK 8 to UK 24. Morrisons and Tesco came in third and fourth place, with significantly fewer items. Their combined amount of plus size items is only a fraction of the total that Asda George stocks.
Measurement differences between sizes; it’s not you, it’s the clothes!
So with the most and least inclusive brands revealed, which retailer’s sizes can we actually trust? And with a ‘one size fits all’ approach definitely not the case, we also looked at the measurements for different brand’s sizes.
For a standard UK 16 across all the different retailers we analysed, the bust measurements differed by 9.7cm, the waist measurements by 12.5cm, and the hip measurements by 13cm, all between the smallest and largest measurements.
The most consistent brand for the smallest measurements in bust, waist and hip was Urban Outfitters. Their tiny measurements would make for a shock in the changing rooms! In fact, the measurements for a UK 16 at Urban Outfitters are even smaller than a size 14 in some retailers, such as New Look, ASOS and Missguided.
So before you get hung up on the hanger, remember, it’s not you, it’s the clothes. Your body is not supposed to ‘fit into clothes’, the clothes are meant to fit on you, regardless of the number on the size tag. Especially considering how much retailers’ measurements can differ.
Sister sizing in your favourite brands
With so many differences in sizes, it’s difficult to know what size we truly are; if only it was simple! Taking a variation of the truest to size retailers and the retailers with the biggest measurement differences, we’ve put together a sister sizing chart based on their size guides. This is so you can determine whether to size up and down in different stores and avoid those changing room catastrophes.
Shockingly for every size available, it’s recommended you size up in Next, Nike, Reebok and Urban Outfitters. Also, if you’re a standard UK 14, you may need to size up to a UK 16 at Pretty Little Thing.
In some instances, you may need to size down at some retailers. If you’re a standard UK 16 shopping at I Saw It First and In The Style, you may want to size down to a UK 14. However, the sizing was perfectly accurate for the other UK sizes at these two stores.
The more superior brands, holding the title for the most accurate sizing, are New Look, Warehouse and John Lewis. Their sizing was perfect compared to the average UK measurements, making them more satisfactory places to shop with the least complications!
Head over heels for wide fit shoes
Not only is it the clothes that can cause us distress, but finding that perfect pair of shoes that won’t rub, isn’t too snug on the toes, and won’t make you want to take them off after 5 minutes of strutting your stuff on the dance floor!
Luckily in our inclusive index, we’ve also identified which of our favourite retailers sell wide fit shoes, meaning you can find the perfect pair and not be in despair!
From our research, we found that less than half of our retailers sold wide fit shoes. Out of the 71 researched, only 35 had a wide fit collection, and 36 didn’t. Surprisingly, some of the retailers that only offered a standard sizing of shoe, and not wide fit, include In The Style, H&M and Oasis.
However, the retailers that excelled in their wide fit shoe collections included ASOS, Boohoo and Simply Be. Shein came out on top with the biggest selection, with a huge range of 41,535 wide fit shoes available. Following in second place was JD Williams, with 2,102 wide fit shoes available.
These are the top 15 retailers with the most wide fit shoes:
| Ranking | Store | Total amount wide fit |
| 1. | Shein | 41,535 |
| 2. | JD Williams | 2,102 |
| 3. | Simply Be | 792 |
| 4. | ASOS | 710 |
| 5. | Debenhams | 352 |
| 6. | Boohoo | 346 |
| 7. | Next | 158 |
| 8. | Dorothy Perkins | 151 |
| 9. | New Look | 117 |
| 10. | Very | 115 |
| 11. | La Redoute | 105 |
| 12. | Pretty Little Thing | 97 |
| 13. | Evans | 63 |
| 14. | Littlewoods | 42 |
| 15. | Quiz | 42 |
Get what you pay for: Premium brands and their inclusivity
As well as fast-fashion retailers, we also extended our research to premium brands to see how they fared in plus size clothing. Assumingly, you should get what you pay for with more expensive brands, but does that include inclusivity?
Well, if you’ve been longing for the perfect, truest to size clothes that ooze with class, we’ve found the brands which cater for the most sizes. Our research revealed that high fashion houses, such as Harrods and Dolce & Gabbana, stock up to a UK size 28, with their smallest items starting at a UK 4.
With sites like Farfetch collating all our favourite designer brands and racking up an impressive 3,400 plus size items, it means we can all embrace our inner Blair Waldorf at any shape or size!
Here’s how the top 15 retailers for plus size choice ranked:
| Ranking | Premium brand | Amount of plus size items available |
| 1. | Farfetch | 3,400 |
| 2. | Net-A-Porter | 2,931 |
| 3. | Harrods | 2,255 |
| 4. | Free People | 1,744 |
| 5. | Flannels | 1,563 |
| 6. | Hobbs | 841 |
| 7. | Dolce & Gabbana | 797 |
| 8. | Whistles | 689 |
| 9. | Boden | 510 |
| 10. | Guess | 504 |
| 11. | Harvey Nichols | 450 |
| 12. | Hugo Boss | 374 |
| 13. | Burberry | 358 |
| 14. | Dior | 301 |
| 15. | Fendi | 262 |
Methodology:
Ranked: The most inclusive retailers
We took a seed list of low to mid-cost retailers across the UK and filtered their whole clothing collections to figure out which retailer had the most plus size items over a UK size 16 (excluding supermarket clothing ranges). We then pulled out the top three for deeper analysis.
Ranked: The least inclusive retailers
We took a seed list of low to mid-cost retailers across the UK and filtered their whole clothing collections to figure out which retailer had the most plus size items over a UK size 16 (excluding supermarket clothing ranges). We then pulled out the top three for deeper analysis
The retailer with the largest size available
We took a seed list of low to mid-cost retailers across the UK and filtered their whole clothing collections to figure out which retailer had the largest UK clothes size available.
Style in the aisles with supermarket clothes
We took a seed list of UK supermarkets that have a clothing range to analyse which supermarkets had the most plus size items available and which had the biggest size.
Measurement differences between sizes; it’s not you, it’s the clothes!
We took a seed list of low to mid-cost retailers across the UK and found all of the cm measurements for each size from the retailer’s size guide. We then calculated the differences between the smallest and the largest bust, waist and hip measurements for a UK size 16.
Sister sizing in your favourite brands
Using the bust measurements for each retailer and compared them to the standard UK size guidelines. We then calculated which size is the best fit for each category (+/- 2cm).
Head over heels for wide fit shoes
We took a seed list of low to mid-cost retailers across the UK and found which stores sold wide fit shoes from their website. For the stores that did sell wide fit shoes, we calculated how many options each store had and ranked them from highest to lowest.
Get what you pay for: Premium brands and their inclusivity
We took a seed list of premium retailers across the UK and found which ones had the most plus size items available over a UK 16, and which retailer stocked the largest size.