Is Ozempic Ruining the Plus Size Fashion Market?

The rise of weight loss drugs like Ozempic has not only changed the way individuals approach health and weight management but has also had a significant impact on the fashion industry.

As the popularity of weight loss drugs increases, the plus size fashion market is undergoing significant changes. This shift makes fashion experts, designers and consumers wonder if the so-called “ultra-thinness” ideal, which was a staple in the 90s and 00s, will return and what causes problems for the plus-size fashion market. , business models, product lines, and the body positivity movement.

Celebrity Endorsements

Ozempic is a prescription drug developed by the Danish pharmaceutical company, Novo Nordisk. The drug works by mimicking hormones that regulate appetite and digestion which in turn leads to hunger and calorie intake. This combined with its ability to reduce digestion helps users lose weight.

It was designed to treat and manage type 2 diabetes, but has gained popularity due to its weight loss effects. Some celebrities are known to use the drug.

A representative for Novo Nordisk told Newsweek that the company is “committed to the responsible use of medicines.”

“Ozempic is not approved for chronic weight management,” the representative said.

Size Matters

Of the 8,800 looks presented in 230 shows and presentations during the Autumn-Winter fashion this year, only 0.8 percent were plus-size (US 14+) and 3.7 percent were mid-size (US 6-12). A whopping 95.5 percent are straight sizes (US 0-4), according to Vogue Business, a website focused on fashion, luxury, and beauty trends.

Lucy Maguire, Senior Trends Editor at Vogue Business spoke to Newsweek about Ozempic’s data and influence in the fashion industry. He said, “Usually, it is an independent label that is always at the top of our size inclusiveness rankings in the four big cities. For (the Spring-Summer 2024 season), we also see some encouraging movements from major fashion houses. Brands like Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen both- both entered the top 10 for the first time since we started collecting data.”

Maguire continued: “Last season, many of these brands returned to straight size models, which reduced the proportion of plus size models in the season. over plus size models.”

This sentiment was echoed by Molly Roakes, who runs a popular Instagram account called Style Analytics, which looks at “data-driven fashion insights.” Roakes explained to Newsweek that “when internal studies of retailers show an increase in sales of small size clothing last year, this trend is also visible in search data. For example, in the US, searching for size 00 jeans in retailers that focus on popular youth. has increased by 8 percent in the last year. “

Newsweek also spoke with Marcy and Jen, who run The Plus Bus Boutique, an LA-based business that sells sustainable, plus-size fashion and said that sales were down.

While they attribute some of this to people not being happy to admit they might “need bigger pants,” they say it’s “also due to the economy because our neighbors in the retail district are going through a similar downturn.”

He said he has “definitely encountered customers who are on a weight loss journey” since the store opened in 2015.

He explained that he had heard about Ozempic for a while, but he “wasn’t sure if it wasn’t like some diet drug or some other craze that would come and go.”

He added, “The crazy thing about selling clothes to people who have lost weight or lost weight is that more often than not they come back after gaining it back.”

Fashion trends

“Size inclusivity is a step back season after season now,” Maguire said. “Of course, there is a lot of discussion about Ozempic at the moment and its effect on the public consciousness. With influencers and celebrities (men and women) shrinking before our eyes, some critics say that it gives designers license to return to straight-size models. . And it also affects consumers to have a more homogeneous idea of ​​beauty.

Molly Roakes of Style Analytics believes that weight-loss drugs like Ozempic “will inevitably undo the progress made in the way that includes size and the work done by the body positive movement.

“Ozempic has made achieving a very thin body type more accessible to many, but in doing so it has reduced the steps it has taken to include all body types in fashion,” he said. Newsweek.

Newsweek has reached out to a representative for Novo Nordisk, the company that manufactures Ozempic, via email for comment.

Maguire agreed that ultra-thinness again appeared in fashion, and said male designers were a big factor.

“I think that male designers have a very homogenous view of the female body unfortunately,” she said. “For example, most fashion isn’t even designed with bras in mind. No one ever wears a bra on the runway.”

The owner of Plus Bus Boutique felt the same about the idea of ​​ultra-thinness, tells Newsweek that: “Ultra-thinness seems to always cycle back. Our American obsession with thinness will probably never go away. While we make progress, fatphobia is rampant in our society.”

What’s Next?

In light of this, it is likely that the size of the fashion industry will continue to face obstacles. The woman behind The Plus Bus Boutique says she thinks weight loss drugs have “contributed to fat bias becoming more embedded in public discourse and therefore feeling more insecure about being fat openly and living in a fat body that don’t want to be skinny.”

Roakes notes that “fashion aesthetics like ‘indie sleaze’ and ‘heroin chic’ have gained popularity on platforms like TikTok and Pinterest in the past year.”

He told us that “while the trend has yet to materialize in mainstream fashion, it may be on the horizon.” He explained that the trend “especially when combined with cultural factors such as the influence of Ozempic and the use of tobacco in the US, can be prepared again in the next few years.”

Roakes added that “there are few high fashion brands that include mid-size and plus-size models on the runway when they are aligned with the demands of the audience and the body positivity movement.”

“Many of these brands continue to deliver on this promise with the advent of Ozempic, but it will be interesting to see which brands will continue to adopt casting improvements as Ozempic use continues to grow.”

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