An Open Letter To Forever 21, From A Fat Customer
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Today, I visited one of your Forever 21 stores near me. I know, it was wishful thinking even hoping that there would be a plus size section inside those 3000+ square feet, as so often clothing sizes end at L in your stores. But my best friend had some (Forever 21 plus size) jeans to exchange, and as you can see I'm a plus size fashion blogger, so I thought maybe I'd pick something cute out for myself. I spent $100 ordering things from your store online just last week, like I do most months. It's not easy to find affordable clothing for people my size, and though your size 3x is snug on me I can make it work, and 6 items for $100 ain't bad.
After we show the cashier the jeans that need to be exchanged (because they got holes in the seams within minutes of putting them on), I asked where the plus size section was. "Over here" my best friend says as she starts walking into a corner of the store that I thought was being used as storage. Ok, that may be a bit dramatic. I didn't think that part of the store was actually being used as storage, because I couldn't see that part of the store. Not from the sprawling glass windows outside the store, not from the cashier's station where perhaps there would be a sign that said "plus", not from the center of the store as it hid back behind the lingerie section (which does not carry any plus sizes). I was excited that there was actually a space where my 3x sizes were being held, though. I was impressed! Actual plus sizes in a Forever 21 near me! Better yet, a store clerk helped us find my friends jeans so we could exchange them. No problem.
Then we were left to "shop". It was, in a word, horrifying.
Your entire store is lit with beautiful cool white lighting, and the floors are shiny little tiles of white and gold. There's accessories on walls, and little treasures to be found all over the place. So please, tell me why the sweet hell the tiny plus size corner is dimly lit with yellow lights, no mirrors, and zero accessories on the shelves. In the Forever 21 near me there were entire hanging racks with only hangers on them. No clothes. But of course there were no clothes hanging nicely on the walls... they were all collected into an even tinier corner of the itty bitty room, shoved onto racks that were haphazardly placed so close to one another that nobody could walk between them. I thought for a moment "maybe I'm over reacting. Let's see... does the rest of the store look like this?". No. Definitely not. Even the most crowded sections of the store were clean and tidied.
Now, I am grown. I can do all my shopping online from my incredibly comfy couch. I know where to shop and I have a lot of knowledge about plus size brands. I love the shit out of myself, and have spent a lot of years breaking down the crap that I've learned about my body to realize that I'm totally worthy of cute clothes, just like every other person. Even my, super secure, grown ass, could not help but feel ashamed while I was shopping in your store. I knew exactly what was happening the second I stepped into that Forever 21 plus size section. I knew I was being pushed aside. I knew I was an after thought.
I'm not your target market though, am I? No. Your target is a bit younger than me. I know this because your target market often asks me to review your clothing, asks what my favorites from your store are. Your target hasn't had the time that I've had to learn what is so fucked up about society's attitudes towards fat people. Your target customer may not even have the luxury of being able to shop online, so that they can completely skip over the entire in-store experience. They're young women, who are just looking to feel pretty in some semi-trendy clothes that they can afford. That sounds pretty simple right? It sounds like something everyone should have access to, something anyone could find. It's not. Because stores keep shoving us in tiny, dimly lit corners very similar to your store's set up. So young women, your target audience, continue to feel forgotten, as if their existence isn't even worth the sales dollars.
It's not us, the consumer, who should be forced to feel ashamed when shopping in your stores. Your reckless disregard of fat people's feelings is shameful. You have got to do better than this. We deserve better than this. Year after year, plus size clothing sales increase, and year after year we are relegated to a tiny corner in your massive expanse of sales floor. I watch your plus size swimwear sell out every summer, while you neglect to include plus size clothing in any of your sales.
This is my open letter to you. Asking you to take the time to treat us with the respect and dignity that you treat your other customers. I'm asking you to take the time to make the Forever 21 plus size section reflect the same shopping experience that you provide our smaller counter parts. I'm asking you to help break the cycle of young women that feel ashamed of their bodies, help us to make more girls feel connected and supported by their communities. Create spaces that make people proud to wear your clothing. Bring positivity into your stores, instead of alienation.
I'm over the nonsense, and I know plenty of other women are too. Get with it.
Edited to add: Forever 21 followed up about their attempts to make the Forever 21 plus size section more inclusive. I responded in this article.
I sent them an email about a store in Atlanta and Augusta in June concerning their "plus size section". To this day no response
Well said!!!
OMG! Your letter has brought tears to my eyes. I'm one of your youtube followers and I could not be prouder of you as Iam right this moment. You are a sweet and kind soul. You are phenomenal. God bless!
Thank you Karen. thanks for the love and support <3
I went into their store in Kalamazoo, MI and wanted to buy some clothes for my teenage daughter that wasn't with me. I had never been in one of their stores so when I went in I started looking around. After quite a while, not a single employee asked to help me. Finally I asked them what kind of sizes they carry and I was flat out told that that they do not carry anything that could possibly fit me. It has been a really long time since I have been so offended and needless to say I have never been back.
Are you serious???? That's crazy!!!! I would of pushed her ass into the clothes!!
And I love shopping at the NY locations
#plussizegirl
Although I'm that girl that is right in between a snug 12 and a loose 14 I still prefer the plus size section when there is the option of one. The only 21+ that has EVER really been amazing I guess you could say is the store in Jacksonville FL and that even leaves a lot to be desired seeing as how it's a 2 story store and a small section is dedicated to the plus size. There is a section for the kids that's bigger than the plus size which is why I have steered away from forever 21 for quite some time. There are other places I know I can go and get what I'm looking for and not be disappointed by the lack of clothing options because contrary to what society says, not all plus size women want to walk around in trash bags some of us have a sense of fashion.
I, like you, am an "inbetweenie" who likes to shop plus in addition to "straight" sizes. I was recently in F21 in Montgomeryville, PA and that store was surprisingly well-stocked in its plus section. It was in the back of the store, of course, but well-lit and orderly. My point is that they obviously have the ability to make their stores more inclusive and they need to get on that in ALL their stores. Do better, F21!
I love the F21+ in Montgomeryville! I've been to many F21, and that one easily has the best Plus section. Center City Philadelphia is also pretty good. Willow Grove, PA has one, but in all my many years and dollars, I didn't even notice it until one of my friends pointed it out to me, Love F21, but they really gotta work on this.
Well written! Thanks for writing this. It's this, exactly, in most every store.
Very well said. I've always been a plus size girl and I hate shopping anymore. Plus size clothes that are affordable are hard to find. If they are affordable it normally looks like something an old lady would wear. If it's trendy, it tends to be double the price of a smaller outfit. More stores should have stylish and affordable clothes because big girls want to be beautiful too!
I feel like this is not quite accurate. You are trying to address an entire corporation with hundreds, if not thousands of stores based on your visit to this ONE section of this ONE store at ONE particular time. Not to mention the fact that it's January and the retailer is still probably reeling from Christmas sales.
Kaylee, the post is not to address ONE store. I have been in dozens of stores, not only Forever 21, that treat their plus size customers as second rate. I think that Forever21 is a good example of this, but they certainly are not alone.
Every Forever 21 I've ever been has looked like this.
No, most of the stores are like that. I live in the DMV area and all the stores in this area are the exact same way.
Amen! I adore Forever21+ online as I've mentioned numerous times. That being said I have also felt the rejections of being pushed to the corner of the store to find my size. That is if they have it at all since many, like the XXI in Downtown San Diego still don't even have that. Thanks for speaking up about it ^__^
I know that feeling all too well. It's all the same in Forever21, H&M, and even Target - where the plus size is crammed between the sales rack and maternity. The only store I can feel like a queen in by me is Lane Bryant...but only when there's a sale or some of those real women dollars involved. It's so sad and they just don't get it. They don't want to get it. It's the same way that all the straight size clothing styles are never made in pulse size. I shop online because I can find things in my size without feeling like a troll in a dark corner seeking out an elusive skirt that someone told me they got at one of those chain stores. But, I also hate shopping online because I can't just try it on, I have to wait til it arrives and if I don't like it I have to return it and try all over again. I would love to just go to a mall, hop into a store, try some stuff on, and go home with things I like without busting my wallet. Why can't that be part of the fat experience? Why is that reserved mainly to thin people? I just don't get how not even money is a motivation for these stores. They must really hate the fat consumer. At this point it might just be worth it to learn to sew things my own damn self. Thanks for your words!
Hell yeah. My cities plus section is in a dark, musty corner also. It's freaking TINY. It might as well be in a closet :-/ they treat us like trash. I hope they respond.
The Forever 21 in Birmingham AL has a pretty large plus size section, but it's always in such disarray that I don't even bother to shop there. It seems as though they never tidy it up and put things back where they belong. It's more like treasure hunting in a thrift store than shopping in a retail clothing store.
Agreed with 100 percent. I love fashion and I'm plus sized. It's quite disappointing to feel like I have less options when of course I want to rock the outfits that are displayed. I know I can and there are million other woman than can. I feel upset and left to settle. Thank you for bringing light to this. It's important for our voices to be heard. Our money is green and our bodies are beautiful and we should be overwhelmed with options rather than poor selections.
Im from South Africa. When the store opened here, i was overjoyed to see a plus ize selection. It was a bit small, but i made due. Last December I went back to the store to be told the plus size selectuin had been discontinued due to lack of interest. Im totally flabbergasted as this was the last store to discontinue their plus size range. All stores have discontinued their plus size ranges in South Africa.
Being a xxl to a xxxl depending on the cuts, I loved your letter, I have always been a big girl and even the big girl designers suck. Why put totally different stuff out there for us, big flowers or prints.. We want the same cool stuff just in our size, and a 16 to me is NOT plus... When your # starts with a 2... 20,22,24,26.....youre a plus. Fashion industry, get it together, WE ARE THE NORM!
This is awesome! It's absolutely infuriating when I have money to spend on cute clothing and I can't find a damn thing I like! I hate Lane Bryant because they are massively overpriced and most everything is tent-like or way too long (like it's okay to be fat as long as you are also tall. Short and fat? Go home.) Department stores stock their plus sections with a lot of "old lady" clothes (pastels, cutesy appliques, tops with an elastic hem) and it's a nightmare digging through all the ugly stuff. Target is very hit or miss and I resent the fact that everything I find cute in the plus section of my store is actually maternity, since there are maybe 6 racks between both sections. I do have luck with Old Navy thanks to their awful vanity sizing (I'm a size 18/20/22 and a XXL at Old Navy is big on me. This is true of no other store) but their clothing is cheap and falls apart so quickly. If it weren't for Old Navy and thrift stores with a plus section, I'd be running around in sweatpants and men's tshirts.
All of that is one major reason why I love your blog so much. You inspire me to have fun again with style instead of feeling bitter because I can't participate. I saved a picture of you from last summer in a lilac Wet Seal dress with a little white shrug over it because I want to look that gorgeous when I go to summer festivals and concerts instead of feeling self-conscious because everyone is half naked and stunning and I'm a sweaty, gross mess. I think this year will be the first time I proudly raise up my arms and don't worry a bit about my arm fat jiggling.
Anyway, you're awesome and I love you.
AWWWWWW YOU ARE SO DAMN SWEET THANK YOU THIS MADE ME FEEL SO NICE!!!
Yes.....I have been feeling the same. The store in baton rouge,la is garbage, it's not one time that I go in there and their isn't clothing scattered everywhere. When I do fine something I like guess what it's not even plus size but it in plus size section. I have stop shopping online at forever 21 because of this....
Thanks for spending this letter on our behalf. ...
#plussizedomatter
#wewanttobecuteto
Hi Corissa,
Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention – we will be looping in the right departments to make sure this situation is addressed with the store. We can assure you that this is not an accurate representation of our brand’s visual merchandising and view of any of our customers. We are investing greatly in our Plus Size Collection this year and are always trying to improve the assortment and merchandising. In fact, we just launched our Plus Active collection and noticed that you wrote about it in your “Where to Shop Plus Size Activewear” article – thank you! We are also excited to announce that we have launched a @Forever21Plus Instagram profile to bring our most amazing content and new arrivals front and center. Thank you so much for your feedback and we genuinely appreciate you as our customer.
-Forever 21
Can you do something about the plus sections in NYC too? It's so frustrating that even in your flagship there's still almost no plus size section! I would love to shop with you more often.
Thanks!
A lot of the F21 stores are disappointing when it comes to there plus section . IE the setup. A lot of things for online aren't available in store . Or the section is more or less neglected. F21 needs to look into this for sure in a lot of their outlets. But when i'll give praise where its due . There is a F21 at Jersey Gardens Mall, NJ. And (the last time i visited at least) it was the bees knees. It was well up kept. lovely lighted and meshed so well with the rest of the store that while I was shopping smaller people came in started searching the racks and became genuinely confused when they realized everything was +sized. Maybe the management at this branch is more on their game, or more forward thinking or less prejudiced or ..whatever . But heres hoping other branches step their game up cuz . No one wants to feel like a second thought.
Wow! You work it! I can tell you are fed up and it's sad that stores can't just at least put the clothes on hangers for you! Or get better lighting! Plus size it forever 21 is part of the company, if it's gonna be part of the company... Then it needs to be the same as an other exporence
I'm so glad I wasn't the only one that saw the same thing. I live in Las Vegas and it makes me very upset the way the plus Section looks. Messy, unorganized, forgotten, and depressing. I work in a competing plus size retail store and I tell my customers the Same thing. Your shopping expirence is most important about feeling great about your purchase and feeling great about yourself. Thank you for this blog.❤️