What will it take for fashion to become a more size-inclusive industry, from runway to shop floor? ELLE UK shines a light on the designers, models and advocates reimagining the body in fashion and pushing for a more size-inclusive industry for all.
Any fashion girl worth her salt will be well-acquainted with RIXO, the vintage-inspired brand that has been worn by everyone from Ashley Graham and Taylor Swift to Kate Middleton, and has become an event go-to for stylish women the world over. A far lesser-known fact about RIXO, however, is that it is one of the most size-inclusive brands around.
That is no accident. ‘We didn’t want to make a big song and dance about it,’ co-founders Orlagh McCloskey and Henrietta Rix tell ELLE UK. ‘When we launched extended sizing in 2022, we didn’t want it to be separate from the collection, but an integrated part of it. We didn’t advertise it separately, give it its own special name, or anything like that. People just found out about it organically, word spread and actually, everything sold out.’
RIXO is the only brand on the London Fashion Week schedule producing clothes in sizes 6-24 – a damning indictment on the state of the industry today. But having first launched back in 2015 with little more than £3,000 and a website to their name, it’s been a long road to get here.
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‘We started out with only three sizes: small, medium, and large,’ explains McCloskey. ‘It’s crazy to think about it now really, but we were lucky that the factories were willing to work with us at all given we were making such small units. We didn’t want to push our luck.’
Over the years, however, as they built up a strong relationship with their factories, they were able to slowly increase their size range. ‘When you’re working with grading and patterns across multiple sizes, things can get messy,’ says McCloskey. ‘You can’t just leave it to the factories to get it right. There are very few that know how to do all the grading and pattern-cutting properly – especially past a size 18.’
So, the RIXO team decided to take it upon themselves to teach them. ‘We wanted to do extended sizing and we wanted to do it right,’ says McCloskey. ‘So it was up to us to upskill the factories and make them experts. Obviously it would have been easier to just take it somewhere else, but if you’re not willing to put in the time and effort to upskill and educate the people you’re working with, then nothing will ever change.’
Rix and McCloskey also worked closely with alteration specialists, sought the expertise of size-inclusivity consultants and brought in family and friends ‘of all different shapes and sizes’ to test out samples during the design process. ‘It’s not even all about size for us,’ says Rix. ‘It’s about designing clothes that suit and flatter a variety of people, and make them feel amazing. If someone loves the RIXO aesthetic and comes into our store but can’t find something that works for their body, then we’re not doing our jobs right.’
And keen to continue on their size-inclusive trajectory, Rix and McCloskey have just spent the past 12 months collaborating with Abisola Omole – aka Abi Marvel – on a holiday capsule collection that sees the brand offer a size 26 for the first time (out July 3). ‘We’ve been really passionate about perfecting our fit and extending our sizes for the past two years and collaborations like this one allow us to keep improving and understanding the needs of different body shapes,’ says McCloskey.
Working closely with the plus-size influencer and founder of lifestyle brand Arva has seen RIXO incorporate considered design and construction details to both their brand-new and signature styles that ensure they are the perfect fit for a wider range of women than ever before. This includes everything from a concealed elasticated back waist panel that ensures the body is contoured but not restricted, and knits with a rib construction for flexibility on fit, to designing dress straps that are slightly wider than before to allow for a more supportive bra to be worn underneath. The Abella wrap dress, meanwhile, is an entirely new shape for the brand—and undoubtedly one of its most flattering to date.
‘The intention behind the collection is really to provide more body types access to cool, playful and chic styles, as they are often overlooked,’ explains Omole. ‘We wanted to design a collection that felt different to what was currently available in this size range, I wanted the pieces to feel timeless, fun and easy to wear and I’m proud of what we’ve created.’
Indeed, with its bold colours, playful patterns and stylish silhouettes, the new RIXO x Abisola Omole capsule brings a much-needed element of fun to the serious issue of size inclusivity. Because beyond putting in the hard work of actually creating clothes that are flattering and comfortable for a wide range of shapes and sizes, focusing on the joyous side of fashion is perhaps what RIXO does best of all.
RIXO’s new King’s Road flagship is a case in point, with its fabulously eclectic interiors, brightly-coloured-everything, Fifties-inspired coffee kiosk and grand central bar. It’s the kind of place you’d happily spend a whole afternoon with friends, and where you can’t help but be in a good mood. That, coupled with the fact that a woman of practically any shape and size knows she’ll be able to find something that she loves among the rails, makes for one overwhelmingly positive shopping experience. And because for RIXO it’s always about fit, there’s even an in-house alteration specialist to make any tweaks or changes you desire.
‘Look, everyone has hang-ups about their body and things they’d rather hide,’ says McCloskey. ‘Obviously in an ideal world we’d love every part of ourselves, but actually our job isn’t to tell people how they should feel. Our job is to design clothes that make people feel like their best selves – and to do that, we need to cover all bases. We’re all just a little bit different; certain silhouettes won’t suit certain people and that is absolutely fine. It’s about having enough variety and options that anyone can find something that looks great on them – and if some small alteration will make it absolutely perfect, we’ll do that too.’
It's this authentic desire – and genuine effort – to embrace and cater to every body that only makes people love RIXO all the more. ‘We’ve had customers come in and just be so overwhelmed with happiness,’ says Rix. ‘They’ve found a brand that they love that actually includes them, and it can be really emotional. For us too! It’s so, so nice to see that we’ve made someone feel confident, and actually changed someone’s perception of themselves. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.’
Clementina Jackson is Acting Site Fashion Editor at ELLE UK, working across news and features, trends, e-commerce and SEO. She was previously Fashion Editor at Cosmopolitan and Women’s Health, and Acting Digital Fashion Editor at ELLE UK, where she was named as a PPA 30 Under 30 award winner for her work on size inclusivity. An experienced fashion, travel and luxury lifestyle journalist, Clementina has also written for Harper’s Bazaar, Vanity Fair, Condé Nast Traveller, Tatler, Red and Italy Segreta.
