• Two Categories: Plus-Size and Big & Tall
• Joint Plus-Size/Big & Tall Market Worth $76 Billion in 2006
• Plus-Size Category Hits Record $47 Billion
  • Table 1-1 Estimated and Projected U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing:* 2001-2012 (in billions of dollars)
  
  
• Big & Tall Category Pushes to $29 Billion, Also a Record
• In Context: Plus-Size/Big & Tall Accounts for 43% of U.S. Clothing Market
  • Table 1-2 Retail Dollar Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing Expressed as Share of All U.S. Clothing Sales, 2005 vs. 2006 (in billion of dollars)
  • More Context: Larger-Sizes Take Huge Shares of Overall Clothing Sales by Gender
  • Projected Sales: Plus-Size/Big & Tall Mart Rocketing to $106 Billion by 2012
  • Projected Sales: Plus-Size Category to Climb to $65 Billion in 2012
  • Projected Sales: Big & Tall Category Seen in Push to $42 Billion in 2012
  • Mass, Department Stores Overpower Plus-Size/Big & Tall-Specific Channels
    • Table 1-3 Retail Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing: By Channel, 2006 (in billions of dollars)
    
    
  • Outlook for Specialty Alone: Almost $24 Billion in 2012
  • Factors in Future Market Growth
    • The National Trend to Overweight, Obesity, and Greater Height
    • Height is Also a Factor
    • Mainstream Marketers Attracted to Larger-Size Clothing Potential -- But Do Not Emphasize It
    • Online Activity a Boon to This Market
    • Plus-Size on eBay
    • Influence of Society’s Trend to Elegant, Upscale Products
    • Time to Target Plus-Size Teen and Tween Girls
    
    
  • Retailer-Marketers Highly Important in This Sector
  • Charming Shoppes Is Clear Dominator of Plus-Size Specialty
  • Casual Male Is the King of Big & Tall Specialty
  • The Competitive Situation
    • Overview: Specialists Position on Size, Non-Specialists on Style
    • Fragility of the Specialty Channel
    • Price Picture Dominated by Low-to-Moderate Tiers
    
    
  • DMKs Should Pump Plus-Size/Big & Tall Sales
  • Overall Consumer Advertising Expenditures
    • Plus-Size/Big & Tall-Specific Marketers Halve Spends to $7 Million in 2006
    
    
  • The Consumer: Weight Admitters
    • What Is a Weight Admitter?
    • Nearly 28 Million Weight Admitters
    • Middle-Age, Middle-Class Brackets Are Influential
    • Psychographics: Weight Admitters a Conservative Bunch -- For Now
    • Weight Admitters’ Favorite Retailers Led by Wal-Mart -- Of Course
    • Table 1-4a Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Respondents' Admission of Overweight: All Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)

Chapter 2: The Overall Market

• Introduction
  • Market Parameters
  • Clarification of Terms
  • Apparel versus Clothing
  • BBW
  • Big & Tall vs. Husky
  • Innerwear
  • Market, Category, Segment
  • Mass Retail
  • Overweight versus Obese
  • Plus-Size
  • Specialty Retail
  • Methodology
  
  
• Size Ranges
  • Clothing Sizes Not Standardized
  • Definitions of “Plus-Size” and “Big & Tall” Are Often Intuitive
  • Some Big & Tall Size ranges Based on Absolute Numbers
  
  
• Overall Market Size and Growth
  • In Context: Plus-Size/Big & Tall Accounts for 43% of U.S. Clothing Mart
  • Table 2-1 Retail Dollar Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing Expressed as Share of All U.S. Clothing Sales: 2005 vs. 2006 (in billions of dollars)
  • More Context: Larger-Sizes Take Huge Shares of Overall Clothing Sales by Gender
  • Joint Plus-Size/Big & Tall Market Worth $76 Billion in 2006
  • Trends to Obesity, Upscale Fashions Were Drivers in 2001-2006
  • Table 2-1a U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing*: 2001-2006 (in billions of dollars)
  • Plus-Size Category Hits Record $47 Billion
  • Big & Tall Category Pushes to $29 Billion, Also a Record
  • Women’s/Girls’ Category Dominates Market
  • Kids’ Segments of the Market Valued at Over $6 Billion
  • Mass, Department Stores Overpower Plus-Size/Big & Tall-Specific Channels
  • Table 2-1b
  • Retail Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing: By Channel, 2006 (in billions of dollars)
  
  
• Factors in Future Overall Market Growth
  • A National Trend to Overweight, Obesity, and Greater Height
  • Defining Overweight Body Types is Complex
  • Big People Are Not Necessarily Fat
  • For Women, the Trend to Obesity Could Be Leveling Off
  • Ethnic Groups, Men, Kids Getting Heavier
  • Ethnics’ Growing Girths and Spending Power
  • Men Continue to Trend Up to Obesity
  • KidsTrending to Overweight, Too
  • America Accepts All Body Types/America Slims Down
  • Mainstream Marketers Attracted to Larger-Size Potential -- But Many Do Not Emphasize It
  • Online Activity a Boon to This Market
  • Plus-Size on eBay
  • Table 2-2 Share of Plus-Size Jeans Listings on eBay: By Even-Numbered Sizes, 2006
  • Table 2-3 Selected Top Brands by Total Number and Total Share of Plus-Size Jeans Listings on eBay, 2006
  • Potentially Higher Price-Points Than for Mainstream Apparel
  • Influence of Society’s Trend to Elegant, Upscale Products
  • Effects of National Economy, Oil Prices, Inflation
  • New Perceptions of Body Size Could Change the Market Definition
  
  
• Overall Projected Sales
  • Plus-Size/Big & Tall Market Rocketing to $106 Billion by 2012
  • Table 2-4 Projected U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Plus-Size and Big & Tall Clothing:* 2006-2012 (in billions of dollars)
  • Plus-Size Category to Climb to $65 Billion
  • Big & Tall Category Foreseen in Push to $42 Billion
  • Outlook for Specialty Alone: Almost $24 Billion in 2012
  
  
• Overall Consumer Advertising Expenditures
  • Plus-Size/Big & Tall-Specific Marketers Halve Spends to $7 Million in 2006
  • A Lot of Advertising Expenditure Is Hidden
  • Four Notable Advertisers in 2006
  • Charming Shoppes Spends $5 Million
  • Casual Male Spend Exceeds $1 Million
  • Hanesbrands Guts Buys to $371,000
  • Hanover Direct Spends $102,000

Chapter 3: The Women’s and Girls’ Plus-Size: Clothing Category

• The Products
  • Dozens of Plus-Size Product Segments
  • Category Also Segmented by Age Brackets and Styles
  • Selection Narrows with Each Successive Plus-Size
  • Women’s Clothing Sizes a Non-standardized Maze
  • Bra Sizes Usually Misjudged
  • Extensions into Accessories, Footwear
  
  
  • Category Size and Growth
    • Plus-Size Clothes Rush to $48 Billion in 2006
    • Diet, Image, Fashion Recognition Were Drivers in 2001-2006
    • Table 3-1 U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Women’s and Girls’ Plus-Size Clothing: 2001-2006 (in billions of dollars)
    • Plus-Size Girls’ Clothes Generate Over $3 Billion
    • Mass, Department Stores Have Triple the Sales of Plus-Size-Specific Channel
    
    
  • Factors in Future Category Growth
    • Larger Females Simultaneously Accepted, Warned About
    • Their Health
    • Trends to Overweight and Obesity Are Likely to Moderate
    • Design, Retail Trends to Keep Pumping Plus-Size Category
    • Time to Target Plus-Size Teen and Tween Girls
    • In the 2000s, a Lack of Plus-Specific Magazines
    
    
  • Projected Plus-Size Sales
    • Plus-Size Category to Forge on to $65 Billion in 2012
    • The Plus-Size Specialty Channel Outlook: Nearly $15 Billion in 2012
    • Table 3-2 Projected U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Women’s and Girls’ Plus-Size Clothing: 2006-2012 (in billions of dollars)
    
    
  • The Plus-Size Marketers
    • Retailer-Marketers Highly Important in This Sector
    • Other Ways to Class the Companies Involved
    • Table of Marketers and Brands
    • Table 3-3 Leading Marketers of Plus-Size Clothing, and Their Representative Brands
    • Leading Marketers of Plus-Size Clothing, and Their Representative Brands
    
    
  • Marketer and Brand Shares
    • Plus-Size Competitive Scene Too Fragmented to Monitor Properly
    • Charming Shoppes Is Clear Dominator of Plus-Size Specialty
    • From Non-Specialized Marketers’ Perspective…
    
    
  • Marketing and Product Trends
    • More Marketers Accommodating Plus-Sizers -- But Discreetly
    • Practicality
    • More Style, Please
    • Bigger and Smaller Cups, for Plus-Size Bodies or Not
    • Table 3-4 Selected Introductions of Women's and Girls' Plus-Size Clothing, 2006-2007
    
    
  • Consumer Advertising Expenditures
    • Plus-Size-Specific Marketers Slash Ad Spends to Under $6 Million in 2006
    • A Lot of Expenditure Is Hidden
    • Charming Shoppes Spends $5 Million
    • Hanesbrands’ Buys Plummet to $371,000
    • Hanover Direct Spends $102,000
    
    
  • Consumer Advertising and Website/Catalog Positioning
    • Positioning Plus-Size Ads, Websites, Catalogs: The Five Basic Choices
    • Very Few Plus-Specific Advertising Examples
    • Direct Sellers’ Ads
    
    
  • Consumer Promotions
    • Discount and Free Shipping Offers
    • Win Prizes
    • A Proprietary Slick Magazine
    • A TV Series Tie-In
    • A Charity Gala

Chapter 4: The Men’s and Boy’s Big & Tall: Clothing Category

• The Products
  • Men’s and Boys’ Big & Tall Clothing Segments
  • Additional Segmentation by Men’s versus Boys’ Sizes and Styles
  • Big & Tall Assortment Tapers Drastically as Size Increases
  • Clothing Sizes Not Standardized
  • But Some Big & Tall Size Ranges Based on Absolute
  • Measurements
  • Extensions into Accessories, Footwear
  
  
• Category Size and Growth
  • Big & Tall Category Nears $29 Billion in 2006
  • Obesity Trend, Better Selection Drove Sales in 2001-2006
  • Table 4-1 U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Men’s and Boys’ Big & Tall Clothing: 2001-2006 (in billions of dollars)
  • Husky Boys’ Clothing Yields $3 Billion
  • Mass and Department Stores Tower Over Big & Tall Specialty Channel
  
  
• Factors in Future Category Growth
  • Trends to Overweight, Obesity, Tallness Not Necessarily Permanent
  • This Sexist World: Big, Tall Men Less Stigmatized Than Plus-Size Women
  • Selection to Keep Improving
  • Hipper Designs Needed for Husky Teen/Tween Boys
  • Availability Must Improve -- On the Brick-and- Mortar Side
  • Mass Channel Has Advantage -- If It Gets Wise
  
  
• Projected Sales
  • Big & Tall Category to Keep Growing to $42 Billion in 2012
  • Table 4-2 Projected U.S. Retail Dollar Sales of Men’s and Boys’ Big & Tall Clothing: 2006-2012 (in billions of dollars)
  • The Big & Tall Specialty Channel Outlook: $10.5 Billion Possible by 2012
  
  
• The Big & Tall Marketers
  • Retailer-Marketers Very Common on Big & Tall Scene
  • Other Types of Companies Involved
  • Table of Marketers and Brands
  • Table 4-3 Leading Marketers of Big & Tall Clothing, and Their Representative Brands
  
  
• Marketer and Brand Shares
  • Big & Tall Competitive Scene Is Fragmented, Poorly Monitored
  • Casual Male Is the King of Big & Tall Specialty
  • From Non-Specialized Marketers’ Perspective…
  
  
• Marketing and Product Trends
  • Thanks to Media, More Big & Tall Sizes/Styles in All
  • Retail Channels
  • Thanks to Casual Male, Greater Visibility for Big & Tall Specialty
  • Thanks to Internet, Greater Ease of Shopping for Big Guys
  • A Focus on the Handsome, Athletic Type
  
  
• Consumer Advertising Expenditures
  • Big & Tall Clothing Advertisers Spend $1 Million in 2006
  • No Big & Tall-Specific Media Buys Measured in 2005
  • But in Every Year, Lots of Expenditures Are Hidden
  • Casual Male Spends Over $1 Million
  
  
• Consumer Advertising and Website/Catalog Positioning
  • Positioning Big & Tall Ads, Websites, Catalogs: The Three Main Modes
  • Very Few Big & Tall-Specific Advertising Examples 134
  • I’m a Bigger Man Than You (and I Wear My Clothes Better)
  
  
• Consumer Promotions
  • Discounts, Twofers, Free Shipping
  • No Interest, No Payments for 90 Days
  • NBA Players Walk the Fashion Show Runway

Chapter 5: The Competitive Situation

• Overview: Specialists Position on Size, Non-Specialists on Style
• Fragility of the Specialty Channel
• Price Picture Dominated by Low-to-Moderate Tiers
• Ten Competitive Profiles Follow
• Competitive Profile: Casual Male Retail Group, Inc.
  • Sales Continue Climb to $467 Million in Fiscal 2006
  • Largest Big & Tall Specialist Has Two Main Retail Marques
  • Casual Male XL
  • Rochester Big & Tall Clothing
  • Casual Male Leaner, Meaner Since 2002 Takeover
  
  
• Competitive Profile: Charming Shoppes, Inc./ Lane Bryant
  • Net Sales of $3.1 Billion in Fiscal 2007
  • Charming Manages a Community via Marketing, Retailing, Publishing
  • Lane Bryant
  • Fashion Bug
  • Catherines Plus size
  • Petite Sophisticate Outlet
  • Cacique
  • Crosstown Traders Acquisition Beefs Up Direct Sales Presence
  
  
• Competitive Profile: Hanesbrands, Inc./Just My Size
  • Net Sales of Over $2 Billion in Transitional 2nd Half of 2006
  • Quality + Style + Vast Turnover = Low Price
  • Both a Plus size and a Big & Tall Marketer
  • Hanesbrands’ Multi-Channel Dance
  • Table 5-1 Share of Hanesbrands, Inc.'s Net Dollar Sales: By Retail Channel, 2nd Half of 2006 (percent)
  
  
• Competitive Profile: InterActiveCorp (IAC)/HSN
  • Net Revenues Approach $6.3 billion in 2006
  • Table 5-2 Share of InterActiveCorp Revenues: By Business Segment, 2006 (percent)
  • Home Shopping and Acquisitions Built IAC
  • Cornerstone Brands Acquired in 2005
  • HSN a Bully Pulpit for IAC’s Plus size Brands
  
  
• Competitive Profile: Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation
  • An Historic $3.5 Billion in Net Sales in Fiscal 2006
  • Double-Digit Growth Foreseen for Fiscal 2007
  • More Big & Tall Items Than Plus size
  • PRL the Private-Labeler and Retailer
  
  
• Competitive Profile: Unity Brands, Ltd./ Goddess Bra Company
  • Estimated Sales of Over $64 Million
  • Value in Plus size and Large-Cup Lingerie
  • Goddess Well-Distributed in U.S. -- As Unity Tries Retail Waters
  
  
• Competitive Profile: Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
  • Net Sales Hit Record $349 Billion in Fiscal 2007
  • Micro Tuning the Juggernaut and Its Private Labels
  • Wal-Mart’s Attention to Plus size/Big & Tall Categories
  
  
• Three Marketers to Watch
  • Tenille White Chicago
  • C.enne.V Couture
  • FSA Plus Woman
  • Trade Shows
  • The Chicago Collective
  • Las Vegas International Lingerie Show
  • The MAGIC Marketplace
  • B.A.T.M.A.N. -- No Longer With Us

Chapter 6: Distribution and Retail

• At the Retail Level
  • Potentially Higher Margins on Plus-Size/Big & Tall Clothing
  • Usually Multi-Brand Assortments
  • Yet Assortment Tapers as Size Climbs...
  • Retail Focus: Direct Sales
    • Internet Nicks Away at Catalog Use
    • Catalog Business: Forty Times More Women’s Apparel Leads Than Men’s
    • Reactivation of Dead (Sleeping) Leads Can Be Cost-Effective
    • Television Home Shopping: Kressley’s on QVC!
    • Repassy’s on HSN!
    
    
  • Retail Focus: Digital Measuring Kiosks (DMKs)
    • The Basic Concept
    • Three DMK Companies: Equipment and Applications
    • Alvanon, Inc., AlvaProducts subsidiary/Intellifit [TC]2
    • Unique Solutions Design, Ltd./bodyskanner
    • DMKs Should Pump Plus-Size/Big & Tall Sales

Chapter 7: The Consumer

• About Simmons Data
  • What They Are…
  • …And How to Use Them
  • The “Weight Admitters” Subset
  • The Survey’s Overall Adult Gauge
  • Marketing Regions Defined
  • Northeast
  • East Central
  • West Central
  • Southeast
  • Southwest
  • Pacific
  • Table 7-1 Projections of Numbers of U.S. Adults: By Demographic Factor, 2006 (in thousands)
  • America’s Trend to Overweight and Obesity
    • America Fattening at a Spectacular Rate
    • Table 7-2 U.S. Prevalence of Overweight and Obese Adults: 1988/1994, 1999/2000, 2001/2002, and 2003/2004 (all adults aged 20 and over)
    • Women’s Prevalence Toward Obesity Stabilized in 1999-2004
    • Americans Don’t Spare the Children
    • Table 7-3 U.S. Prevalence of Overweight and Obese Children: 1988/1994, 1999/2000, 2001/2002, and 2003/2004 (all children aged infancy through 19)
    • Certain Races/Ethnicities Also Getting Heavier
    • Foundation to Spend $500 Million to Fight Kids’ Obesity
    
    
  • The Consumer: Patronage of Lane Bryant, Fashion Bug Stores
    • Almost 9 Million Shop Fashion Bug
    • Over 6 Million Shop Lane Bryant
    • Men Shop Here, Too...
    • Middle Age, Blacks, Homemakers, Kids Favor Patronage
    • And Women Alone...
    • Lane Bryant Catalog Users Skew Older Than Store Visitors
    • Table 7-4a Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Patronage of Women’s Plus-Size Clothing Stores by Retail Marque: Fashion Bug Stores, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 3 months)
    • Table 7-5 Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Purchase of Women's Plus-Size Clothing from Lane Bryant Catalog, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    
    
  • The Consumer: Just My Size and Lane Bryant Plus-Size Jeans
    • Almost 3.4 Million Just My Size Jeans Purchasers
    • Almost 3.2 Million Lane Bryant Jeans Purchasers
    • Plus-Size Jeans: Two Brands Have Different Audiences
    • Table 7-6a Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Purchase of Plus-Size Jeans by Brand: Just My Size, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-6b Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Purchase of Plus-Size Jeans by Brand: Lane Bryant, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    
    
  • The Consumer: Weight Admitters
    • What Is a Weight Admitter?
    • Nearly 28 Million Weight Admitters
    • Middle-Age, Middle-Class Brackets Are Influential
    • Psychographics: Weight Admitters a Conservative Bunch --
    • For Now
    • Weight Admitters’ Favorite Retailers Led by Wal-Mart
    • Table 7-7a Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Respondents' Admission of Overweight: All Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-7b Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Respondents' Admission of Overweight: Males Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-7c Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Respondents' Admission of Overweight: Females Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-8a Weight-Admitters' Strong Agreement With Attitudinal Statements: All Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    • Table 7-8b Weight-Admitters' Strong Agreement With Attitudinal Statements: Males Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    • Table 7-8c Weight-Admitters' Strong Agreement With Attitudinal Statements: Females Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    • Table 7-9a Weight-Admitters' Patronage of Selected Retailers: All Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    • Table 7-9b Weight-Admitters' Patronage of Selected Retailers by Gender: Males Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    • Table 7-9c Weight-Admitters' Patronage of Selected Retailers by Gender: Females Admitting Overweight, 2006 (adults in thousands)
    
    
  • The Consumer: Weight Admitters’ Direct Purchasing
    • Over 5 Million Weight Admitters Buy Apparel Via Mail/Phone Order
    • Almost 5 Million Weight Admitters Buy Apparel Online
    • Mail/Phone Users Older, Less Affluent; Internet Users Younger, More Affluent
    • Most Weight Admitters Who Direct-Purchase Spend Over $100 Annually
    • Catalogs Still See More Purchasing Than Websites; Mail/Phone Ordering Still Outpaces Online Ordering
    • Six Million Female Weight Admitters, 3 Million Male, Shop Gender-Specific Catalogs
    • Six Million Weight Admitters Watch Television Home Shopping
    • Table 7-10a Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Weight-Admitters' Direct Purchase of Apparel: Bought Apparel Via Mail/Phone Order, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-10b Demographic Characteristics Most Favoring Weight-Admitters' Direct Purchase of Apparel: Bought Apparel Via Internet Orders, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-11a Number of Weight-Admitters Purchasing Direct* by Amount: Via Mail/Phone-Order (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-11b Number of Weight-Admitters Purchasing Direct* by Amount: Via Internet Website (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-12 Number of Weight-Admitters Purchasing Direct (Via Mail/Phone-Order, Internet Websites*): By Medium, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 12 months)
    • Table 7-13 Number of Weight-Admitters* Viewing Television Home Shopping: By Network, 2006 (adults in thousands, in recent 3 months)

Chapter 8: Trends and Opportunities

• Dynamics of Plus-Size/Big & Tall Market Work Against Specialty Channel
• A Lot of Weight is Truly Bad for Business
• Marketers Must Better Cater to Youth
• Let Upscale Style, Image Infect Brands in All Price-Tiers
• Digital-Measuring Kiosks (DMKs): Selling the Best to the Biggest
• A Little Courage Could Bust This Market Wide Open