Fear not the Foreign Market

Sometimes I think that the US is the only place that serves plus sizes at all, and even then, it’s in a near-secretive manner. I’ve come to learn that that isn’t really true – in some countries where mass production of clothing is still uncommon, a woman’s body size is simply her size, and clothing is made to fit her. Alas, that attitude is disappearing even from the small corners of the world as westernized clothing creeps in. And I have to admit, pants are good. Our own culture was revolutionized by the bloomer, and as women demand more freedom beginning with freedom of movement, that freedom is being traded for freedom from judgment about the body.

Now that I’ve discovered that there is some nice stuff available in plus size from international retailers, particularly in Canada and the UK, and that fashion for plus sizes has very little variation across the continent or across the pond, I think it’s well worth adventuring in foreign markets. And that isn’t hard.

If you decide you want to shop overseas from home, here’s a simple guide for doing so:

1. Clothing sizing for plus in the UK is similar to that in the US right now. That said, always always have a tape measure handy and check the sizing charts. Assume that you need a garment about 1.5 to 2 inches larger than your frame. If the sizing chart is in metric, you can use a conversion chart to figure out the actual measurements.

2. Currency exchange is really not in favor of the US dollar right now, but for a great piece, it’s always worth saving up. My basic rule is that whatever the price in Euros, Sterling, or Canadian dollar, assume it’s a little over double that amount in the US Dollar. You can make sure by checking the exchange rate on a given day.

3. You don’t have to do anything special to get your money transferred to the company in their own currency as long as you use a credit card, PayPal, or Google checkout. (Check cards will also do this.) There will be a fee for the exchange, usually a fraction of a percentage of the transfer. Be sure to call your bank or card provider to find out what that fee will be – sometimes it can change from day to day, and some services allow you a certain amount of foreign exchanges free of charge.

4. Make sure that the company will ship to the US. Some will, some won’t. Some can’t. Most are unable to offer tracking, or can get tracking at an exorbitant fee. FedEx and UPS are also options, if cash flow is really not an issue for you.

So, if you’re from the US and ready to explore internationally, check these out. If you’re from Canada and the UK, I know some will roll eyes and grumble – and I say to that – bite me! It’s new to us!

Note: for a shortcut, you can simply type the desired country into the Fat Chic search engine. I got the following links by simply typing “UK”into the search. Canada was more complicated – cut and paste this phrase exactly to get it narrowed down reasonably: Canada +plus size +.ca – and that still didn’t pull up everything I knew darn well was in Canada. I don’t know if it’s a Google issue or a SEO issue with the stores, but any insight into this would be appreciated.

UK

Canada