For those of us who are plus-sized, being called hurtful nicknames is sadly quite common. What is also typical is something known as a ‘fat tax’. Essentially, it is paying more than what a slim or average-sized person would pay for the same item of clothing. Local stores, as well as luxury designers, charge higher citing the reason that plus-sized clothes require more fabric and time to do embroidery.
When Aishwarya Subramanyam & Diet Sabya started a discussion on this topic, many men and women narrated their stories of being treated rudely by sales staff and being asked to pay up to Rs.60,000 extra due to their size.
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Hey @OldNavy really? A 100% #FatTax? Do. Better. pic.twitter.com/OHtaE6x5Oe
— ?Jenn Wilson, Ambitious Woman ? (@THATMOMx4) October 7, 2020
@hudsonsbay Why is the plus sized Lord & Taylor Striped Long-Sleeve Dress $7.00 more than the standard size of the same dress?
— Hillary (@disco_hits) September 8, 2020
Hey @OldNavy why is the plus sized version of this shirt $10 more than the regular one? Surely you don’t expect us to believe it costs over twice as much to produce? #FatTax pic.twitter.com/ITnpgFerhm
— Beth D. (@WhiskyGirlscout) August 27, 2020
Wow. Talk about a fat tax @Kohls. I looked up @realGpad's collection, and there is an $18 difference between the regular size and plus size SONOMA Goods for Life® + Now & Gen Print Button-Front Midi Skirt. #nothanks So much for that size inclusivity.
— Ms Ally Joy (@AJ_The_Fangirl) August 14, 2020
People online spoke against this discrimination and questioned the ‘more fabric’ logic by asking if smaller sizes were charged less. Subsequently, many design interns and people working directly with embroidery artists clarified that fabrics only account for 5-8% of the total production costs and karigars charge according to the time spent while machine embroidery isn’t expensive at all.
While the discourse seemed bleak, Shruti Bhiwandiwala summed it up perfectly by saying:
The discussion also highlighted fashion labels like Papa Don’t Preach by Shubhika and Raw Mango who treated all clients nicely, no matter what their body type. Designers Gauri & Nainika announced a day later that they are doing away with extra charges too.
Next time a label charges a fat tax, will you walk out of their store? Tell us!
All images courtesy Diet Sabya on Instagram.