A letter to H&M+

A letter to the head office of Hennes & Maurits:

Dear all, dear H&M+ department,

Hopefully you can find the time to read my letter. I would like to discuss the fit issues of the H&M+ collections on a professional basis. Besides a Plus Size Blogger I am also a well experienced Product Manager of womenswear. I am one of the few people who will not judge a brand based on the fit of a few items because I know all the production issues that can occur, however this time I have to jump in and discuss this issue.

Let me start by telling you that I appreciate the fact that you are one of the first retailers introducing a plus size collection. I think this is very smart and luckily many more are following. For years I visit the stores and webshop regularly and catch myself passing by the H&M+ collection to keep myself from becoming frustrated.

Fit problems can occur due to so many problems. During cutting, during sewing, during laundry, heck even during ironing before leaving the production factory. I know all the issues in production that can occur, but the fit of the H&M+ collection cannot be blamed for these issues. There is a serious problem in the grading. I will give you some examples:

1) the regular collection XL fits bigger than the H&M+ collection XL in most cases, especially noticeable when you have the same item in both collections
2) for trousers the calf width is very narrow and doesn’t fit an average plus size woman. Are these graded up from the regular collection?
3) there are often irregularities in the sizing, where you have to buy 2 sizes up for a dress, the sweaters you can buy 1 size smaller. I can relate to top and bottoms being different, but these differences to me are odd
4) in general the fit is very small, which to me is not motivating plus size women to shop H&M+

These comments are based on measurements of the garments but also by checking with other plus size women and bloggers about their opinion. I love to shop at H&M, don’t get me wrong! My intention with this letter is to find a solution and make every plus size girl happy to shop at H&M+ too! I would be happy to collaborate with you and to share my knowledge as a product developer and as a plus size woman. I am aware that plus size grading is a different ballgame compared to regular sizes. Also I am nog judging it based on my body shape or fit as I am well aware I am not a professional fit model.

Hopefully you will take the time to read my email and return a positive reply.

Yours sincerely,

theBiggerBlog.com
Josine

I noticed the past few years that it’s not only me who doesn’t fit in the H&M Plus collection. The items at Hennes & Maurits Plus aren’t fitting properly on most plus size women.  Let’s hope they work on it! 

• update: I got a reply! Read it here:

a reply from H&M