Body diversity in fashion and modeling: history and data

When people talk about body diversity in fashion they usually mean two different places: the runway and the shop. The runway shows what fashion wants to look at. The shop shows who it makes clothes for. For a long time the two did not match, and they still do not.

This guide collects the history, the latest numbers from the season reports, the criticism, the question of model health and the laws. Numbers were checked against the original reports, and where methods differ we say so. For the work itself, see our plus-size modeling guide.

A short history: from larger sizes to body positivity

Plus-size fashion existed long before the label. The clothing industry and the body acceptance movement developed separately and only met in the last ten years.

Year	What happened	Why it matters
1904	Lena Bryant opens a small shop on Fifth Avenue in New York, the start of Lane Bryant	She began with maternity dresses. Larger sizes soon became the core business: sales reached $5 million by 1923.
1969	Bill Fabrey founds NAAFA (first called the National Association to Aid Fat Americans)	NAAFA describes itself as the first documented fat rights organization in the world.
1973	The Fat Underground publishes the Fat Liberation Manifesto	Demanded equal rights and attacked the weight-loss industry.
1996	Connie Sobczak and Elizabeth Scott found the nonprofit The Body Positive	Set up as a community to help people leave body hatred behind.
2004	Dove launches the Campaign for Real Beauty	Ads used everyday women instead of professional models. It drew both praise and criticism.
2009	Mark Fast shows models in UK sizes 12 to 14 at London Fashion Week	A stylist walked out over the casting, showing how narrow the "normal" runway body was.
2016	Ashley Graham makes her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit debut	She had appeared in an ad in the issue the year before.
2018	Tess Holliday appears on the October cover of Cosmopolitan UK	The cover drew support and criticism, including a debate about health.

Critics of the Dove campaign noted that it still showed women who fit conventional standards. A campaign and a change in an industry are not the same thing.

What body positivity means, and how it differs from body neutrality

Body positivity is first of all the idea that a person's worth does not depend on the size or shape of their body. The Body Positive built it as a community and training program, not as a fashion trend. On social media the phrase became a hashtag and a loosely defined style. Body neutrality is a related idea: think less about how your body looks and more about what it lets you do.

Evidence on effects is thin. In a 2019 experiment, Cohen and colleagues showed young women a short set of body positive Instagram posts, and viewing them was associated with better mood, higher body satisfaction and greater body appreciation. That is a short-term result in laboratory conditions, so it does not show long-term effects.

Runway numbers: what the season reports show

Two newsrooms have counted diversity on the runway. theFashionSpot counted model appearances (castings), for example in its 2017 and 2022 reports. Since Fall 2023, Vogue Business has counted every look by size group: straight size (US 0-4), mid size (US 6-12) and plus size (US 14+).

Report	Scope	Plus size	Mid size
theFashionSpot, Fall 2017	7,035 castings, 241 shows	30 castings (0.43%)	-
theFashionSpot, Fall 2022	4,409 appearances, 193 presentations	103 appearances (2.34%), a record at the time	-
Vogue Business, Spring/Summer 2026	9,038 looks, 198 shows	0.9%	2%
Vogue Business, Fall/Winter 2026	7,817 looks, 182 shows	0.3%	2.1%

The two series cannot be compared directly: one counts appearances, the other looks, and the size cut-offs differ. Across seven seasons, Vogue Business found straight-size models rising from 95.6% (Fall 2023) to 97.6% (Fall 2026), mid-size falling from 3.8% to 2.1%, and plus-size looks halving from 0.6% to 0.3%. The temporary peaks came in the Spring 2024 and Spring 2025 seasons.

Fashion capitals differ

At Fall/Winter 2026, London was again the most inclusive: 6.5% mid-size and 0.8% plus-size looks. New York showed 0.4% plus-size, and Milan and Paris 0.1% each. Just nine of 65 Paris brands included any mid or plus-size model.

The publication ties this to a more conservative climate, "self-optimization" trends and growing GLP-1 use. That is the editors' interpretation, not a proven cause.

Runway versus shop: is it the same thing?

A model on a runway still has to be found in the store. In a 2025 Vogue Business survey of almost 700 consumers, 27% of plus-size respondents said they "can never" or "usually can't" find their size among luxury brands, against 16% of mid-size and 12% of straight-size respondents. Feeling alienated by the fashion industry because of size was reported by 68% of plus-size, 34% of mid-size and 17% of straight-size respondents.

The 2026 report also checked brand websites. Most brands stop at US 14 or 16 (UK 18 to 20 in our clothing size chart), and the largest sizes were the most likely to be sold out. Designer Karoline Vitto points to cost: for a small brand each extra size means more grading, sampling and refitting. The Paris label Ester Manas, which sells a wide range, said 60% to 70% of its online customers are plus-size.

Criticism and debate

Tokenism

One of the most common complaints is that a brand casts a single plus-size model but does not make clothes in that size. A Vogue Business editor wrote in 2026 that the same few curve models appear season after season, and when they are unavailable the brand returns to 100% straight-size.

Health and what size shows

Arguments often move to whether showing plus-size models "promotes" an unhealthy lifestyle. Two points help. First, the World Health Organization defines overweight in adults as a BMI of 25 or more and obesity as 30 or more, but BMI is only a surrogate marker of fatness, and measures such as waist circumference help with a diagnosis. Second, the size visible in a photo says nothing about one person's health. That is a question for a doctor, not for a viewer.

The opposite criticism: progress running backwards

Part of today's criticism points the other way. Vogue Business writes that some brands have moved not only away from plus-size but towards very thin casting, and that people of any size feel pressure to be thinner. That is editorial opinion, but the survey adds to it: 48% of respondents said they feel pressure to lose weight to feel fashionable, and of those, most (63%) cited difficulty finding their size in shops as a source, while 36% cited runway shows.

Health and body image in the modeling world

Research on eating disorders among models is mixed. In 2022 Hungarian researchers compared 179 female models with 261 controls. The models' mean BMI was 18.1 against 22.1 for controls. Questionnaire-based rates of probable anorexia and bulimia did not differ significantly, but subclinical anorexia symptoms were found in 14.6% of models and 2.7% of controls. The authors note that earlier studies also found little difference in clinical disorders but more subclinical symptoms. This is one study and does not describe every model.

Pressure to change your body is not limited to one size. What matters most is the working rules: whether the agency and clients ask only for what is compatible with health. If you or someone close to you is struggling with eating or body image, a first step is your family doctor or a national eating disorder helpline.

Laws and self-regulation in Europe

Governments and the industry have regulated two areas: model health and the labeling of retouched images.

Country or body	Year	What it sets
Spain (Madrid fashion week)	2006	In September, Pasarela Cibeles, backed by the Madrid regional government, became the first major fashion week to screen models by BMI (minimum 18). According to CNN it turned away about 30% of the women who took part in the previous event.
Italy (Milan)	2006	The New York Times reported a December agreement between the city and the industry banning models with a BMI below 18.5.
Israel	2012-2013	The law bars the use of models with a BMI below 18.5 in advertising and requires a clear label on photos where a model's body has been reduced digitally. A 2022 review notes it has no sanctions and little evidence on effects.
France	2016-2017	Labour Code art. L7123-2-1: working as a model requires a doctor's certificate assessing overall health "in particular with regard to body mass index". It is valid for up to two years. An agency or client that ignores the rule risks six months in prison and a €75,000 fine. Since 1 October 2017, commercial photos of models whose body has been slimmed or thickened by retouching must carry the words "Photographie retouchée" (fine of €37,500, up to 30% of the advertising spend).
LVMH and Kering	2017	Voluntary charter: French sizes 32 (women) and 42 (men) dropped from casting requirements, with at least 34 and 44 offered; a health certificate under six months old; no models under 16 in adult shows; psychologist support.
Norway	2021	Standard label required on advertising and paid influencer posts where body shape, size or skin is retouched.

France sets no single mandatory BMI number. The order of 4 May 2017 says that for adults BMI is considered especially when the value approaches moderate to severe thinness, and for those under 18 when it is below the 3rd percentile. These rules protect model health, but they do not solve representation: a certificate does not require a wider size range, and a "retouched" label only says the image was changed.

What it means for models

The runway numbers suggest that for plus-size and mid-size models most work is commercial: catalogues, e-commerce, lingerie, swimwear and advertising. High-fashion bookings are scarce. Judge an agency by the bookings it has for your size, not by promises.

For how to start, read how to become a model; for income, how much models make; and for choosing an agency, how to choose a modeling agency. Which sizes count as plus-size is explained in What is considered plus size, and the requirements are covered in plus-size model requirements. Applications to Supermodels are free: see the open call page.

What it means for viewers and shoppers

• Look for labels. In France, Israel and Norway retouched advertising has to be labeled. If you see the label, you know the body was altered.
• Check the size chart, not only the photo. A brand can show a plus-size model and make nothing above a US 12. Compare sizes in our size guide.
• Look at makers, not only models. Real diversity shows when a collection is sold in every size it pictures. In the Vogue Business survey, shop sizing, not the runway, was the biggest source of pressure.

To choose a dress by size and silhouette, read Plus-size dresses: how to choose. We cover the best-known plus-size models in a separate article, and the glossary has the term plus-size model.

Frequently asked questions

What is body positivity?

It is the view that a person's worth does not depend on the size or shape of their body. The nonprofit The Body Positive was founded in 1996. The roots of the movement go back to the fat acceptance movement that began in the US in 1969.

How many plus-size models are on the runway?

Very few. According to Vogue Business, at Fall/Winter 2026 plus-size (US 14+) models wore 0.3% of looks, mid-size (US 6-12) models 2.1% and straight-size (US 0-4) models 97.6%. In Spring/Summer 2026 it was 0.9%. London shows the most variety.

Do models in France need a medical certificate?

Yes. Labour Code art. L7123-2-1 makes a doctor's certificate, assessing overall health and in particular BMI, a condition of working as a model. The article dates from 28 January 2016, and the order of 4 May 2017 set the practical rules, including a validity of up to two years. Breaking the rule can mean up to six months in prison and a €75,000 fine.

Do retouched model photos have to be labeled?

In France, yes: since 1 October 2017, commercial photos of models whose body has been slimmed or thickened by retouching carry the words "Photographie retouchée". The fine is €37,500 and can reach 30% of the advertising spend. Israel has a similar rule, and Norway adopted one in 2021.

Is there work for plus-size models?

In commercial work such as catalogues, e-commerce and advertising, yes. High-fashion bookings are scarce worldwide. Ask any agency whether it has clients for your size.

Does body positivity encourage an unhealthy lifestyle?

The research we reviewed does not support that conclusion. In a 2019 experiment, viewing a short set of body positive posts was associated with better mood and body satisfaction in young women. Body size, however, does not describe any one person's health. For personal health questions, see a doctor.