[Previous entry: "Red Sox win"] [Main Index] [Next entry: "Zinsmeister: The Problem with Democrats"]

10/28/2004 Archived Entry: "Big Dummies Mean Big Business"

Posted by steve @ 02:10 AM EST [Link]

PERHAPS YOU SHOULD GET OFF THE COUCH AND TAKE A DAMNED WALK: You know, I'm a long way off from when I used to run about 5 miles every day, but they haven't had to redesign department store mannequins in response to my eating an extra serving of pasta occasionally. Apparently the growing size of Americans has prompted the introduction of larger mannequins.

With more high-end designers creating profitable lines for larger women, department stores are ordering bigger dummies to replace the skinny manis that traditionally modeled clothes of all sizes.

"Can’t relate to that tall, willowy, perky-breasted model in your favorite store? Fortunately, manufacturers are breaking the mold with fiberglass forms more representative of our curvier proportions and diverse skin tones," writes A.J. Hanley in this month’s issue of Fitness magazine.

The newer dummies, used at stores like Lane Bryant and Marshall Fields and more recently at mainstream department stores like Macy's and Bloomingdale's, make sense in light of today's fuller figures, said Hanley, a senior editor at Fitness.

"They have ample derrieres modeled after J-Lo and Beyonce. They’re sexy. The mannequins of before were like Barbie dolls — they do make people feel bad about themselves," she said. "The goal is healthy-looking mannequins.”

Healthy? If you look at the pictures, one of the mannequins clearly has a gut on it. That's healthy? Drop the ho-hos and take a walk America. Don't blame the mannequins because you're fat.

Read on.