Nike ad using plus size mannequins
lauragreenbaum
Posts: 1,017 Member
So this image was posted on LinkedIn of all places, and I was shocked by the number of people who made terrible comments that Nike is promoting obesity. What is wrong with people?? I think it's great because how are people supposed to work out if they don't have clothes that fit?
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Love it!
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You make a good point that I actually never thought about lauragreenba... Exactly!! I think one would be more apt to work out if the clothing choices are more than just a pair of sweat pants and a baggy tee!!8
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People get really weird about that stuff, both out in the world and here. Nike seems to have a variety of different sized mannequins for different body types, most of which are still skinny. That its so radical that someone makes any effort to serve a market share that makes up 40% of the US (people who qualify as obese), shows how skewed our marketing normally is.21
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That's odd. I didn't see the promoting obesity comments but I did see comments complaining that the mannequin actually wasn't plus size enough. There were comments that Nike is only inclusive of "small fats" and that this wasn't good enough. It's like nobody can win either way.
I think it's great that Nike is trying. The majority of the US qualifies as obese but that doesn't mean that they are the bulk of people buying Nike workout clothes so Nike doesn't really have to do anything. At least they're making an effort; I think being more inclusive is better than not even trying at all.
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Maxematics wrote: »That's odd. I didn't see the promoting obesity comments but I did see comments complaining that the mannequin actually wasn't plus size enough. There were comments that Nike is only inclusive of "small fats" and that this wasn't good enough. It's like nobody can win either way.
I think it's great that Nike is trying. The majority of the US qualifies as obese but that doesn't mean that they are the bulk of people buying Nike workout clothes so Nike doesn't really have to do anything. At least they're making an effort; I think being more inclusive is better than not even trying at all.
That's weird because that mannequin doesn't really look like a "small fat" to me. I understand that sometimes when people talk about "plus sized" models, it can sound kind of offensive because a lot of the time they look like just regular weight people. But that mannequin, while not trying to be representative of a morbidly obese person, would certainly represent someone with an obese BMI.28 -
This makes me batty! Society looks down at people that are "fat" or "unfit' yet scoff at those same people donning workout gear and heading to the gym to better their health??
I am interpreting Nikes message as "just do it" as oppossed to "only do it if you are already fit & trim and appeal to the general public"! Good for them!
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Lots of companies are doing this. Not just with plus sized, but just showing normal looking women in general in their ads. Women with stretch marks, cellulite etc. I think it's great for a couple reasons. 1. Hopefully it's a step in the right direction on getting so many young girls and women to stop thinking they need to conform to one specific idea of beauty and 2. models and mannequins are meant to display how the items of clothing will look on a person. It's pretty messed up when every single model and mannequin represents only ONE body type, and one that's not even close to the majority. I know when I try to buy pants online it's hard to tell what the pants might actually look like on me because all the models are super thin and don't really have the same shape as I do.23
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Did Nike always sell plus size clothing before this?2
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lauragreenbaum wrote: »So this image was posted on LinkedIn of all places, and I was shocked by the number of people who made terrible comments that Nike is promoting obesity. What is wrong with people?? I think it's great because how are people supposed to work out if they don't have clothes that fit?
No one will ever be able to keep everyone happy imo. I think it's fantastic that at least some major corportations whose business is health/fitness centered are at least trying. People come in all shapes and sizes are are so rarely anything close to perfect, so keeping the marketing based on reality and not BS ideals is just fine with me.9 -
@vanityy99 Not always. It's relatively new, I'd say within the last couple of years or so.4
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Good for them. This was my body shape seventy pounds ago, when already worked out regularly, but didn’t watch my weight.
The one time I went to Lululemon, there was nothing for me.
To wear workout gear, I had to cobble stuff together from different sources. Champion tops and bras from Target, leggings from Amazon, etc.
Now that I can wear them, I have no interest whatsoever in Lululemon, Athletica, etc. they weren’t there when I wanted them, and no amount of marketing would bring back the potential loyalty that the eye rolling clerks at Lulu killed with a single smirky look.42 -
Maxematics wrote: »That's odd. I didn't see the promoting obesity comments but I did see comments complaining that the mannequin actually wasn't plus size enough. There were comments that Nike is only inclusive of "small fats" and that this wasn't good enough. It's like nobody can win either way.
I think it's great that Nike is trying. The majority of the US qualifies as obese but that doesn't mean that they are the bulk of people buying Nike workout clothes so Nike doesn't really have to do anything. At least they're making an effort; I think being more inclusive is better than not even trying at all.
That's weird because that mannequin doesn't really look like a "small fat" to me. I understand that sometimes when people talk about "plus sized" models, it can sound kind of offensive because a lot of the time they look like just regular weight people. But that mannequin, while not trying to be representative of a morbidly obese person, would certainly represent someone with an obese BMI.
In the HAES/body positive/FA community, that is what a "small fat" is.
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It's funny because plus size mannequins have been around forever in plus size or extended size stores (like Maurice's) but now people are all crazy that Nike is showing their plus size line. Like, overweight people EXERCISE?! WHAT. Their minds have exploded.18
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What does "torrid" mean?4
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Maxematics wrote: »That's odd. I didn't see the promoting obesity comments but I did see comments complaining that the mannequin actually wasn't plus size enough. There were comments that Nike is only inclusive of "small fats" and that this wasn't good enough. It's like nobody can win either way.
I think it's great that Nike is trying. The majority of the US qualifies as obese but that doesn't mean that they are the bulk of people buying Nike workout clothes so Nike doesn't really have to do anything. At least they're making an effort; I think being more inclusive is better than not even trying at all.
On the posting I saw on my feed on LinkedIn, there were more negative comments that positive, and all but one were made by men.2 -
Thank you all for answering my question. ☺1
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For me personally the model wearing the clothing definitely influences if I want to purchase the product or not, particularly online. I will lean more towards ones that look similar to me and my physique, as much as I try not to. I think it's great to have a variety of shapes so people can better picture the product on themselves.9
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I think it is great that they are trying to appeal to the plus size community. People who have an issue with this make no sense. Clearly they have some form of dislike to larger sized individuals that you would think promoting athletic wear to that crowd would be something they are for.
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etherealanwar wrote: »I think it is great that they are trying to appeal to the plus size community. People who have an issue with this make no sense. Clearly they have some form of dislike to larger sized individuals that you would think promoting athletic wear to that crowd would be something they are for.
It's funny because it's both people who think it's "promoting obesity" that have a problem, and also those who think the mannequin isn't big enough!
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RelCanonical wrote: »etherealanwar wrote: »I think it is great that they are trying to appeal to the plus size community. People who have an issue with this make no sense. Clearly they have some form of dislike to larger sized individuals that you would think promoting athletic wear to that crowd would be something they are for.
It's funny because it's both people who think it's "promoting obesity" that have a problem, and also those who think the mannequin isn't big enough!
Yeah, both viewpoints are ridiculous. There are SO many different body types that it is in no way possible to have mannequins to represent everyone. How do people not recognize this?3 -
Changed my mind. No one can do anything on the internet without fodder these days so I might have been harsh.2
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Nike created a situation where there would be internet fodder. The only reason why people are making idiotic comments is because Nike seeded the soil for them. This creates a buzz and it spreads to places like MFP. It is a smart way to use social media but whatever they are trying to do that may be seen as "good" might be tainted.
Mmm, dat good marketing. Really brought in terms to MFP that I haven't seen outside of reddit, haha.3 -
Still no "Dad Bod" male mannequins??15
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They've made it to ads. Give em time.Still no "Dad Bod" male mannequins??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt6NHjVO74c
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