We have been loving to get to know all of your Insyders on Instagram and through our Facebook group; Plus Size Outfit Share so we wanted to tell you more about the people behind Insyze. So pour yourself some tea and get to know us:
1. What inspired you to start Insyze?
Danielle:
There were a couple of different things that inspired us to start Insyze, but it basically comes down to feeling frustrated with the fashion industry.
I’ve pretty much always been a completely different size to my sister. So shopping trips with her as we grew up were always a bit awkward and meant standing around like a lemon as she (as well as my friends) tried on clothes from fashionable stores.
You’d think that online shopping would have changed things but, not so much.
And I was still basically just excluded from buying from some shops (unless the jewelry section counts) and being able to wear the same style clothes as the rest of my friends.
When we started Insyze there was a definite lack of ‘plus size’ brands out there, luckily over the past few years there have been loads of new names coming up in the plus-size world but there's still a problem with a lack of visibility.
Insyze wants to change that and make it easier for women to find the clothes that they are looking for. I have spent literally hours scrolling through dozens of different websites trying to find a dress or googling ‘halter neck top size 18’ and coming up with nothing I really liked.
Sylvie:
Seeing how unhappy my sister was with the options available to her when shopping for plus size clothes was a big inspiration to start Insyze and after doing a lot of research, including surveys of over 1000 plus size women in the States, I realised my sister was not alone in her frustration.
We thought, hey how great would it be if there was a website that catered just to plus size women and allowed you to easily find trendy and flattering plus size clothing, without being made to feel like you're an afterthought or 'outsize'.
My career as a digital marketer meant I had the skills and expertise to make it happen, so here we are!
2. What do you think of the term plus size?
Danielle:
I have mixed feelings.
On one side I kinda hate it.
It makes me feel like if your plus-size then you’re not the normal size.
In both the UK and the US, the average clothes size is considered to be plus-size. How does that make any sense?
From working in fashion, I noticed that a lot of brands didn’t make their clothes over a US size 12 (UK 14) . Why are you excluding the majority of the clothing market?
I now know that its to do with the fact that fabric has to be cut differently for plus-size bodies which takes different skills than regular dressmaking.
On the other hand, I can see why we need the plus-size I mean sure, it tells you which part of a store that you need to go to to find the stuff that’ll fit.
Sylvie:
From an 'online search' and 'SEO' point of view, I think the term plus size is important to help women discover clothes in their size. So many brands don't cater to larger sizes and it's hard to find clothes in your size without this term.
Certainly at Insyze, we use the term Plus Size just to help our website be discovered by women. But we intend to phase the phrase 'plus size' out of our vocabulary as we grow our business and become more well known.
3. Do you struggle with body image and confidence yourself?
Danielle:
Yes and for me it’s not just to do with my flabby bits but also my numerous scars too. But I’m subscribing to Michelle Elman’s words #ScarredNotScared.
For me, I think my arms and broad shoulders have been my main worry….being covered in moles doesn't help much. So I've always covered up, especially during the summer, and have a vast collection of boleros/ cardigans and kimonos in literally every color.
Sylvie:
Yes for sure.
I've struggled with disordered feelings around food and body image throughout my teenage years and well into my twenties. Now i'm in my thirties, I do feel more secure in myself and never calorie count or exercise binge like I used to.
I've also come to realise that every woman, whether she's a size 2 or size 30 struggles with body image in some way. I'm sure even Chrissy Teigen and Kendall Jenner have their low confidence days, even though they have the classic 'supermodel' shape.
Women have always been told to look and act a certain way, which makes overcoming body image issues a difficult circuit to break, but we can do it together.
Our mission at Insyze is to help women feel confident. It's our number 1 aim, above profits, views, followers or likes. We just want to be a positive community place that women can feel confident and special.
4. How do you hope Insyze will help women shop?
Danielle:
Oh massively. Not only because the search means that you can filter down your selection to be able to see exactly what you are looking for but the size calculator that we have got planned will help you to find clothes that are in your size.
Sylvie:
We want Insyze to be the number 1 place you go to shop for plus size clothing, because the shopping experience is exceptional and you always find something you love.
We will work with our partner brands to bring you incredible fashion and develop our Member community to have innovative shopping features that inspire you.
5. What are your favorite plus size brands and why?
Danielle:
Technically these two are both size-inclusive rather than plus-size but I’d have to say Scarlett and Jo and Lindybop. I can’t get enough of their glam vintage style and I do love me some kitsch prints.
Another local and independent brand that I've been loving recently is Topsy Curvy. They are all about representing real plus size women and have super cute clothing too.
Sylvie:
I love the new Anthropologie Plus collection, 1822 Denim and Alpine Butterfly Swim. Such sexy, gorgeous and high quality clothing!
6. Where do you see Insyze in one year from now?
Danielle:
Taking over the world? Just kidding, but I’d love to see Insyze grow into an international company that is helping women all over the world to find amazing clothes that fit them properly.
Sylvie:
I'd love for Insyze to have a huge community of women that inspire each other and love using our website for clothing discovery and inspiration.
7. How has your relationship as sisters helped you create what you have created today?
Danielle:
Us being sisters has really helped us to shape Insyze into what it is today. My struggle with the fashion world has always been pretty obvious in our house. I dress plus size but I have a small cleavage so most things my size are super baggy around the chest and mean a lot of modesty stitches.
So basically, a lot of despairing.
My sister has been on a few shopping sprees for me (with my card, it was a very dangerous few hours) and has seen first hand the struggles we face, especially with different size structures.
Sylvie:
Having a shared mission and passion to make women feel confident in their bodies is something that's brought Danielle and I closer together, even though we live over 10,000 miles apart from each other! I am in Australia while Danielle is currently in the UK.
We are so excited to launch new features on Insyze and get feedback from our amazing Insyders!
Join our Plus Size Outfit Share facebook group here.
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