Surrounded by racks of colourful dresses and blazers in China's manufacturing hub of Guangzhou, plus-size clothing brand owner and influencer Amanda Yao is on a mission to promote body positivity.

She is part of a small but growing number of women in China challenging restrictive beauty standards, including thinness, pale skin and childlike features.

Online, a frequently circulated saying claims that "there are no good women over 50 kilogrammes (110 pounds)", while recent social media challenges have women squeezing into children's clothes or showing off the coins they can stack on their collarbones.

Yao makes fashionable, high-end clothing for plus-size women, offering a vibrant contrast to the poorly cut offerings normally available in "slimming" dark colours.

"I want my customers to have clothes that express who they are inside, rather than soulless pieces that exist only to make them look thinner," the 35-year-old told AFP.

When it comes to clothing, most Chinese retailers focus on smaller sizes and "think that larger people don't need fashion and don't need beautiful clothes", Yao said.&nbsp;

"But we have work, we have families, we have respectable lives, and we also need some fancy clothes sometimes."

To promote her online store, Yao posts pictures of her outfits on the Instagram-like Xiaohongshu app, often sporting leggings and tight-fitting workout tops she wears to climb the hills near her office.

"Reject body anxiety," Yao, who openly talks about weighing 100 kilograms, wrote in one post to her more than 15,000 followers.&nbsp;

"So what if I wear a strappy top and have big arms?"

- Embracing colour - 
 
Yao began selling plus-size clothing four years ago after returning to China from the United Kingdom, where she had worked for several years.

"I found it especially hard to buy clothing here," she told AFP.

Items ordered online often failed to match sellers' photos, and Yao grew sick of "very ugly clothes".

In her Guangzhou office and showroom this month, Yao showed off a Chinese-style pink silk jacket from her brand Yue Design, while modelling a bright green cardigan and skirt set.

"I never post photos of myself wearing black online," Yao said.

By avoiding the colour traditionally recommended for larger women, she has also encouraged some of her customers to embrace brighter, more cheerful designs.

While clothing options for plus-size shoppers remain limited, some Chinese brands have taken steps to be more inclusive in recent years.

Lingerie brand Neiwai and loungewear company An Action A Day have featured larger models in their ads, though most of their items only cater to women up to 70 kilograms.

- Body scrutiny -

Aside from Yao, other influencers in China have found an audience eager for their posts about self-acceptance and photos of themselves enjoying clothing and food, despite the pressure to diet.

On Xiaohongshu, the hashtag "reject body anxiety" appears in nearly 200,000 posts.&nbsp;

But this is still a marked deviation from most body image content on Chinese social media.

One recent popular format involves someone posting a photo of themselves and asking viewers for makeover tips.

These posts often draw extreme scrutiny from commenters, who pick on people for flaws as specific as having a square jaw rather than the "ideal" pointed chin.

With constant exposure to idealised body types, people "start to conflate the meaning of their own worth with what they look like," Stephanie Ng, who runs Hong Kong-based mental health organisation Body Banter, told AFP.

That has dangerous consequences, including extreme dieting and eating disorders, Ng said.&nbsp;

There is little official data on eating disorders in China, but the prominent Shanghai Mental Health Center reported an increase from eight such patients in 2002 to 3,000 in 2021, according to state broadcaster CGTN.

Even though Yao has built a loyal following, her posts can also attract cruel comments.

"Daring to post an ugly photo showing your ring-shaped torso fat doesn't equal confidence," one commenter wrote under one of Yao's workout posts.

She told AFP that the criticism has only made her more determined.

"I want to help women who are feeling self-hatred to look at themselves in a new way," she said.

Surrounded by racks of colourful dresses and blazers in China's manufacturing hub of Guangzhou, plus-size clothing brand owner and influencer Amanda Yao is on a mission to promote body positivity.

Surrounded by racks of colourful dresses and blazers in China's manufacturing hub of Guangzhou, plus-size clothing brand owner and influencer Amanda Yao is on a mission to promote body positivity. She is part of a small but growing number of women in China challenging restrictive beauty standards, including thinness, pale skin and childlike features. Online, a frequently circulated saying claims that "there are no good women over 50 kilogrammes (110 pounds)", while recent social media challenges have women squeezing into children's clothes or showing off the coins they can stack on their collarbones. Yao makes fashionable, high-end clothing for plus-size women, offering a vibrant contrast to the poorly cut offerings normally available in "slimming" dark colours. "I want my customers to have clothes that express who they are inside, rather than soulless pieces that exist only to make them look thinner," the 35-year-old told AFP. When it comes to clothing, most Chinese retailers focus on smaller sizes and "think that larger people don't need fashion and don't need beautiful clothes", Yao said. "But we have work, we have families, we have respectable lives, and we also need some fancy clothes sometimes." To promote her online store, Yao posts pictures of her outfits on the Instagram-like Xiaohongshu app, often sporting leggings and tight-fitting workout tops she wears to climb the hills near her office. "Reject body anxiety," Yao, who openly talks about weighing 100 kilograms, wrote in one post to her more than 15,000 followers. "So what if I wear a strappy top and have big arms?" - Embracing colour - Yao began selling plus-size clothing four years ago after returning to China from the United Kingdom, where she had worked for several years. "I found it especially hard to buy clothing here," she told AFP. Items ordered online often failed to match sellers' photos, and Yao grew sick of "very ugly clothes". In her Guangzhou office and showroom this month, Yao showed off a Chinese-style pink silk jacket from her brand Yue Design, while modelling a bright green cardigan and skirt set. "I never post photos of myself wearing black online," Yao said. By avoiding the colour traditionally recommended for larger women, she has also encouraged some of her customers to embrace brighter, more cheerful designs. While clothing options for plus-size shoppers remain limited, some Chinese brands have taken steps to be more inclusive in recent years. Lingerie brand Neiwai and loungewear company An Action A Day have featured larger models in their ads, though most of their items only cater to women up to 70 kilograms. - Body scrutiny - Aside from Yao, other influencers in China have found an audience eager for their posts about self-acceptance and photos of themselves enjoying clothing and food, despite the pressure to diet. On Xiaohongshu, the hashtag "reject body anxiety" appears in nearly 200,000 posts. But this is still a marked deviation from most body image content on Chinese social media. One recent popular format involves someone posting a photo of themselves and asking viewers for makeover tips. These posts often draw extreme scrutiny from commenters, who pick on people for flaws as specific as having a square jaw rather than the "ideal" pointed chin. With constant exposure to idealised body types, people "start to conflate the meaning of their own worth with what they look like," Stephanie Ng, who runs Hong Kong-based mental health organisation Body Banter, told AFP. That has dangerous consequences, including extreme dieting and eating disorders, Ng said. There is little official data on eating disorders in China, but the prominent Shanghai Mental Health Center reported an increase from eight such patients in 2002 to 3,000 in 2021, according to state broadcaster CGTN. Even though Yao has built a loyal following, her posts can also attract cruel comments. "Daring to post an ugly photo showing your ring-shaped torso fat doesn't equal confidence," one commenter wrote under one of Yao's workout posts. She told AFP that the criticism has only made her more determined. "I want to help women who are feeling self-hatred to look at themselves in a new way," she said.

Chinese plus-size influencer spreads body positivity through fashion

A plus-sized model participated at this year's Miss Universe pageant. While this is a huge step in the right direction, is it too little, too late? Molly Gambhir getting you the complete story

Gravitas: Plus-sized model wins hearts at Miss Universe Pageant

Defying the fashion world's narrow stereotype of beauty, Brazilian plus-size designer Amanda Momente poses confidently for the camera, wearing the clothing label she founded after failing to find other options that fit.

More than half of all adults in Brazil are overweight, but Momente is part of a growing movement of entrepreneurs, activists and models who are fed up with a fashion industry they say fails to fit their needs and shames them for their bodies.

"Society judged me based on one thing, so I took that thing and used it... to launch my business," says Momente, 34, dressed in a sheer black bodysuit created by Wondersize, the company she founded in 2017. 
 
The former real-estate agent, who sports a pink mohawk and multiple tattoos, got the idea after feeling uncomfortable at the gym in clothes she says were too tight, turned transparent when stretched or bunched up around her thighs.

She decided to find a seamstress to help her make her own workout outfit.

It turned out so well she quit her day job and plunged headfirst into the fashion world, she says.

The rise of colorful, stylish clothes for Brazilians with large bodies is part of a broader international trend rejecting unrealistic standards of beauty, especially for women.

The fashion industry needs to fit our bodies, not the other way around," says Momente.

- 'Identity and dignity' - 
 
Major brands tend to dedicate at most a small portion of their lines to clothing in larger sizes, leaving "repressed" demand, says Marcela Liz, head of the Brazil Plus Size Association.

The plus-size sector grew in Brazil more than 75 percent in the decade through 2021, reaching sales of 9.6 billion reais (about $1.9 billion) that year, according to the association.

It projects sales will hit 15 billion reais by 2027 in Latin America's biggest economy.

"Supply has improved, but we're still not meeting demand," says Liz.

The nascent industry sashayed through Sao Paulo this month at the Pop Plus fair, where indie designers showed off sparkling skirts, racy tops, T-shirts stamped with bold statements and other clothes in sizes ranging up to 70.

"The market saw fat people as people who didn't like fashion, who just wanted to hide their bodies," says Flavia Durante, the activist who founded the fair in 2012.

"We had clothes, not fashion," she told AFP.

"Fashion isn't just about consumption. It's about identity and dignity." 
 
- More work to do - 
 
TV presenter and plus-size model Letticia Munniz has strutted the runway at glitzy Sao Paulo fashion week, made the cover of glossy magazines and been the face of numerous ad campaigns.

But she says real inclusion remains a long way off for the overweight and obese in Brazil -- 57 percent and 23 percent of the adult population, respectively, in the country of 203 million people.

"Things have improved, but our work is still seen as just checking a quota box. We're not seen as real equals," she says.

The activist and influencer, who usually wears custom-made clothes, says she is glad to see more plus sizes on runways -- but adds that doesn't necessarily mean they are actually available in stores.

She encourages her more than one million followers on social media to love themselves as they are.

"When you find something made to exalt your body instead of hide it, it changes everything," she says in one post.

Defying the fashion world's narrow stereotype of beauty, Brazilian plus-size designer Amanda Momente poses confidently for the camera, wearing the clothing label she founded after failing to find other options that fit.

Defying the fashion world's narrow stereotype of beauty, Brazilian plus-size designer Amanda Momente poses confidently for the camera, wearing the clothing label she founded after failing to find other options that fit. More than half of all adults in Brazil are overweight, but Momente is part of a growing movement of entrepreneurs, activists and models who are fed up with a fashion industry they say fails to fit their needs and shames them for their bodies. "Society judged me based on one thing, so I took that thing and used it... to launch my business," says Momente, 34, dressed in a sheer black bodysuit created by Wondersize, the company she founded in 2017. The former real-estate agent, who sports a pink mohawk and multiple tattoos, got the idea after feeling uncomfortable at the gym in clothes she says were too tight, turned transparent when stretched or bunched up around her thighs. She decided to find a seamstress to help her make her own workout outfit. It turned out so well she quit her day job and plunged headfirst into the fashion world, she says. The rise of colorful, stylish clothes for Brazilians with large bodies is part of a broader international trend rejecting unrealistic standards of beauty, especially for women. The fashion industry needs to fit our bodies, not the other way around," says Momente. - 'Identity and dignity' - Major brands tend to dedicate at most a small portion of their lines to clothing in larger sizes, leaving "repressed" demand, says Marcela Liz, head of the Brazil Plus Size Association. The plus-size sector grew in Brazil more than 75 percent in the decade through 2021, reaching sales of 9.6 billion reais (about $1.9 billion) that year, according to the association. It projects sales will hit 15 billion reais by 2027 in Latin America's biggest economy. "Supply has improved, but we're still not meeting demand," says Liz. The nascent industry sashayed through Sao Paulo this month at the Pop Plus fair, where indie designers showed off sparkling skirts, racy tops, T-shirts stamped with bold statements and other clothes in sizes ranging up to 70. "The market saw fat people as people who didn't like fashion, who just wanted to hide their bodies," says Flavia Durante, the activist who founded the fair in 2012. "We had clothes, not fashion," she told AFP. "Fashion isn't just about consumption. It's about identity and dignity." - More work to do - TV presenter and plus-size model Letticia Munniz has strutted the runway at glitzy Sao Paulo fashion week, made the cover of glossy magazines and been the face of numerous ad campaigns. But she says real inclusion remains a long way off for the overweight and obese in Brazil -- 57 percent and 23 percent of the adult population, respectively, in the country of 203 million people. "Things have improved, but our work is still seen as just checking a quota box. We're not seen as real equals," she says. The activist and influencer, who usually wears custom-made clothes, says she is glad to see more plus sizes on runways -- but adds that doesn't necessarily mean they are actually available in stores. She encourages her more than one million followers on social media to love themselves as they are. "When you find something made to exalt your body instead of hide it, it changes everything," she says in one post.

Plus-size movement reshapes fashion in Brazil