PLUS Model Magazine - Archives - 2011 PLUS Model Magazine - April 2014 | Page 69

It’s simple to use... Choose how many garments
you want to have sent to you, add pieces you
love to your virtual online closet, and sit back
and wait for your package. Keep items as long as
you’d like and send them back without washing
them–we take care of that on our end. When you
ship something back to us we’ll send you more
garments. You can rotate your wardrobe as many
times as you’d like throughout the course of the
month. So, women on the 3 plan may end up
wearing 8, 9, or 10 pieces a month - all for one
flat fee. And if you fall in love with something,
we offer the ability to buy that piece from us at a
discount.

Colleen: What is your background in fashion?
Christine: I’m more of a technology person, as
opposed to a fashion person. All the credit for
the amazing clothing we offer goes to our buyers,
merchandisers, and frankly, our members. They
are constantly sending us ideas and requests it’s wonderful. I’m more like a typical member I want to look good and feel great, but I’m not
willing to invest all my time to understanding
and following all things fashion. I think that’s
another reason I love Gwynnie Bee - I can play
with clothing and not take it too seriously since
I can always get something new and different
tomorrow.

Colleen: How did you come up with that concept?
Christine: My aunt was a seamstress and she
made clothing for my cousin and me. We were
both the same size so when we tired of something,
we would swap between the two of us. We never
wore anything twice. While we didn’t have a lot
of money, this definitely felt like a huge luxury.
We would then take the clothes to a consignment
shop and use that money to buy more fabric for
more dresses. I grew up around patterns and
sewing and experimentation with clothing. I
never knew my size and everything always fit, so
I never had that experience of going in and trying
on clothes that weren’t going to work for me.
When I left for college and suddenly had to start
buying clothes, I hated it. The idea for Gwynnie
Bee came out of the concept of always having
the freedom and flexibility to wear what you
like and what fits, without having the constraint
of a budget or the responsibility of ownership
hanging over your head.

Colleen: Why did you choose to serve plus size
customers?
Christine: Why not? Most women are plus-sized
and we wanted to serve “the every woman.” I
still don’t quite understand why most of retail
ignores this community. Honestly, the choices
for plus are terrible. Plus size women are three
times more likely to shop online because there
are very few brick-and-mortar options–and the
experiences there are terrible. When you realize
that the overwhelming majority of the population
is size 10 and up, it doesn’t make sense that the
plus options are so limited. We really want to
make a positive impact on a really large number
of women.
Colleen: I love the idea of showcasing real
customers in your clothes! Will you be continuing
your #NotAModel photoshoots?