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at Macy's. What a bunch of crap! My fat ass, nor anyone else's, should ever be excluded from being able to wear nice clothes due to their size and the fact that so many fashion designers and retailers-including The Gap, who I was told only stocks size 2x online and not in their stores-have decided that either there was no money in Plus Sizes or that they didn't want their brand associated with "fatties." And that is not only discrimination, it's just plain stupid. And ugly.

When I worked in the Macy Woman department, I spoke to a young woman who asked to be transferred to manage Macy Woman because of its high volume of sales. She told me that at that time, it was one of, if not the highest grossing department in the entire store. And this was a high-end Macy's.

So, why is it that when I decide to shop at one of their better stores, I am told that they don't even carry a coat in my size? When I spoke to the Customer Service Manager at the store, a very courteous and patient young woman named Liz, she listened to what I had to say, and then told me that the decision was made due to "lack of floor space."

First of all, this is total B.S. Any good retail store's sales floor lines are constantly being drawn and redrawn. But given that excuse, why couldn't they do what they have done in other locations with similar floor space limitations and put one of their specialty departments like Men's or Macy Woman in a separate, but nearby location in the same shopping center for their customers? For any store that calls itself a "Department Store", to exclude their Plus Size Women's department entirely is shooting themselves in the foot financially, while continuing to perpetuate harmful stereotypes of a person's beauty and worth as an individual. I love shopping at Macy's and I was ready to make a purchase. Not only did that store lose my money that day, all of the customers they had to tell during the Holiday/Christmas buying season were unable to make purchases as well. Just think of how much revenue that store has lost already, and all because they couldn't find the space to put in a Women's department for extended sizes.

There was a time I would have let it make me feel like crap about myself, and I'm sure that many women in the few months that the store has been open have walked away feeling bad about themselves, as well. Size discrimination is a real issue. I know this, because I have always been a "person of size." I was a chubby child, a fat adolescent and an obese adult before I lost a large amount of weight and became "large but healthy." Currently, I'm not in the best of shape, but shopping for me has always been a nightmare because Misses sizes don't extend far enough, and most Plus Sizes are cut for taller, broader-shouldered women. Finding attractive, affordable clothing is frustrating enough as it is. And then, to go to a department store where I regularly shop and have them tell me they don't have my department in their particular store and that I need to drive to another mall to find my size is wrong. Period.

It is my hope that Macy's and others will soon take steps to remedy this situation, and that the Fashion Industry as a whole, will begin to recognize the error of their ways and start creating quality clothing for people of all sizes, bringing some kind of healthy standard back to what beauty really is.

Learn more about this author, Yvonne Richman.
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