Why is Christina Hendricks Struggling to Receive Designer Dress Loans?

The New York Daily News reported that curvy 'Mad Men' star, Christina Hendricks, told a Scottish newspaper she "still struggling" for designers to loan her dresses. Hendricks is not alone. Curvy celebrities and fashion editors are speaking out about this issue. Why is it that celebrities like Christina Hendricks can't get a designer dress loan for the red carpet?

Designer Dress Loans Begin With the Sample Garment

Before each piece in a fashion designer's collection is mass-produced, a sample garment is made. This garment is the prototype for the future garments that are to be produced and sold to retailers. The sample garment is also used for the runway shows. After a model has worn this garment it cannot be sold (not at suggested retail price anyway). The garment is often loaned to magazines and celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Zoe Saldana or Halle Berry for advertising and red carpet events.

Since the sample garment is not sold, no real profit is made from it. As such, designers will make the garment in the smallest size possible and find runway models who fit those sizes. This range is typically a size 0 to a size 2. The less fabric, notions, embellishments and overall production time that are needed for these sample garments, the lower production costs are. The less it costs for the sample garment to be made, the total cost for the runway show is lowered as well.

What Smaller Sample Sizes Means for Fashion Magazines

After the runway show or collection presentations are over, advertising begins. Designers need good product placement within high profile media outlets such as Vogue, W and Elle magazines. When fashion editors make their selections for which trends of the season are hot, they request sample garments from the designers they wish to highlight. The designers send in their size 0 to size 2 garments and the fashion editors and fashion stylist run into a few snags.

The models used for the runway show may not be available for a photo shoot with the magazine or they may not have enough experience with print to be useful. This makes the search for print models harder because not all of them are as skinny as the runway models the sample garments fit. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reports that last summer, British Vogue Editor-in-Chief, Alexandra Shulman, wrote a letter to Karl Lagerfeld, John Galliano and to the designers at Balenciaga, Prada, Versace, Yves Saint Laurent and other major fashion houses complaining about the sizes of the sample garments sent to them.

"We have now reached the point where many of the sample sizes don't comfortably fit even the established star models," Shulman wrote in the letter. Ms. Shulman also advised in her letter that even when they do find models thin enough to fit into the sample garments, they are left having to manipulate the images taken to fill out or plump up the models for their magazine layouts. The practice of plumping up models in print has been a huge controversy revisited but many critics who end up bashing the magazines for doing this. Unfortunately, the magazines get a bad reputation in the eye of the general public when some of the controversial retouching is the result of circumstances beyond their control.

Smaller Sample Sizes Not Friendly for Curvy Celebrities

Popular curvy celebrities such as Christina Hendricks and Jennifer Hudson do not fit the size 0 to size 2 sample garments fashion designers have available for lending. For red carpet events such as the Golden Globes, Academy Awards, Daytime/Primetime Emmys and Grammys celebrities receive designer loans for dresses, suits and jewelry. When popular celebrities wear these items, the purchasing public takes notice. Fans will want to own or copy the exact look of their favorite celebrity on the red carpet or special event. This free advertising could mean huge sales for a designer.

However, when popular celebrities such as Christina Hendricks are limited to what they can wear because of small sample sizes, designers are missing out on a great sales opportunity. While the likes of Hendricks and Hudson, may not get to choose from a large selection of designer gowns or from their favorite designers, there are some designers who will loan a dress outside of the standard sample sizes. Zac Posen loaned a dress for Christina Hendricks to wear for the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards further increasing his popularity amongst consumers. I must say that Hendricks looked fabulous posing in Posen at the Emmys.

Maybe with more media attention and pressure from magazines and celebrities, fashion designers may make larger sample sizes available for lending. With many extending their sizes to size 20 and beyond, it would be smart to make larger sizes available. Zac Posen is increasing his sales and brand identity by making dress loans available to Christina Hendricks. Maybe other designers will realize the potential profitability and follow suit.

SOURCES

Christina Hendricks Emmys 2010: 'Mad Men' star 'still struggling' for designers to loan her dresses - http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2010/08/30/2010-08-30_christina_hendricks_emmys_2010_mad_men_star_still_struggling_for_designers_to_lo.html

Celebrity Placement with Luxury Brand Group - http://www.prcouture.com/2010/08/26/front-row-fashion-pr-celebrity-placement-with-luxury-brand-group/

Fashion editors are starting to speak out about too-skinny models - http://blogs.wsj.com/runway/2009/09/25/the-skinny-on-super-skinny-models/