Fashion To Figure
Fashion To Figure is a United States retailer focusing exclusively on women's plus-size clothing and related accessories. In November 2017, its parent company B. Lane Inc. filed for bankruptcy.
| Type | Privately held |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Michael Kaplan Nicholas Kaplan |
| Headquarters | , |
Number of locations | 26 (as of 2016) |
Key people | Michael Kaplan, CEO Nicholas Kaplan, COO Frances Freixas, Chief Merchant |
| Products | Plus-size clothing, related accessories |
| Website | www |
Founding
Fashion To Figure was co-founded by brothers Michael and Nicholas Kaplan, two of Lena Bryant's great-grandsons.[1] Their father, Steven, was president of Lane Bryant until its sale to The Limited Inc. in 1982.[2] Nicholas Kaplan previously served as a Saks Fifth Avenue department manager and buyer, general merchandise manager at Bluefly, and co-founder of the Designer Warehouse liquidation chain.[3][2] Michael Kaplan served as an analyst at Lazard and co-founded an online shopping community for plus-sized women with RRE Ventures.[3] The brothers grew up hearing stories about how their widowed great-grandmother supported herself by selling the first maternity and full-figure dresses available to American women, inspiring them to carry on their family's tradition.[4]
Operation
The first Fashion To Figure store opened at the Palisades Center Mall in West Nyack, New York in October 2004.[1] The second store opened in 2005 at the Livingston Mall in Livingston, New Jersey.[5] By 2011, Fashion To Figure had seven locations in New York and New Jersey. Two more stores were slated to open in fall 2011. The company launched its online store in 2010, which serves an international customer base.
The store caters exclusively to women and teenagers sized 12 to 26.[3] The chain is named for a quote by Lena Bryant, founder of the plus-sized women's clothing chain Lane Bryant.[1] Asked in 1950 by a Glamour magazine interviewer about the secret of her success, Bryant said, "You should never ask women to conform their figures to fashion, but rather bring fashion to the figure."[1][5]
Unlike most other plus-sized specialty retailers, Fashion To Figure is not a vertically integrated retailer,[6] but sources its inventory from more than one hundred vendors.[5] The company's CEO, Michael Kaplan, believes this allows it to provide plus-sized consumers with more choices and to react more nimbly to fashion trends, à la fast fashion.[6] Shoppers depend on the assistance of sales associates, known as "stylists," to select the best colors and cuts for their individual needs.[5] In 2010, Fashion To Figure opened a store in the Cross County Shopping Center co-branded with P.S. and Wet Seal. It was later demolished in 2017 for an Ulta Beauty and Sprint.
As of March 29, Fashion to Figure stores has reported that it had to let 263 employees go due to store closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]
Bankruptcy
In November 2017, Fashin To Figure's parent company, B. Lane Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
References
- "Perfection's Price". Harvard Business School Alumni Bulletin. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
- "Planning Their Big Plus: Lane Bryant Kin Building Business by the Book". The Bergen County Record. 8 September 2006.
- "Lena Bryant Descendants Continue Family Tradition". Women's Wear Daily. 3 June 2005. Retrieved 12 September 2011.
- "Inheriting the Girth: Plus-Sized Store Inspired by 'Gram'". The Bergen County Record. 21 December 2004.
- "Plus Size Retailer Looks to Open Westchester Stores". The Journal News Rockland. 17 January 2007.
- "In Family Tradition, Lena Bryant's Descendants Launch Plus-Sized Concept". Chain Store Age. 5 October 2005.
- Mirabella, Lorraine. "Reports of layoffs in Maryland increase in past week, including Pandora, New York & Co. and Medieval Times". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2020-04-19.