First comes fame. Then comes money. Then comes the seemingly inevitable attempt to build a celebrity empire — including a fashion line. These days, so many celebrities are trying to move past just doing endorsements and commercials and trying to launch their own companies. Given that they already have plenty of name recognition, and often tons of exposure to the fashion industry through red carpet and media appearances, a fashion line of their own might seem like a no-brainer.
But while name recognition might help get a fashion line started, the truth is that quality, design, and size inclusivity can go a long way to making a celebrity fashion brand successful. Unfortunately, size inclusivity for plus-size customers is still a problem area for too many celebrity lines.
Using criteria that include offering sizes up to at least 24, having wider width options for shoes, not upcharging for extended sizes, and having clothes that are actually fashionable and shown on plus-size models, we've rounded up the best — and the worst — of the celebrity fashion lines in terms of serving actual plus-size customers. Consider this a call to action to do better for the brands on the "worst" list!
Best: Good American
When Khloé Kardashian (along with business partner Emma Grede) launched Good American in 2016, it was an instant hit, with sales of $1 million in the first day alone. Part of the reason for the huge success was because the brand was size inclusive from day one. Currently, the line includes looks up to size 24 as a standard, and there's no upcharge for plus sizes. Good American also has plus-size options for petites, maternity clothes, and activewear. The brand even has shoes in wide widths and up to size 14.
Worst: The Row
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen have successfully made the transition from adorable child stars to serious fashion designers. Their high-end brand, The Row, has won fashion awards and been covered by all the major fashion magazines, so it is one of the most legit celebrity brands out there. What it is not, however, is plus-size-friendly. There are no options in any style above a size 14, and some items only go up to a size 10 or 12. The plus-size luxury shopper is totally out of luck with The Row.
Best: Draper James
Plus-size fans of Reese Witherspoon's Southern-inspired preppy style are mostly in luck with Draper James. While not every style has extended sizes (let's get on that, OK, Reese?), there are options up to 3X/24 in lots of cute dresses, shirts, and sweaters. Are there gingham options? Damn right there are.
Best: Savage X Fenty
Rihanna knows the truth: Sexy comes in all sizes. Not only does this line have bras in up to H cups and undies and lingerie in up to 3X, but the website has some great diversity in terms of sizes and shapes of models. We love that the plus-size shopper can really see what something would look like if they are an hourglass shape or more bottom heavy, for example. Also a shout-out for featuring models with some stretch marks and body differences. We truly love to see it.
Best: Calia by Carrie Underwood
For a lot of plus-size women, finding decent workout apparel has been stupidly difficult. Thankfully that has gotten better in the last few years, and Calia by Carrie is a good example. This line from country music superstar and fitness lover Carrie Underwood features both activewear and athleisure looks in sizes up to 3X — though it doesn't include options for every item, so there is always some room for improvement.
Worst: Uncommon James
Ugh. There are so many things that are frustrating about the Uncommon James line from reality star Kristin Cavallari. First is that the rather basic line of cropped T-shirts, tanks, and sweatshirts tops out at size XL. Second, according to the size guide provided, an XL is for sizes 10 to 14! That is a huge range, and a size 10 being an XL is some seriously eyebrow-raising sizing. Third, even the jewelry line isn't plus-size friendly, with almost no selection in rings for those who might have a finger size larger than an 8. This is not a line trying to earn those plus-size shopper dollars.
Best: S by Serena
Though she's been interested in fashion and rocking some amazing tennis outfits for years, Serena Williams didn't launch her own clothing line, S by Serena, until 2019. The line — which has a curated collection of dresses, outerwear, tops, and bottoms — goes up to size 24 with no price difference for larger sizes. Is it a bad tennis pun if we say that we "love" that? Too late!
Best: Ivy Park
No need to send the Beyhive after us — we stan the Ivy Park line from the queen herself, Beyoncé. This activewear line, currently featuring collaborations with Peloton and Adidas, has sizes up to 3X for bras, leggings, shorts, and more. All the plus-size gear is fierce and costs the same as smaller sizes if folks shop fast enough to catch it before it gets sold out again.
Best: LC by Lauren Conrad
The plus-size shopper who wants to buy something from someone who once starred on The Hills should avoid Kristin Cavallari's line and make a beeline to LC by Lauren Conrad (a lesson we probably could have learned from watching The Hills, to be honest — there is a reason Lauren was the nice one on the show). Her clothes, which can be found at Kohl's, are more size-inclusive than most, with some items available in up to a 4x or size 26. Her line also has more affordable price points, with cozy sweatshirts and pajamas in the $30-50 range.
Worst: SJP
We'll give credit where credit is due: SJP by Sarah Jessica Parker is a footwear line that has some seriously cute styles. All the shoes are handmade in Italy, which is great, as long as a shopper doesn't need a wider shoe or a size above an 11. There is also one dress offered through this line, but the largest size available is only a 12. It's a bummer that such cute shoe options aren't made for the wider-foot fashionista.
Best: Jessica Simpson
There's no way to talk about celebrity fashion lines without talking about Jessica Simpson. Her eponymous brand is estimated to be worth nearly $1 billion, and a decent chunk of that comes from the plus-size market. Her clothing line has options for up to size 28, and her shoe line extends to a size 12 (though not with wide widths available in all styles). One gripe: Some of the extended size options are only shown on non-curvy models, which can make it feel hard to visualize it on a plus-size body.
Worst: G. Label
It doesn't feel surprising to find the star of the notoriously fat-phobic movie Shallow Hal on the worst list. G. Label is part of Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop brand and it is not remotely plus-size-friendly. Those with larger bodies (and larger wallets, because we are talking about $650 pants here) will be disappointed to discover that there are no options above a size 14 and that even the XL size is meant for a size 10-12 body.
Best: Skims
Yes, another Kardashian has made the best list. While Kim Kardashian herself has sometimes said problematic things when it comes to weight and body sizes, her Skims line has been fairly size-inclusive since it first launched. One thing plus-size shoppers should note is that her sizing runs small, so those with sizes between 20 and 24 may have to go up to a 5X, rather than the more standard 3X for that range.
Worst: Elizabeth and James
Congratulations to Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen for making our worst list twice. Their less costly Elizabeth and James line, which includes a collaboration with Kohl's, does slightly better than their other brand, The Row. The emphasis, sadly, is on the word slightly, however, as doing better just means having a few pairs of pants in up to a size 18.
Best: Fabletics
Kate Hudson launched the Fabletics line in 2013, and it might be fair to say that since that time, she's had more success with the brand than she has with hit movies. This line of colorful activewear goes up to a size 4X and has some really cute styles, so we say: Who cares about movies — we want leggings!
Worst: Victoria
Hey, Victoria Beckham, we'll tell you what we want, what we really, really want. We want size inclusivity and, unfortunately, we aren't finding it in any of the brands under the Victoria Beckham label. While she's got a collaboration with Reebok and multiple lines like VVB and VB x Woolmark, what she doesn't have is anything over a size 12-14. And several items are only available up to a size 10.
