Kmart’s Family Day runway show reduces woman to tears

Kmart held its fashion show this weekend, and one detail brought one woman to tears.

OPINION

Bodies of all shapes and sizes are become increasingly normalised in fashion - plus size model Ashley Graham was even voted Maxim’s sexiest woman in 2023; but it’s no secret there is still a long way to go.

But what I saw at Kmart’s show at Melbourne Fashion Festival on Saturday brought me to tears.

It’s rare to see people who look like me on runways around the world as a size 16; despite it being the average size of Aussie women.

Yet I am routinely let down by brands who simply do not cater to me.

Kmart held it's Family Runway show on Saturday. Picture: Kmart/Supplied

The narrow-minded sizing choices reveal a grim truth: they do not care about me or people who look like me.

We are an afterthought, relegated to buying clothes online because they don’t stock beyond a size 12 or 14 in stores.

A video of Grace O’Malley, a podcast host on Plan Bri, came across my TikTok.

After being invited to the People’s Choice Awards she had to desperately search for a brand which had a dress for her; a mad scramble which left her furious and in tears.

She was knocked back by stores repeatedly. Even once she found a dress, she didn’t feel confident enough to wear it after days of disappointment.

It’s an experience I have had countless times, so now I only shop at brands that show people who look like me.

But it’s even rarer to see people who look like my friends and the world around me.

It made me tear up to see people who looked like the world around me in the show. Picture: Kmart/Supplied

But Kmart had a runway cast that featured kids, grandparents, pregnant women, people with different abilities, a woman wearing a hijab, Indigenous Australians, people of all different body types and ethnicities.

A fair chunk of Kmart’s runway walkers were team members, meaning it really was just everyday Australians having their moment to show that no matter who you are or what you look like, you deserve to look and feel good.

The catwalk featured models of all different ages, body types, ethnicities and body types. Picture: Kmart/Supplied

It filled my heart with so much joy that it brought me to tears. It may seem like such a small thing but representation is one of the most important things.

It creates inclusion and confidence. Most of all, it creates options.

If you’ve been pigeonholed into a certain style because of how you look, you start to believe you can’t take risks. This showed the complete opposite of that.

A woman I spoke to after the show said it was her favourite thing about the runway, saying it felt good because she could actually imagine herself in the clothes that debuted.

And it’s no mistake that the runway looked this way.

The catwalk featured many Kmart team members. Picture: Kmart/Supplied

Catherine Wringe, who is Kmart Australia’s womenswear buyer, told news.com.au: “At Kmart, our customers are at the forefront of everything we do and we are inspired by the diversity of the communities we serve.

“We are passionate about authentically reflecting this diversity in how we show up as a brand to ensure that all customers, regardless of differences like gender, ethnicity, ability or age, can see themselves represented in our brand.

“Across the Family Runway presented by Kmart, our product are worn by a diverse cast of Kmart team members, their family, community members, dancers and street cast models to reflect the communities that Kmart is so proud to be a part of.”