We love meeting our customers. So when we needed models to show off our latest petite collection, we asked if any of you fit the bill. Over 1,500 of you said yes. And because we couldn’t squeeze 1,500 customers (even petite ones) into our studio, we invited six down to south London. For a cup of tea and a chat, and to try our petite range on for size.
WENDY, AGE 61
This is Wendy. She’s into Pilates, spending time with her grandchildren, walking her dog Roca, and eating Candy Kittens (they’re stashed by her bed). She’s got a great community around her from church and paddleboarding, which she took up after she had a bad accident. She decided recently to say yes to every opportunity. Like this photoshoot. She lived in Barbados for 11 years working as a hairdresser and later swapped cutting hair for cutting topiary and trained as a gardener.
When she was younger her style was more punk, then new romantic, then “I probably thought I was Madonna.” Her style now is colourful, mixed up and eclectic. And she’s grateful for the increase in petite options. “When I started out buying my own clothes, I'd forever be at the alteration shop,” she says.
SHOP THE LOOK
SHOP THE LOOK
LUCY MIDI DRESS
100,00 €
LUCY TRAINERS
80,00 €
FAYE, AGE 38
This is Faye. She’s Devon through and through. So she’s always serving cream teas when people come round (cream first, obviously). She lives with her daughter and Fletcher, their cockapoo. And her husband who she met when they were 15 and both working at Diggerland (a digger-themed theme park, very Devon.) She’s outdoorsy, loves paddleboarding and recently took up painting. She sells her paintings, and works as a counsellor, while doing a degree in psychology. The piece of advice she’d give? Having been poorly for a lot of her life, she’d say don’t wait to do things because you're worried about what other people think. Do the things that make you happy.
SHARON, AGE 68
This is Sharon. She loves colour. And fashion that is a little out there. Spending all her money on clothes is her biggest weakness. Or her biggest strength? She was in the fashion business for 40 years. Being 5ft 1/2 can be a struggle if she goes for mainstream sizing. “Because I'm a size 16, they automatically just make everything voluminous,” she says. “So dresses that are supposed to be mid-calf, end up as maxis.” Her dad gave her some shirt armbands when she was about 18, and she’ll wear them to pull sleeves up. But that’s not necessary with petite ranges.
Sharon loves the theatre. She goes several times a month. And she’s glam-ma to her daughters’ lovely dogs. Or you can find her at the cinema, travelling to exotic places, eating charcuterie with her husband, and volunteering at a local retirement home. How she made the time to do this photoshoot, we don’t know.
RYLEE JERSEY SHIRT DRESS
92,00 €
SHOP THE LOOK
CHERRY PATCHWORK ANKLE BOOTS
133,00 €
DENISE, AGE 46
This is Denise. She’s self-employed, training in trichology (the science of hair and scalp disorders) and is a busy mum of three. She’s passionate about helping people, like clients who have lost their hair, and she’s obsessed with vintage cars and Carnation milk (she puts it in her tea). She and her husband have two sphynx cats, Saffron and Tim. Denise has always loved dressing a bit different, a bit quirky. And she’s rediscovering her style since becoming a mum.
She used to shop in children’s departments as it was cheaper and things fitted her better. And that’s why petite collections are so good. “Growing up I thought I was an odd shape,” she says, “one of my sisters is 5ft 9. But what I realised is that everyone has an issue with dressing, some way or other.”
MARJORIE, AGE 63
This is Marjorie. What makes her smile? Firstly, her dog Tilly. Tilly’s a guide dog and is having her third litter of puppies soon. Secondly, Marjorie’s cat Squeaks (she was called Purdy, but she squeaks all the time). And thirdly, Marjorie’s husband. (Only joking, he’s number one.) Marjorie loves to sing around the house. Since retiring as a careers consultant, she’s in two different choirs. And she volunteers. Driving a shuttle bus for an art gallery. Reading plays with care home residents. Gardening in a private estate. And looking after puppies, of course.
Petite collections make a big difference to Marjorie. “When a top or a dress is so long that it’s coming down the ends of your fingers, the same thing in a petite size looks completely different,” she says. “It just feels so much better.” Her top tip? Choosing clothes that are a little bit more fitted.
JULES, AGE 52
This is Jules. Jules is really into singing. She’s in a choir that does songs by The Smiths and Radiohead, and the community changed her life. They have book clubs, go for Sunday dinner, have nights out. “It feels like you’re flying,” she says, when the choir voices come together. And she loves to paint. She exhibits and sells her art, and also works as a payroll coordinator for a mental health charity. She’s got ME but works full time (singing at the same time we suspect).
“The dress here is exactly something that I would wear,” Jules says. “I like to wear stuff that's got a waist.” Being in this photoshoot is part of her year of challenging herself, and doing things she wants to do
Read our previous episodes of Introducing and follow us on social for more from our wonderful customer-models.