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American Morning
Clothing Store Caters to Overweight Teens
Aired August 16, 2002 - 09:22 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: As fashion conscious teenagers start their back-to-school shopping, their finding a new style of clothing store in malls around the country. It sells the latest fashions, but in larger sizes that fit overweight teenagers. But the new trend could be a double-edged sword. Will it help kids feel better about themselves, or let them ignore potential health problems of being overweight.
Our medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is in Atlanta with the story.
Elizabeth, good morning.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn.
You know, Daryn, in a way, it's amazing that it took this long to get a store devoted exclusively for clothes for overweight teenagers. After all, there are eight million American young people who are overweight. So there is a big market for big clothes.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just an example of how good a person can look.
COHEN (voice-over): Beth Greenberg is looking for a dress for a friend's wedding, and if you think overweight girls today want to hide their bodies in big floppy clothes, well, think again.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This store, advertised as the first to cater exclusively to overweight teens, is filled with tight T-shirts with attitude, panties with attitude, and most of all, girls with attitude.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's really cute.
Don't you think it's cute, Mr. Cameraman.
COHEN: The shirts are slinky, the dresses bright, and the shoppers relieved they can finally fit into something funky, after years of finding only frumpy.
COURTNEY TOWLES, SHOPPER: All the cute stuff is always for really, really small people, and then you to get your size, and you're like, oh, great, I can dress like grandma.
COHEN: And there is no shame here about being overweight. These girls don't appear to care that they are buying a size 26.
(on camera): I can hear someone saying, you know what when young people who are larger, they should really be trying to lose weight so they can fit into regular clothes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I guess, you know, that is society's point of view. I would rather have a good time now, wear what I want to than worry about trying to fit into somebody else's idea what I should look like.
COHEN (voice-over): Torrid caters to this niche, and it appears to be working. The chain started out last year with six stores. This year, it has 15.
MEG CLYMER, TORRID MERCHANDISE MGR.: I think that we as a company, saw the market need for this, and really wanted to take they risk.
COHEN: Given the huge growth in obesity in this country, it's really not that much of a risk. There are so many overweight teens out there, and if you are one of them, and specially, if you have cool hair, you've got to have clothes to match.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COHEN: Now Beth Greenberg, who we just met in that story, she chose the purple strapless number to wear to a wedding, and she said, boy, I hope I don't upstage the bride -- Daryn.
KAGAN: Because she is going to be looking good.
COHEN: She did look good.
KAGAN: Since you're a health reporter, what about the health aspect of this? Any reaction from doctors that it's not encouraging teens to lose weight.
COHEN: The doctors that I talked to are sort of two minds about this, Daryn. They say, on the one hand, they want these girls obviously to feel good about themselves. Self esteem is so important when you're a teen, especially when you're an overweight teen, and they say they're overweight, they need to wear something that's cool and fun, but they say, look, we hope that these girls don't think, well now that I have clothes that fit, I don't need to lose weight. Of course they do need to lose weight. But the pediatric obesity experts I talked to, they were all very supportive of this kind of store.
KAGAN: Yes, absolutely, it's two issues. There is the whole weight issue, and being healthy, but I think it's great that these girls have a place to go and get fun clothes.
COHEN: Exactly.
KAGAN: In Atlanta, thank you.
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