Senor Pedro
2012-01-31 01:31:02 UTC
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/6330962/Times-are-changing-
for-Brazils-bikini-wearers
Tall and tan and young and ... chunky?
The Girl From Ipanema has put on a few pounds, and for many
sunbathers on Brazil's beaches the country's iconic itsy-bitsy,
teeny-weeny bikini just doesn't suffice anymore.
A growing number of bikini manufacturers have woken up to
Brazil's thickening waistline and are reaching out to the ever-
expanding ranks of heavy women with new plus-size lines.
That's nothing short of a revolution in this most body-conscious
of nations, where overweight ladies long had little choice but
to hit the beach in comely ensembles of oversized T-shirts and
biker shorts.
''It used to be bikinis were only in tiny sizes that only skinny
girls could fit into. But not everyone is built like a model,''
said Elisangela Inez Soares as she sunbathed on Copacabana
beach, her oiled-up curves packed into a black size 12 bikini.
''Finally, it seems like people are beginning to realise that
we're not all Gisele,'' said the 38-year-old mother of four,
referring to willowy Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.
Clothing designer Clarice Rebelatto said her own swimwear-
hunting travails prompted her to found Lehona, an exclusively
plus-size beachwear line.
''Honestly, the problem went way beyond just bikinis. In Brazil,
it used to be that if you were even a little chunky, finding any
kind of clothes in the right size was a real problem,'' said
Rebelatto, herself a size 10.
''And I thought, 'I'm actually not even that big compared to a
lot of women out there, so if I have problems, what are they
doing?'''
Since its launch in 2010, the line has become a hit.
In brash leopard spots and flower prints not meant for
wallflowers, the label's 14 bikini styles aren't what ou'd
normally associate with plus-size swimsuits. The necklines
plunge dramatically. Straps are mere strings.
And while the bottoms provide too much coverage to qualify for
the famed ''fio dental'' or ''dental floss'' category of
Brazilian string bikinis, they're significantly more audacious
than the standard US cut.
''We're working from the principle that bigger women are just
like everyone else: They don't want to look like old ladies,
wearing these very modest, very covering swimsuits in just
black,'' said Luiz Rebelatto, Clarice's son and director of
Lehona.
He said that recent publicity of the brand and several other new
swimwear lines catering to plus sizes has triggered an
overwhelming number of calls and e-mails from would-be customers.
''They're all excited and they say, 'I've been looking
everywhere for a bikini like that. Where can I get one?''' said
Rebelatto.
Lehona is currently sold exclusively at big and tall specialty
stores throughout Brazil. Its bikinis retail for about 130 reais
or US$75 ($91) - a relatively high price-point here, but
Rebelatto said sales have grown at a galloping pace, though he
did not provide any figures.
It's the same story at Acqua Rosa, a conventional swimwear label
that added a plus-size line in 2008. Now, plus-size purchases
account for more than 70 per cent of the brand's total sales,
said director Joao Macedo.
It makes sense.
For centuries, large swaths of Brazil were beset by
malnutrition, and in 1970, nearly 10 per cent of the population
in the country's poor, rural northeast region was considered
underweight, according to Brazil's national statistics institute.
But the phenomenal economic boom that has lifted tens of
millions out of poverty and into the burgeoning middle class
over the past decade has also changed the nation's once-svelte
physique: A 2010 study by the statistics institute showed that
48 per cent of adult women and 50 per cent of men are now
overweight.
In 1985, those figures were 29 per cent for women and 18 per
cent for men.
(Still, there's been no rash of plus-size male swimwear lines,
as men here wear Speedo-style suits that don't impinge on big
guts.)
Analysts attribute Brazil's rapidly widening girth to changes in
nutrition, with chips, processed meats and sugary soft drinks
replacing staples like rice, beans and vegetables.
And while the country's elite are widely known to be fitness
freaks - and also among the world's top consumers of cosmetic
surgery - those recently lifted out of poverty and manual labour
are becoming increasingly sedentary. A 2008 study showed that
barely 10 per cent of Brazilian teens and adults exercise
regularly.
Still, despite their growing numbers, not everyone is eager to
embrace ''gordinhas'' - or ''little fatties,'' as chunky women
are affectionately known here.
Many high-end bikini-makers have turned a seemingly deliberately
blind eye to the burgeoning plus-size market. Rio-based upmarket
brand Salinas, for example, offers five sizes, from extra-small
through extra-large.
But their sizing runs notoriously small and it's hard to imagine
anyone over a size 6 actually managing to fit into any of the
brand's minuscule two-pieces.
Luis Rebelatto of Lehona chalked it partially up to snobbery.
''Some brands, they don't want their image to be associated with
chunky women,'' he said. ''Only the thin, the rich and the
chic.''
While Brazilians' increasing heft is a public policy
preoccupation for the government, growth in the ranks of the
overweight population has given them increased visibility in
Brazilian society.
Extra-wide bucket seats for the obese have been installed in Sao
Paulo's metro system, and on Sunday the city will host Brazil's
first ever Miss Plus Size beauty contest.
''It used to be that people would stare at me,'' said Soares,
the voluptuous sun-worshiper on Copacabana beach. ''Now when I
come to the beach I see women who are much bigger than me - and
lots of them are wearing bikinis - so I'm not self conscious any
more.
''God makes some people thin but he made me like this,'' she
said, rubbing down the well-oiled bulge of her stomach and
thighs. ''So who am I to think that he was wrong?''
for-Brazils-bikini-wearers
Tall and tan and young and ... chunky?
The Girl From Ipanema has put on a few pounds, and for many
sunbathers on Brazil's beaches the country's iconic itsy-bitsy,
teeny-weeny bikini just doesn't suffice anymore.
A growing number of bikini manufacturers have woken up to
Brazil's thickening waistline and are reaching out to the ever-
expanding ranks of heavy women with new plus-size lines.
That's nothing short of a revolution in this most body-conscious
of nations, where overweight ladies long had little choice but
to hit the beach in comely ensembles of oversized T-shirts and
biker shorts.
''It used to be bikinis were only in tiny sizes that only skinny
girls could fit into. But not everyone is built like a model,''
said Elisangela Inez Soares as she sunbathed on Copacabana
beach, her oiled-up curves packed into a black size 12 bikini.
''Finally, it seems like people are beginning to realise that
we're not all Gisele,'' said the 38-year-old mother of four,
referring to willowy Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.
Clothing designer Clarice Rebelatto said her own swimwear-
hunting travails prompted her to found Lehona, an exclusively
plus-size beachwear line.
''Honestly, the problem went way beyond just bikinis. In Brazil,
it used to be that if you were even a little chunky, finding any
kind of clothes in the right size was a real problem,'' said
Rebelatto, herself a size 10.
''And I thought, 'I'm actually not even that big compared to a
lot of women out there, so if I have problems, what are they
doing?'''
Since its launch in 2010, the line has become a hit.
In brash leopard spots and flower prints not meant for
wallflowers, the label's 14 bikini styles aren't what ou'd
normally associate with plus-size swimsuits. The necklines
plunge dramatically. Straps are mere strings.
And while the bottoms provide too much coverage to qualify for
the famed ''fio dental'' or ''dental floss'' category of
Brazilian string bikinis, they're significantly more audacious
than the standard US cut.
''We're working from the principle that bigger women are just
like everyone else: They don't want to look like old ladies,
wearing these very modest, very covering swimsuits in just
black,'' said Luiz Rebelatto, Clarice's son and director of
Lehona.
He said that recent publicity of the brand and several other new
swimwear lines catering to plus sizes has triggered an
overwhelming number of calls and e-mails from would-be customers.
''They're all excited and they say, 'I've been looking
everywhere for a bikini like that. Where can I get one?''' said
Rebelatto.
Lehona is currently sold exclusively at big and tall specialty
stores throughout Brazil. Its bikinis retail for about 130 reais
or US$75 ($91) - a relatively high price-point here, but
Rebelatto said sales have grown at a galloping pace, though he
did not provide any figures.
It's the same story at Acqua Rosa, a conventional swimwear label
that added a plus-size line in 2008. Now, plus-size purchases
account for more than 70 per cent of the brand's total sales,
said director Joao Macedo.
It makes sense.
For centuries, large swaths of Brazil were beset by
malnutrition, and in 1970, nearly 10 per cent of the population
in the country's poor, rural northeast region was considered
underweight, according to Brazil's national statistics institute.
But the phenomenal economic boom that has lifted tens of
millions out of poverty and into the burgeoning middle class
over the past decade has also changed the nation's once-svelte
physique: A 2010 study by the statistics institute showed that
48 per cent of adult women and 50 per cent of men are now
overweight.
In 1985, those figures were 29 per cent for women and 18 per
cent for men.
(Still, there's been no rash of plus-size male swimwear lines,
as men here wear Speedo-style suits that don't impinge on big
guts.)
Analysts attribute Brazil's rapidly widening girth to changes in
nutrition, with chips, processed meats and sugary soft drinks
replacing staples like rice, beans and vegetables.
And while the country's elite are widely known to be fitness
freaks - and also among the world's top consumers of cosmetic
surgery - those recently lifted out of poverty and manual labour
are becoming increasingly sedentary. A 2008 study showed that
barely 10 per cent of Brazilian teens and adults exercise
regularly.
Still, despite their growing numbers, not everyone is eager to
embrace ''gordinhas'' - or ''little fatties,'' as chunky women
are affectionately known here.
Many high-end bikini-makers have turned a seemingly deliberately
blind eye to the burgeoning plus-size market. Rio-based upmarket
brand Salinas, for example, offers five sizes, from extra-small
through extra-large.
But their sizing runs notoriously small and it's hard to imagine
anyone over a size 6 actually managing to fit into any of the
brand's minuscule two-pieces.
Luis Rebelatto of Lehona chalked it partially up to snobbery.
''Some brands, they don't want their image to be associated with
chunky women,'' he said. ''Only the thin, the rich and the
chic.''
While Brazilians' increasing heft is a public policy
preoccupation for the government, growth in the ranks of the
overweight population has given them increased visibility in
Brazilian society.
Extra-wide bucket seats for the obese have been installed in Sao
Paulo's metro system, and on Sunday the city will host Brazil's
first ever Miss Plus Size beauty contest.
''It used to be that people would stare at me,'' said Soares,
the voluptuous sun-worshiper on Copacabana beach. ''Now when I
come to the beach I see women who are much bigger than me - and
lots of them are wearing bikinis - so I'm not self conscious any
more.
''God makes some people thin but he made me like this,'' she
said, rubbing down the well-oiled bulge of her stomach and
thighs. ''So who am I to think that he was wrong?''