SKY NEWS 8th December 2006

Men Seen Filling Out

Sales of plus-size men's clothing are rising at a "phenomenal" rate.

Demand for clothes with a waist size of 37" and bigger rose by 15% over the past year, bringing in £718m, market analysts TNS said.

It is the fastest growing clothing sector on the High Street, in contrast to men's clothes below that size which suffered a 1% sales dip.

The over-45s account for 72% of the plus-size men's clothing market.

But demand for outsize clothes amongst under-25s rose by 56% in the last year.

Casualwear is the biggest selling type of plus-size men's clothing.

Formal wear also saw rising sales over the past year, with suits up 28%.

"The market needs to realise that there is a growing number of younger, fashion-conscious men looking for plus-sized clothing," TNS's Brenda Gobine said.

The findings are based on a survey of purchasing trends from 15,000 British individuals carried out by TNS Worldpanel Fashion over 24 weeks to August 20, 2006.