Anna Scholz

Anna Scholz (born 1969) is an established plus size designer for the self-labelled luxury plus size fashion brand known for its "clever, on-trend designs"^[1] with bright bold prints, striking silhouettes and luxurious fabrics. Having already styled the likes of Adele, Melissa McCarthy and Dawn French, the Anna Scholz brand is well established within the Plus Size clothing industry.^[2] The brand's philosophy comes from Anna's personal beliefs that all women should "dress up in something luxurious whatever their shape – clothes should never be worn just to hide in.^[3]

Early career

Anna Scholz was born in the German city of Kettwig, but was raised mostly in Hamburg, Germany after her family relocated in 1976.^[4] At 6 foot 1 inches and a size 16 by the time she was 13 Anna became fed up wearing "frumpy pleated clothes for middle-aged women".^[5] She therefore started sewing and pattern cutting classes at the age of 14 and began to design clothes for herself to wear.^[5] After leaving school in 1988 she started working as a plus size fashion model whilst also studying English and Art at Stanford University, California. She showed further interest in design when she completed a 6-month work placement as a graphic designer at the renowned German advertising agency Scholz & Friends in 1989. Then, in 1990 Anna moved to London full-time in order to study fashion design at Central St Martins School of Art and Design; graduating in 1994 with a BA Honours Degree.

In 1993, whilst still studying, Anna opened a shop called 'Morgana' in the prestigious Portobello Green area of Notting Hill, London selling her own designs; a venture initially supported by the Princes Youth Business Trust.^[4] Anna moved into her first design studio in 1996 in Ladbroke Grove and one of her first major wholesale orders was placed by the American plus size chain of stores, Lane Bryant (part of The Limited Group of Companies), As part of the relationship with Lane Bryant, Anna was asked to be a guest judge of the nationwide competition to find 'The Real Lane Bryant Woman' The finals of the competition and a fashion show were held in New York's prestigious Puck Building with Shirley MacLaine hosting and Chaka Khan singing the finale.

Over the following few years the company embarked on a process of exhibiting at fashion trade shows across the world to highlight the collections of inspired and inspiring fashion for a specific plus size clientele, participating in the first British Plus Size Fashion Week, as well as London Fashion Week, Pure London, Moda UK, CPD Germany, Pret a Porter Paris, Moda Milano, Workshop New York, WWIN Las Vegas and the Atelier Designers show in New York.^[6]

In 2000 Anna started the first of several design collaborations: a collection of women's wear and lingerie for the' Designers for Debenhams' project was launched. Then in 2006 Anna began designing a diffusion brand for the JD Williams catalogue 'Simply Be' which has included womenswear, swimwear, lingerie and shoes "with the aim of giving curvy women an enjoyable shopping experience".^[2] In September 2013 an event was held in New York showcasing Anna's new collection for Simply Be, as well as pieces from her own collection to be released on the website. Plus size model Ashley Graham was a surprise guest as the face of the collections.^[7]

Stockists have included Harrods, Selfridges and House of Fraser in the UK; Saks 5th Ave and Bloomingdales in New York; Ludwig Beck and the prestigious online store Navabi in Germany, and the Japanese department store Takashimaya. Then in 2014 Anna started working on a special birthday collection for the German plus size fashion brand, Sheego, which led to the design of a full capsule collection which features both online and offline in their catalogue.

Brand

Anna states that she is constantly being inspired, whether it is by strong women such as Frida Kahlo and Coco Chanel, people watching, or the women around her every day, she has been inspired by many people from all corners of the creative world.^[2] She asserts that they have all contributed to her design ideas and philosophy that "great design works with a woman's curves, not in spite of them."^[8] As a strong speaker for the inclusion of bigger sizes in the fashion industry, Anna represents the plus sizes: "herself a tall, full-figured woman, and it's obvious that having a body like many of her customers has allowed her to understand them. She knows we want to take risks. She knows we want to wear quirky and fun pieces. And her designs reflect that."^[9]

In an interview in the Daily Telegraph, Anna described the ethos behind her designs as "celebratory rather than apologetic" complimenting her "sexy, funky and directional" personal style, Anna told reporter Bronwyn Cosgrave. In a bid to transform the fashion industry she designs her collections first and then scales it only to size 16-28, therefore leading to the brand's adoption of the hashtag, #ExclusivelyPlusSize. In defiance of the industry norms, Anna states: "We are not scared of strapless. ... Our necklines plunge. And we are not worried about showing off curves, or a big leg. We don't cut broader for a bigger bottom. We cut to achieve a slim line look rather than a boxy silhouette."^[10]

Shop

The Anna Scholz official website www.annascholz.com, was launched in 2007 and was redesigned by the creative team at POD1 in 2009. In 2015 the website has been further upgraded to keep up with eCommerce demands by The Glasshouse Project. www.annascholz.com is now the biggest and most comprehensive stockist of the main Anna Scholz collections and attracts a global customer base. The website features new products, exclusive designs and behind the scenes information about Anna, the clothing and the company mascot, Frida. The site also features a blog, started in 2011, which features plus size style tips, fashion trends and news, as well as updates from Anna and the team.

In the media

Anna is frequently brought into plus size debates and its presence within the fashion industry due to her "celebratory rather than apologetic" attitude to size.^[10] She is often cited as a designer deliberately trying to diversify the current perception of beauty. Through this approach, Anna has personally appeared on TV and Radio many times in her career, including appearances on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour, GMTV and an episode of Gok Wan's Fashion Fix^[11] that showed how a plus size woman with the influence of Anna's collection felt great wearing print and colour after jettisoning her black only wardrobe. Gok cited "Anna's colours and prints as perfect for the curvy figure".^[12]

The BBC's ' Mary Queen of Shops in 2008 saw retail guru Mary Portas introduce a failing fashion store in Ascot to Anna and her label in the hope of saving the business and educating the owner in the needs of her plus size customers. After the programme aired the brand saw a 72% increase in sales of the range in Harrods, as well as 35 new retail outlets looking to stock her pieces. The feature even caused annascholz.com to crash due to internet sales and is often referred to as one of the most influential features for the brand.^[10]

Having been born in Germany, Anna has always had a strong influence in the German fashion industry. Following her collaborations with Sheego she made an appearance on Germany's most popular panel show NDR Talkshow in 2013.^[13]

After her own health scare Anna sought a new, healthier lifestyle. As the face of the designer Plus Size brand, Anna has worked to promote a healthy body image while trying to change the perception of curvy women in society.^[14] In a bid to do so, Anna has teamed up with plus sized magazine SLiNK's Rivkie Baum to host a panel discussion with mental and physical health experts examining how to encourage curvy women to lead healthier lifestyles.^[15] In another collaboration with SLiNK magazine, Anna participates in a healthy eating campaign on YouTube called 'Anna's Kitchen' where she shares her favourite recipes to encourage viewers to eat a balanced diet.^[16]

References