Kahu Henare, owner of One Fit Hire, dressed up in the Beca Plisse Set. Photo / Supplied
Kahu Henare, owner of One Fit Hire, dressed up in the Beca Plisse Set. Photo / Supplied
Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
A Māori-owned clothing rental business is paving the way for change in plus-size fashion for wāhine.
Kahu Henare is the 24-year-old business owner of One Fit Hire, a clothing rental service providing quality, event-worthy garments ranging from sizes 6 to 26.
Notonly does Henare run her own business through a Newmarket shopfront and an online platform, but she's also a full-time occupational therapist working in mental health.
The young entrepreneur says she is passionate about both lines of work. Bringing what she's learned to the practical side of her business, Henare sees the crossover between mental health and plus-size fashion all the time.
"I see it in everyday people coming in. I think seeing the girls' confidence and even girls coming through and being like "oh my gosh, I was just having a breakdown at home and now I've found this dress and I feel so much better."
Some of One Fit Hire's selection of dresses at their Newmarket store. Photo / Supplied
"I always make a really big deal to the girls about how amazing they look because I've only met them for half an hour, I never know what's going on for them. As long as they've had a lovable experience finding a dress".
Henare started OFH 5 years ago after a bad shopping experience trying to find a school ball gown.
"I grew up always a big girl since I was younger and I grew up with girls who were smaller than me. I didn't really think it was a big deal until I went to my school ball in year 13 and I couldn't find a dress".
The rental shops were a failure. Henare wasn't able to find a dress that fitted her body type and says she was made to feel inadequate because of it. With the experience etched in her mind for the next couple of weeks, Henare realised, "oh wow, these shops aren't really catered to my body. I'm like 17 and if shops aren't catering to my body at this age then what is out there for people who are bigger than me?".
With the lack of good-quality, plus-size options in New Zealand malls or by other clothing rental companies, Henare's mum suggested hiring out the clothes she already had to help out other women like her.
She says her drive is motivated by seeing how other people treat women who are over size 16. She believes that women tend to get misread in terms of what they wear.
She also thinks that there's a stigma behind that if you're over size 16 you shouldn't wear things that show a bit of skin.
Model and customer Angel Lerm in the Athena dress
"I try to incorporate pieces that are very "risque" to encourage other wāhine to feel like they can wear whatever they want, it looks good and they feel good as well. We talked about how options available in the shops don't really reflect what women should be wearing so if I can be that person that has a few things that women would like to wear that's a bonus for me".
The business' social media presence is growing, with more than 7000 followers on Instagram.
Henare acquired a shop space earlier this year through Facebook Marketplace on Newmarket's Broadway alongside many popular boutiques. She says getting the shop has changed everything about her brand as she's now able to appeal to more people.
A long-time customer and model of OFH, Angel Lerm, says that it's changed her life and has taken a massive weight off of her shoulders.
"As a curvier girl it isn't always easy to find your size in every shop you go to or even just something flattering for your body type… She's (Kahu) saved me from the constant loops around the mall on the hunt for something to wear to an event, she's saved me from ordering something online and being disappointed because it doesn't fit right".
Lerm says these types of businesses are important because we're not all built the same, their inclusive range has provided a platform to remind women that "we all deserve to feel good about ourselves and have confidence with whatever body we're in".
Henare made the move from Wellington to Auckland before starting her business. She says that access to great quality garments for women may be more difficult in other places around New Zealand, especially rural areas.
Tiana Foua, a customer and owner of her own online plus-size rental clothing business Curvy Girl Hire, says there aren't many stores that cater to bigger women in her hometown of Taupō.
"I always got anxiety going into a shop looking for something to try on just to walk out with nothing because I couldn't fit it! It shouldn't have to be a struggle to hire dresses as a plus-size woman, we need more shops that do what One Fit Hire and myself do, we need to be catering to all shapes and sizes".
With OFH's Instagram filled with photos of customers looking ecstatic in their hired outfits, Lerm says that it makes a huge difference for people to see the dresses on a real body instead of a professional model.
Henare says that social media can have a big impact on people's mental health and influence women's perspectives about themselves. As such, she endeavours to incorporate body positivity and self-love messaging on the company's social media pages because of it.
When asked what change the country needs to make to see the impact that she's creating, Henare says that retail stores need to be more accessible, not just online, and they need to offer dresses that have the capacity to fit a range of sizes, not just one. Affordability and quality style options are also important..
"I believe fashion is a true expression of yourself, what you stand for and how you're feeling and like, if people aren't getting that then that sort of translates to self-confidence, then your mental wellbeing, and it all just comes back to mental health again, you know?".
