What 'modest' means to the women who actually buy our clothes

In July we ran long interviews with three GlamStyle customers — one in Manchester, one in Riyadh, one in Lahore — about what they mean when they buy 'modest fashion.' The answers weren't what the industry tells itself.

All three rejected the word 'modest' as a category. None of them felt more religious when they wore our clothes; all of them felt more themselves. The word modest, to them, was functional — sleeves that covered, hems that didn't need adjustment, necklines they didn't have to pull up. Not a moral statement.

More interesting: all three said the deciding factor when they bought from us versus a mainstream brand wasn't coverage. It was construction. They assumed they'd get proper coverage from us. What they couldn't get from a UK high-street brand was sleeves that didn't ride up when they lifted their arms, a hem that didn't need pressing before every wear, a waistband that didn't dig in by lunch.

What we took from this, design-wise: our job isn't to add more fabric. It's to make the fabric we use behave. The Mariam jersey set doesn't ride up because we finished the hems with bound edges instead of overlock. The Zahra Abaya doesn't flap at the wrist because the sleeve is set in, not dropped. Small things. They're what people actually notice.