Unique, Stylish, + Comfy: Kasbah Clothing: Plus Size Fashion

Kasbah Clothing is an online clothing retailer, – with the sole purpose of providing comfortable, stylish pieces for plus size women, – starting out at size 14.

The brand is the brainchild of a British fashion designer named Heather Benhrima.

Heather’s design philosophy is derived from Kasbah’s geographical origins: Marrakech, Morocco. Each piece is designed and handmade, – using fabrics that are sourced from Paris and Amsterdam; by a small, dedicated team.

Kasbah produces vibrant styles with rich textures and bold prints. Heather has used her experience in the plus size fashion industry to create designs that fit and flatter plus size figures – with an emphasis on comfort, quality, and wearability.

Despite being just over three years old (in its latest incarnation), the label has grown steadily every year. The global pandemic failed to halt the rapid progress of the brand, and there is every reason to believe that Kasbah Clothing will reach the heights that it once did back in 2006 (in an earlier incarnation), – when it was stocked in 350+ stores in the UK, France, and Spain.

Also, the recruitment of Becky Barnes (a plus-size fashion writer and influencer – who is now Kasbah Clothing’s Creative Director) has been instrumental in the brand’s recent expansion.

Heather Benhrima’s story starts on a holiday in Marrakech, the ancient Moroccan city. Although Heather had always had a keen eye for fashion, and an interest in design, it was this trip that kick-started her career in the industry.

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She met her now-husband, Abdellatif – on that very same vacation. The couple briefly relocated to the UK in the 1990’s, where they ran a Moroccan Arts and Crafts store in the Lakeside Shopping Centre, Essex. They quickly came to realise that their creations were not selling all year round, so they decided to add clothing to their range, and this is where Heather’s career as a fashion designer began.

“You don’t have to be a size ten to wear my clothes. Even if we were ALL a size 10, we wouldn’t all have the same body shape. Some of us would have small shoulders or large hips, and if you are plus size, then weight doesn’t distribute evenly. Just because you are bigger, it doesn’t mean that you’ll want to wear clothes that are the wrong shape or style. You’ll want to wear nice fabrics and patterns,” said Heather Benhrima.

NEXT UP: Heather and Abdellatif decided to relocate permanently to Marrakech, so that Heather could focus on her business. With the help of a fellow designer, named Paula Keech (and her sister Corinne), Heather grew Kasbah to supply 350 shops across the UK, with 6 UK agents, and a 4 further agents in France and Spain by 2006.

When the 2008-2009 recession happened, Heather began to design for another successful UK plus size brand, which she continued on with until 2018, however, during this time, she felt as though she had lost creative control over her designs, so she reincarnated Kasbah Clothing in 2019.

Find out more here: https://kasbahclothing.com