This past Friday at the University of Michigan’s Fashion Media Summit, influencer Remi Bader took the stage. While her interview was entirely virtual, presented on the large projector in the Ross School of Business’ Robertson Auditorium, her message was still clear. Famous for her “body positive” platform, Bader has inspired her followers to reach new levels of confidence and self-love. The interview lasted half an hour and was led by MFMS co-Presidents Talia Potters and Hannah Shipley.
Beginning with a discussion of Bader’s background in public relations and marketing, and finishing with her hopes for body inclusivity in the fashion industry, Potters and Shipley took us through Bader’s story, in Bader’s words, with ease. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bader was let go from her job and, like everybody at the time, downloaded the TikTok app. This was the first time she saw “curvy” girls and plus-sized fashion in a media setting, Bader said. Inspired by this, and in a search for more confidence, Bader started producing content, what she called “silly” try-on clothing hauls. These videos she called “realistic hauls” — where she would order several outfits from well-known brands such as Zara, PrettyLittleThing or Fashion Nova and compare the size and fit to the website pictures. Now, she moves beyond realistic hauls and into topics such as mental health and her day-to-day life.
When asked how she would describe her transition into social media, she firmly said, “I never wanted to be the ‘spokesperson’ for body positivity. I just wanted to show my life and be a positive inspiration.” And that she did. Several years into her new career, Bader has amassed a following of over 2.2 million on TikTok, and 540,000 on Instagram. In the interview, she mentions how lucky she feels to have this large of a platform, and that her “blow up” was as unexpected as it could’ve been. She believes that TikTok has become more saturated with body positivity content now, relative to the time of her “blow up.” To her, timing was everything.
Aside from a social media career, Bader has also transitioned into clothing design and line curation. Her collaboration with Revolve, a popular online shopping website, was indeed the first time the company had up to size 4X in a line. It all began with one of her “realistic Revolve hauls” in which Bader beseeched the company to “do better.” Upon the video’s upload, Revolve instantly reached out to Bader, asking if she would be interested in designing her own line. When developing the line, she started with the design team, working on silhouettes and body shapes, with a variety of loose-fitting and tighter clothing depending on consumers’ level of comfort. In the future, she hopes to continue this relationship with Revolve. While her brand was a catalyst for the company’s first size-inclusive line, Bader still believes that the fashion industry has much to do. Her mission will always be to keep the conversation going about body positivity and confidence at any size. To achieve this, Bader consistently reaches out to brands, offering the names of plus-sized models and encouraging companies to invite these girls to brand trips or events. This work allows the fashion industry to reach new levels of inclusivity — a difference that Bader pioneered.
Regarding the future, Bader said, “I am always waiting for the next exciting thing to happen, and to see what I am passionate about over time.” She closes with a piece of advice for students who want to enter the content creation industry: “Start something,” she said. “You want to start something that is important and unique to you.”
Bader’s influence and positive, hopeful perspective brought the house down on Friday, and the U-M student body is eager to see what Bader does next.
Daily Arts Writer Skylar Wallison can be reached at skylarmw@umich.edu.