Why Serena Williams Is Using This Word to Describe Her Latest Collection Instead of "Plus Size"

Over the weekend, Serena Williams announced an exciting component to her eponymous fashion line: The addition of sizes beyond XL. Williams, who launched Serena (opens in new tab) back in May 2018, partnered with Neighborhood Goods (opens in new tab), a Dallas-based retail company, for this new announcement. (Williams' Serena line is already offered on the Neighborhood Goods website.)

Instead of referring to this new collection as "plus size" or calling it "extended sizes," Williams has a fresh take on the nomenclature. She's calling it Great.

"I got tired of the word 'plus.' I don't want to be 'plus.' I want to be great," Williams, who, herself, is in-between sizes, tells MarieClaire.com. "I want other women to feel that way too. I wanted to make clothes that would fit a curvy women and have them feel great, let's focus on that."

The Serena Great Collection launched with pieces in sizes 1X to 3X (dress sizes 14 to 24). On Neighborhood Goods and Williams' own website (opens in new tab), you'll find casual black leggings, a sequin skirt for holiday parties, and a chic ruched dress. Though the selections are limited right now, this appears to be her first step towards launching more clothes in this size category. You can shop the Great Collection, below.

Prices for the new collection remain the same as her current offerings—all under $200—a point Williams emphasized during our conversation. "It’s important to me to have high quality pieces without them costing $500," she tells me. "I personally love fast fashion, it's fun fashion, but there is nothing out there like that with amazing quality that lasts forever, so I'm creating it."

The journey to designing her own fashion line hasn't been easy, however, as Williams noted in an Instagram post (opens in new tab) back in May. When I bring this up, Williams shares with me that while it was discouraging for people in the fashion industry to tell her "no," she didn't let that stop her for building a line. Instead, she "cut out the middleman," and went for a "direct-to-consumer approach," by launching her fashion line herself. The approach, clearly, was successful.

When I ask the star what advice she'd give to other women being told no in the pursuit of their dreams, Williams says, "You can’t let that word discourage you. You have to believe that you can do it, that this can work. Turn something negative into a positive."

This determination to bring the best fashion possible to her customers of all sizes is what makes Serena and her namesake clothing line so...Great. 

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