PRETTY LITTLE THING has been praised online for featuring their “first” hijab-wearing model to advertise clothes on their site.
The new promotional shots feature 21-year-old model Billy Marsal, who sports the brand’s plus size range in a series of stunning shots.
London-based Billy revealed how she had been selected to model after previously working with the fashion retailer as a brand ambassador.
PLT have previously worked with a Hijab wearing model for a one off campaign, however Billy’s photos appear alongside the brand’s mainstream collection online.
She took to Twitter to post snaps from her campaign yesterday, which have since been liked more than 442,000 times.
The images show Billy sporting a range of outfits including a £28 mustard puff sleeve dress and a £35 black jumpsuit.
Influencer Billy shared the images from PLT’s website and said: “So that’s me. The first hijabi on PLT! Still so wild to me.”
Both Billy and PLT have since received an outpouring of support from fans.
@Ramlikemommy said: “It’s nice to see an increase in diversity and representation among popular fashion brands. Also beautiful photos.”
@saltmxmes added: “I don’t know you but holy moly I’m so proud. Seeing some hijabi representation in the mainstream media is a huge step for us.
Sarah Chiwaya replied: “Gorgeous, definitely about to go back to their site for the first time in ages because you are selling these clothes.”
And Dorothy Bachor said: “This is exceptionally beautiful.”
Speaking today, Billy explained: “I’ve worked with them before for PR collaborations on Instagram.
“Pretty Little Thing recently launched the Middle Eastern range and they reached out via direct message for me as a Muslim to represent the idea and I got to be apart of the campaign that way.”
Last year, PLT featured Muslim and hijab-wearing influencer Yasmin Jay in its campaign for International Women’s Day.
However, Billy’s achievement appears to mark the first time a hijab-wearing model has been featured in a mainstream collection.
A spokeswoman for PLT said today: “Following our successful launch into the Middle East we are delighted to be launching our ‘Modest clothing’ collection on site.
“Our ethos of ‘EveryBODYinPLT is extremely important to us, so it’s been amazing seeing such positive customer feedback and working with models who represent all of our customer base.”
