Readers have been given the opportunity to submit pictures of themselves in the hopes that they may be the next Brigitte photo shoot star, and they will be paid the same amount as a professional model (probably not as much as Kate Moss, but it’s still pretty good).

The magazine’s decision has been met with both praise and criticism. Some see it simply as a marketing ploy, while successful German designer Karl Lagerfield has been very outspoken about his lack of support for the magazine. Lagerfield stated that he believed that the decision was driven by overweight women who did not like to be reminded of their weight issues. He said, ‘These are fat mummies sitting with their bags of crisps in front of the television saying that thin models are ugly.’ Harsh Karl, very harsh.

As much as the magazine wants to show ordinary women, they have made the decision that they will only show women size 8-16; Lebert has said, ‘We are not going to become a magazine for plus-sizes.’ One blogger wrote that this decision was still discriminatory, ‘It’s like the popular girls inviting your friend to be in the club, leaving you all alone.’ It seems that there will be limits on what ‘ordinary’ women in Brigitte will look like.

One of Lagerfield’s other arguments was that fashion is about dreams and aspirations, and that includes the models. He believes that women want to see clothes on an aesthetically pleasing person, rather than on someone who they may view as their counterpart. As high fashion items are unattainable for most, is it fitting that the models’ looks and bodies should be unattainable too?