Last month, writers at Models Direct were impressed by H&M’s refreshing approach to a recent size 14-24 beachwear shoot.

Resulting advertising did not take the usual step of fan-faring the fact that this collection was meant to be worn by those who are considered to be ‘plus-size’. Instead H&M simply referred to the range as ‘this season’s new swimwear’ and showed it being modelled by the stunning, UK  size 16, Jennie Runk.

The response was so great that shortly after the campaign shots were released Runk wrote an article in BBC News magazine about her experiences as the face of the new designs: “I found it strange that people made such a fuss about how my body looks in a bikini, since I don’t usually give it much thought,” she said.

“When my Facebook fan page gained about 2,000 new likes in 24 hours, I decided to use the attention as an opportunity to make the world a little nicer by promoting confidence. I’ve since been receiving lots of messages from fans, expressing gratitude.

“Some even told me that my confidence has inspired them to try on a bikini for the first time in years. This is exactly the kind of thing I’ve always wanted to accomplish, showing women that it’s OK to be confident even if you’re not the popular notion of “perfect”.

“This message is especially important for teenage girls. Being a teenage girl is incredibly difficult. They need all the help and support they can get.”

The 24-year-old finished by saying: “There’s no need to glamorise one body type and slam another. We need to stop this absurd hatred towards bodies for being different sizes. It doesn’t help anyone and it’s getting old.”