Dive Brief:

• Plus retailer Torrid last week withdrew its plans for an initial public offering, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

• The plan was originally registered publicly on July 10, 2017, according to the filing.

• In its filing, the company said it "believes that the withdrawal of the Registration Statement would be consistent with the public interest and the protection of investors."

Dive Insight:

Torrid enjoys strong loyalty, and has risen among consumers' favorite specialty retail chains, according to a loyalty index from Foursquare emailed to Retail Dive earlier this year.

The Sycamore Partners-owned women's plus retailer has been busy since last year's promotion of Liz Muñoz to CEO, debuting a lingerie line with supermodel Tara Lynn and, more recently, a wedding dress collection.

But the space is being disrupted by a host of new online players and brands, including those offering a range of sizes rather than just plus sizes. Women don't want to have to resort to plus size brands to find their size, according to retail and fashion technology firm Edited. Target, Nordstrom, J. Crew and a host of other retailers and brands have answered that demand with apparel in a wide range of sizes.

That's put pressure on specialists like Torrid and Ascena's Lane Bryant and Catherine's stores. "The figures from Ascena [reflecting falling sales] show that the plus size customer does not want to be separated at brick and mortar," CEO Jane Hali told Retail Dive in an email earlier this year.

Those specialized players may be losing market share, but they remain important to these customers, as long as they offer stylish merchandise, according to Marie Driscoll, managing director of luxury and fashion at global retail think tank Coresight Research. But the state of the market may have made an IPO untenable for Torrid and its private equity owner.