I have been shopping for new clothes in Kunming and it seems like I've been really having to do a lot of leg work to find clothes that fit me. I'm 6 foot 1 and 205 pounds, so I'm not out of the ordinary in terms of height and weight. But it seems like all the shops in Yun Fang clothes market have small stalls and limited stock. Are there any stores the specialize in larger sizes? For one day all I could find was one shoe store (my size 10 and half) and one store where I could buy pants. And last!!! Everything in Kunming is polyester, does anybody sell cotton shirts?

Larger sizes are indeed available, but scarce. You area probably used to a standard "XL" size. that translates to a "XXXL" size in most Chinese clothing produced for domestic distribution. Cotton blends are available in clothing like knit golf/sport shirts in popular brands like Nike and Adidas as well as the Chinese brand Li Ning. Stores that sell that kind of clothing are all over Kunming, but you can definitely find them on Renmin Zhong Lu. Much of the minority clothing is also made of natural fibers (cotton, linen or silk). Business clothing like dress shirts, dress slacks and jackets are going to be almost impossible to find in your size, but having them custom made is easy, fast and reasonable inexpensive. There are many shops on Beijing Lu south of Dongfeng Lu that specialize in custom made Qipao's for the ladies that also do a great job with men's suits and slacks in Western styles. Finally, shoes larger than size 10 are not available readily anywhere in China. I had to travel to Hong Kong to find size 13's and even then large size availability was not universal. My recommendation to others planning on an extended stay to Kunming (or anywhere else in China) is to bring a good basic wardrobe with you if you wear sizes larger than "M" or shoe sizes larger than "10."

you know, people in yunnan are quite slim and not tall as a wall. but it is cheaper in china to make a clothes for you then buy one. so why not make one? the place to make clothes is cai feng dian裁缝店

for hiking/walking shoes (up to size 14!), try the sports
shops along 文化巷。 due south of there, at the first
intersection just past the veggie market, is a small shop
that carries a small selection of larger dress shoes (up to
size 12).

you should have no problem finding shirts and jeans in
your size almost anywhere, (i'm 6'2", 180 lb. and can
find most anything). of course, off-the-rack suits may
be problematic.

if you need a place to start, there's a clothing store in the
shopping area behind the 龙泉路 carrefour with a rack of
(knockoff) lee/levi's in normal sizes (i.e. 32W/34L)