Written by Alyson Reinhard.
Clothing brands and social media platforms have begun to address that there isn’t one ideal perfect body and that everyone is shaped differently. Although several teen clothing brands are generating body diversity throughout their models, changes in sizing have yet to occur.
Brandy Melville, a popular clothing store known for their “one size fits all” items, was introduced to the U.S. in 2009. Despite their stores being relatively new and rare in the United States, the clothing store, which targets teenage girls, has gained an immense amount of popularity among their customers.
Since Brandy Melville’s introduction, several other clothing companies, such as American Eagle and Urban Outfitters, jumped on the idea of having a one size fits all clothing line to follow the successful trend set by Brandy Melville.
Producing only one size clothing may be cheaper for companies and possibly more convenient for some customers. But the issue with this type of clothing is that one size does not fit all, or even most.
I personally find one-sized clothing from Brandy Melville and other sellers ill fitting, despite what their label insists.
With manufacturers only making one size, they fail to recognize that women come in different weights, heights and body shapes. Companies start to neglect the women who do not fit under their desired size range. With this, “one size fits all” really turns out to be “one size fits small.”
While the average American woman is between a dress size 16 to 18, Brandy Melville models are known to be tall and slim. Whether it’s intentional or not, brands are restricting the majority of women who don’t fit in the “one size fits small” category from buying their clothing.
The “one size fits all” label implies the expectation that all women should be the same shape and size. If the fashion industry were to highlight more body inclusiveness by creating sizes for all body types, then women wouldn’t have to feel as if they need to change their physique in order to fit in the clothes.
Women shouldn’t feel obligated to change their bodies to fit into clothes. Clothes should be designed to fit them.