The fashion industry has been rapidly changing in recent years by bringing back older styles, like claw clips and scrunchies. I think, with these changes, should come things that should leave the fashion industry forever. For example, one size fits all clothing. Though the fashion industry has become more diverse and inclusive than it was the last time claw clips were trendy, one size fits all clothing does not reflect true inclusivity because it is only targeting small amounts of people. If we are being honest, there are three reasons why I think one size fits all clothing should be banned from fashion: it is not realistic, it is not inclusive and it doesn’t make companies any money. This begs the question: why is this clothing produced in the first place?
- It is not realistic.
If you are familiar with the brand Brandy Mellvile, then you know how absurdly small their clothing is. If you are not familiar, it is a women’s clothing company that is notorious for having an unrealistic size selection on top of having one size fits all clothing. Though their garments are labeled as one size fits all, when you really look at the clothing, it will only realistically fit a size double 0 to a 4 (extra small to medium). This clothing range leaves out a lot of sizes and is not realistic for everyone to fit in. Imagine Shaquille O’Neal wearing an extra small shirt, there is no way that is going to happen. And I know some of you may be thinking, “But isn’t that shirt marketed towards being a woman’s top?” Sure, but if the label says one size fits all then it should live up to that expectation, and it usually never does.
- It is not inclusive.
When brands like Brandy Melville make smaller sizes their norm, it leaves out a lot of other sizes. This creates the basis of their company saying you either have to fit into these sizes, or you can’t buy from us. This could lead to girls having low self esteem because they think they have to fit into those clothes to be beautiful. That is especially true because when you look at Brandy Melville’s Instagram. It is all thinner models modeling the clothing. In reality, people come in all shapes and sizes and trying to present an item of clothing as one size fits all is not being body inclusive to everyone.
- It loses companies money.
Let’s compare Aerie (another women’s clothing company) to Brandy Melville. In 2017, Brandy Melville had $125 million in annual sales. I know that sounds like a lot, but their annual sales dropped to $34 million in 2020, which is a huge drop. Let’s compare this to Aerie who has a size range of XXS to XXL and includes models of all body types in their advertisements. In 2015, Aerie made $310 million in annual sales, and in 2020, they had $1.19 billion! While Brandy Melville lost money, Aerie zoomed right by them in annual sales. When companies aren’t being conscious about how times are changing, then other companies will step in to take their place.
I think it is simple. By removing one size fits all clothing from the fashion industry, we can make it more realistic, inclusive, and make companies more money. Who wouldn’t want that!