Why can’t clothes shops sell clothes in sizes in proportion to the population

[noggla]

50% of women are 16-18, so make half the clothes of that size. It makes more sense as Clothes retailers probably get more sales as if make fewer size 8 clothes. As the latter goes in the sale. Same with shoes. Make more 7-8. Also introduce size 9s.

I’m not sure they are, i know plenty of size 12’s and 14’s too, my dd is an 8. I’m a 5 shoe, my DD’s are 4 and 3 respectively

I never shop in actual retail shops anymore so I don’t know what things are like now.

Are there never enough 16/18 sizes and lots of 8/10s?

I agree it makes sense to stock in proportion to average sizes in order to satisfy demand and maximise profit which is surely the aim of the company.

Of course they look at what sizes sell out and which don’t.

But they can’t make an infinite quantity of a particular item and they can’t always predict what will prove very popular and what won’t.

I imagine shops sell what people buy. Half the population might be plus size, but perhaps plus size people don't buy as many clothes as size 8s.

Most of the cheap mass produced clotjes would be made in China ans just each country's labels stick on them i presume

I do wonderwhy the whole world can't be the same sizing though so a eg 16 in England is the same in Turkey, Venezuela, Boreno etc. same for shoes, Tablespoons everything

As a size 8-10 I usually find that there’s very little in the sales in my size and it’s all big sizes left.

I find it’s often the big sizes left including massive shoe sizes. I don’t know many women who need size 9 shoes.

I’m a size 10 and find my size sells out very quickly so I think YABU.

Yep. I find it increasingly difficult to find clothes in my size (6-8 depending on the shop), even when not in the sale and particularly when I’m looking for cheaper things (T-shirts, vests, etc.) in supermarkets/cheaper brands.

FWIW OP I'm a size 12, size 5 shoe and my sizes are always in stock. I think us "mediums" get the best deal.

Agreed.

Same here.

I'm a size 10 and the shops rarely have any clothes in my size. It's size 4 or size 22.

Perhaps the 16 - 18s should lose the weight . . . Normalising being fat is not something society should be doing.

OP, you do realise your thread will be a magnet for people complaining that all clothes nowadays are too big for them?😆

Wild that you don't realise high street retailers literally have teams of people analysing current sales data to plan future production and stock....

oh god please can shops actually accurately size things - in the past few years my body has stayed the same size and I am now an 8 in most places, I was never and will never be an 8 as I am 5ft 6 and athletic - size 8 is petite

And also I don’t think the majority of the population is that size-

Its more the inaacurate/random sizing that bothers me. I have everything from an XS/8 to an XL/18 in my wardrobe. Zara the worst offender for years tho I notice they put actual measurments on their website now. Some brands blatantly vanity size eg Hush. I spend a lot of time trying things on on reterning them.

I thought 14/16 was the size of the average woman in the UK. Has it gone up?

I’m a size 12-14 and can almost never find my size in the sales - it’s all plus sizes with the occasional size 6.

YABU. I’m a size 12 and it’s a very popular size usually one of the first to sell out when I shop

I think we don’t buy clothes equally across all ranges though. When I was young and thin I spent loads on clothes. I am older and fatter and spend about 200 quid a year and half of that is on vinted. Retailers buying involves a lot of calculated guesswork on target demographics and likely sales.

I do think they’ve got much better at shoes I’m a 41 which used to be an 8 at some stores and impossible to get , 7 in others and available. Most ranges seem to go to at least 42 now which is an 8/9 .

Brands have different target markets. There are more slim women in their twenties, so shops targeting that age group would likely have more sizes in those ranges.

Size varies by area as well. I doubt if 50% of women near me are size 16-18, although that might be true for the country as a whole.

When I was a size 24 all I saw on the hangers were sizes 8-10, now Im a size 8 -10, all I see are size 24s

Agree.

My beef is that clothes are made in a huge variety of width sizes and yet they are virtually all made the same length which tends to assume that women are all around 5’7” or taller. That means expensive alterations and spoiling the proportions of the garment.

More length choice please.