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.

What are you on about? Vanity sizing for Petite? No-one wants to shop in the Petite section surely 😂 why would you want to be a short arse?

I'm guessing by the fact you struggle to find size 4-6 clothes and want more size 2-3 shoes that you're short.

Therefore, it's pretty logical that people who are tall are going to be different to short people and need larger shoes and clothes sizes. Pretty much every shop has a petite range that's adjusted leg lengths and shoulder widths etc for shorter people. But, if you're tall, you're lucky to get some longer length trousers and just have to live with sleeves and tops that are just too short.

Its like the teeny tiny bat signal goes up 😂😂😂

Sizing is so random though. As others have said, I have 10/12/14/16, I have M/L/XL. Fortunately shoes don't seem to have the same issue. Although it would be nice to have 4.5, I have to go for 5.

And I never, ever, go by the sizing charts. If you are at all unbalanced, big boobs for example, they suggest a size 18..... I would look like a child who has borrowed he dad's clothes in a size 18.

I’m a size 8-10 and it’s always the large sizes on the racks. Even worse if you’re petite.

This!

It’s always big sizes left in nice clothes, I find.

This. I actually think retailers have got this wrong.

I am a 50 year old petite woman who is a true size 8 (I mention my age because I think it’s relevant to note that I don’t want to shop at Urban Outfitters or Hollister).

I honestly have to check for clothes online more often than I really want to because the small sizes seem to get snapped up immediately.

what I have also noticed is that petite trousers and skirts go really quickly because they are being bought by women who may not have considered themselves petite in the past - it’s just that everything is so big and long now.

That's average across women aged up to 99+ though and there are a lot of very small old ladies. I'm in my 30s and everyone I know my age 5'3 and shorter (which isn't many at all) describes themselves as short. Somewhere like New Look will have taller customers than a shop aimed at older women. I'm 5'6 which I'd say is average for my generation and rarely have issues with the length of clothes.

I second this!
there’s just no way of knowing , from brand to brand , what size a ‘12’ is actually going to be.
And even within brands, yes Zara is terrible for it and so is H&M.

this really bothers me , as I like to shop on online and also buy preloved on Vinted but its basically pot luck if it will actually fit 🤷🏻‍♀️

What makes you think they don’t do this?

Rude. We aren’t all tiny and it’s bad enough feeling like a lumbering giant without someone saying that
I am 5ft 10 with big boobs, if I had size 3 feet I would topple over

I work on this line of business and of course we look at sizing when placing orders. We need to achieve a high sell through in order to make any money 😂

I am sure this is not a novel concept to manufacturers - they will have teams of data analysts looking at their sales.

It isn't just about number of people, there will be all kinds of factors - it seems likely to me that smaller sized people would be likely to buy more clothes, or maybe bigger clothes aren't as profitable due to the extra material, or even the type of clothes - younger (trending smaller) people more likely to make more purchases

I am talking about shoe sizes - size 10 shoes are usually Euro 44 in shoe sizing - I was responding to a posted who said which females need size 9 shoes

I'm with you on shoes.

I’m another woman with “massive” size 9 feet who would love to be able to buy shoes in a store. I’m 5’10” so I guess at least the rest of me is “massive” to go along with my feet. I know a lot of women with size 8+ feet.

I agree I only find larger sizes in sales

I agree that who the F takes size 9 shoes is very rude and “ who wants to be a short arse” is also rude, though I suspect it’s retaliation for other rude comments. People who are very short or very tall will take different sizes of shoes and clothes and that’s fine. Shops will cater for what they sell most of. Different shops cater for different styles. It’s not easy for people who aren’t in the average range to find things. I worked with a very tall lady who looked extremely slim but was wearing size 14 , I was also surprised when a chubby colleague under 5 ft was ordering size 10. People are all different.

I solve this entire problem by living in athleisure wear from Gymshark.

M, if you want to know.

I was a retail buyer/merchandiser in a previous life. Sizing is based on sales data. We don't just make it up.

The average shoe size of a woman is UK5, believe it or not. So if you buy 20 shoes you buy 2,3,3,4,4,5,5,5,5,5,6,6,6,6,7,7,7,8,8,9.

Also not every retailer is aimed at every single woman who exists. The average age and size of a Cos customer is different to AllSaints.

Yep, exactly this. My size always sells out quickly, even online, and left with the larger sizes only. No thanks.

There are a lot of myths being perpetuated about average sizing. Everyone repeats the ‘fact’ that the average UK woman is size 16 with no evidence to back this up

I work in fashion market data and the average UK women’s size is a 12. It does vary by age, as people generally get bigger as they get older so for someone age 50 for example, the average size is 14 whereas for someone age 20 the average size is a 10.

Different retailers are more likely to try to cater to their demographic so Zara for example focuses on smaller sizes, M&S more likely to have mid-bigger sizes. Although those at the bigger or smaller end of the spectrum (eg size 4-6 or size 24+) can be vocal about the lack of clothes for their size, there just aren’t enough women in those sizes for them to be commercially viable for many retailers. The vast majority of women are sizes 10-18.

Footwear I believe the average size is a 6 and as many women are a size 9 as size 3.

Me.
And lots other people I know.

Sizes are stocked in accordance with supply/demand. In the UK, the national average has moved from 12-14 up to a 14-16,
though all 3 sizes are still very much in demand. So for example, one batch of tshirts could include:

8 x1
10 x2
12/14/16 x3-4
18 x2
20 x1
22 x1

The product sizing available is based on the information that companies collect on customer spending habits.