Clothing Conundrum

By: Rachel Johnson

 

With so many choices in the world of women’s clothing, to a beginner shopper finding that perfect outfit shouldn’t seem too hard a task; Experienced buyers, however, would vouch otherwise, de-glamorizing the seemingly vast world that is women’s clothing for what it truly is—disorganized, limited, and poorly planned, leaving many women compensating comfort and quality for aesthetic.

 

“I walked around the entirety of Forever 21 and found one pair of women’s pants with pockets,” said Inge Van Niekerk, senior. “And it’s pretty much that way everywhere else.”

 

While men’s clothing is dictated by measurements, women’s clothing sizes fluctuate by brand, age, height, and within each have their own designated scales of small, medium, and large. But as the sizes go up, there’s no telling whether the pants and shirts will simply get longer, wider, or both. Girls have to hunt for clothing that fits their body types, organized without consideration for girls of all shapes and sizes.

 

“My cousin and I went to this department store, and she’s usually a medium but her size there was like… a triple XL and she became upset… I was like ‘no, the sizes are just different here, don’t worry about it!’” said Jackie Tormos, senior at R.L. Turner.

 

Not only is there a discrepancy in size accessibility to men’s clothing, but women’s clothing is statistically made cheaper. Popular shops like H&M, Forever 21, and Wet Seal cater to women’s fashion interests, but with little consideration for durability. Clothes are often cute but fall apart, girls report. Guy’s clothes, much simpler, are made with the buyer in mind: they are made to last. “While most of the clothes fall apart quickly, I’ve at least had sweatpants from Forever 21 that lasted me three years…” Inge said. These poorly planned clothing systems are a North American phenomenon, as Canada and the U.S. have strayed from previous standards used by Europe. This “vanity sizing” makes victim of both men and women, but more frequently women.

 

“I guess they think because women are supposed to have purses, guy have pockets… It’s a gender bias,” said Gregory Rogers, senior. “Retailers for women’s clothing go for looks over practicality.”