BREAKING DOWN THE ISSUE

Originally, clothes were tailored and altered at home, based on individual measurements. Then when mass manufacturing came in, a standard sizing scale was needed. This arrived in 1957 with the first British Standard of Women’s Measurements and Sizes based on the key measurements of 5,000 women. In 1982 this standard was revised, as female shapes changed, although it wasn’t a legal requirement for retailers to use this new standard. Then in 2002, SizeUK had another go at a standard by using whole-body 3D scanning equipment to measure 11,000 British people, the results of which were made available by subscription, although again retailers weren’t obliged to subscribe.

Vanity sizing

Modern retailers do tend to have their own size guide, too (generally available on their website and in catalogues) detailing the bust, waist and hip measurements they use to determine the size of their clothes. However, there are vast variations between shops on the measurements used for each size and some companies have been slammed for ‘vanity sizing’ where they purposely make their clothes larger believing shoppers are more likely to feel better (and so make a purchase) if they can squeeze into a smaller size. It does seem fascinating that while we now have special bra fitting services available in many stores and can find out our exact shoe size in shoe shops, there isn’t the same service available for our clothes, leaving many of us guessing what size we are. If you’re online you may find it handy to visit the website sizes.darkgreener.com which asks you to enter your bust, waist and hip measurements to calculate your size in a range of high-street retailers.

We’ll be following this story closely but would love to hear your thoughts on the issue. Please write to us at the address on page 3, marking your letter Universal Sizing.