Part of my blogging recently has been devoted to how the fashion and retail industry will move forward after C19.
Last week I ventured out and inside our local Target store. I picked up some household and personal care essentials and found myself wandering in the clothing section. There were some really cute clothes and I found a couple of pants that interested me.
When it comes to shopping for clothes, I'm a bit of a challenge because of my size, and because of that I usually can't purchase off the rack. I can be an M to XL on top and anywhere from a 2 to a 6 on the bottom. I have to try clothes on.
So I grabbed the pants and went to the Fitting Room. They were closed with a big note attributing it to C19. Not only could you not using the dressing room, but you also could not try clothes on over your clothes in the store. So the only way to find out if something was going to fit, was to purchase, take home and try on and return anything that didn't fit. Yeah, I don't have time for all that... and I really didn't need the pants so I put them back. Lost sale. I am pretty sure I am not alone in that.
It made me think about something I've pointed out for decades. The need for standardized ready to wear/vanity sizing. So that a size 2 would be uniform. It would not be based on the designer, the manufacturer, or the country of origin. It would just be a Size 2. Translate to: You can shop online, call for curbside pickup, and shop off the rack knowing that your Size would be the same whether you were purchasing from Free People or Target stores. There would be no variation. Imagine that world and how wonderful it would be to shop.
