Why Brandy Melville's One Size Policy Sucks
Kiara Brown
Brandy Melville is an Italian clothing brand which was first established in 1970. The popular brand targets teen girls and young women, however those of a very specific size. Size 0. Even for its sheer popularity amongst many women, the company has come under fire for its one size policy, or more specifically, what they call their, “one size fits most” policy. Many female body activists have stated their opinions regarding their thoughts on Brandy’s one size policy. Such as body positivity influencer; Sierra Schultzzie and teen columnist Abby Richmond, and their opinions have been far from positive. Let’s take a deeper look into Brandy Melville’s ridiculous clothing size exclusivity and how it fuels body dissatisfaction.
​
Brandy’s one-size-fits-all policy has been tested by many individuals as many believe that one size cannot truly fit all, as clothing sizes should range all the way from a size 0 to sizes 24 and above. Not to mention the diverse body shapes and the various ways in which people carry their weight. An experiment carried out by Buzzfeed showed five women (sizes 0 to 18) trying out Brandy clothing, and surprise, the results showed that one size truly does not fit all. Not in the least. Brandy Melville’s
(WeHeart It)
website is filled with models who are approximately 5’7’’ with slim waists of no larger than 25’’. These measurements are known to be those of a female size 0. Though Brandy Melville caters to a western teenage demographic, in 2012 the CDC reported that the average American 16-year-old is approximately 5’3 with a 31’’ waist. This shows that Brandy Melville limits a huge number of its customers due to its impossibly small size restrictions, this helps to further increase body insecurities among its demographic.
​
Body positivity is such a large and positive concept that helps to push the idea that every body type is beautiful and that individuals should not be judged or shunned by the measurements of their waist, arms, etc. However, in regards to Sierra Schultzzie and Abby Richmond’s opinions on Brandy Melville’s one size policy, Brandy’s size exclusivity does just the opposite. Abby Richmond states,
“Brandy is...absolutely unaccepting of diverse body types…Brandy Melville preys on teen girls’ self-doubts, and instead of encouraging us to love our bodies and wear clothes that make us feel good, they promote an exclusive, 90-pound ideal for all of us to worship.”
Richmond goes on to discuss her own experiences with the brand, describing how being unable to fit into Brandy’s clothes further promotes body dissatisfaction as it lowers her self-esteem. This can also be seen in a comment by Buzzfeed’s video producer Allison Bagg, who took part in the experiment, as she stated,
“‘One size fits all' sends a message that if you don't fit into the clothing, whether it's too big or too small, you're not 'normal,' and leads to all sorts of body dissatisfaction.”
Brandy Melville’s size restrictions and its one size policy that caters to a very specific body type and size negatively impacts an individual’s self esteem and helps to promote the definition of beauty being a size 0. This is especially harmful for Brandy’s specific demographic as they target teens and young women who, as Leah Somerville, a psychological scientist at Harvard University states, are more prone to self conscious emotion as it peaks in teen years. Sierra Schultzzie and friend Skylar Pollitt demonstrated their concern in Schultzzie’s video about Brandy’s sizing policy when Politt stated, “I don’t like sending that message to young girls.”
Unfortunately Brandy is not the only clothing store to jump onto the one-size-fits-all clothing policy as American Eagle has created their “Don’t Ask Why?” one size clothing line as well. However, there is still a large push in the fashion industry of brands who are promoting body positivity such as Aerie. Aerie, though owned by the same company as American Eagle, has taken a much different approach as it is promoting body positivity by no longer photoshopping the models in their lingerie ads. Though it is a small step in terms of the body positivity movement, it is still a positive approach when comparing it to Brandy’s very limited clothing sizes and highly photoshopped models. In the end, all people want is the fashion industry being size inclusive as to accomodate all shapes and sizes, as every body type is beautiful.