Apparently a lot of people like to think that they are a different size to what they actually are.
Maybe it’s a female thing but I never seem to have a problem ordering things the that are not the right size.
Most online shops go out of their way to inform customers of their sizing and how it can change between brands.
I do know of people who order a selection and chose from that and send the rest back.
I’m glad online shops are taking a stricter stance as it’s just a few customers that abuse it for everyone else who then have to suffer from higher postage rates and higher minimum order amounts.
Not sure how you quantify ‘a lot of people’ in this context but from my own (limited) experience, different clothes manufacturers size things slightly differently. You can buy a certain size top from one retailer and it fits but a similar top in the same size from another retailer could be either pinching or swamping.
Hence the reason I gave up ordering clothes online.
Trousers are a nightmare if you’re a woman and you aren’t an average height.
An AI answer seems to suggest that it’s not the customers who are at fault here totally as I had assumed, but the manufacturers.
If you ordered all your clothes from Zara, for example, and then ordered from a company which didn’t employ vanity sizing but true sizing then you’d have a problem.
In my experience, this doesn’t happen to mens clothes.
Yes, some clothing manufacturers employ “vanity sizing,” where they label garments with sizes smaller than their actual measurements, aiming to make customers feel good about themselves and potentially boost sales.
Here’s a more detailed explanation:
Vanity Sizing Defined:
This practice involves labeling clothing with a size that’s smaller than the actual cut of the garment, creating the illusion of a thinner, more desirable size.
Psychological Impact:
Studies suggest shoppers are more likely to purchase clothing labeled with smaller sizes, as it can boost their confidence and self-esteem.
Potential Consequences:
This practice can lead to inconsistent sizing across brands, making it difficult for consumers to find clothes that fit well and can also contribute to negative body image issues.
Examples:
Some brands known for vanity sizing include Brandy Melville, Zara, and Abercrombie & Fitch.
It’s probably related to women’s clothes rather than women per se.
Different manufacturers have different ways of sizing things so you could be a size 10 in one brand and a size 16 in another.
Gone are the days when you could just order or buy your size and know that it would fit.
I think it’s also geographical, too. Garments for the US market tend to size generously, good old M&S from the UK somewhere spot on (for me, at least). Anything in that size from Italy or France pinches so aim for a bigger size.
Same for running shoes, to be fair. My size varies so much depending on manufacturer.
Our postman is sure, people wear things, then return them. He delivers on Friday and takes it all back on Mondays.
Haven’t we been taught to do so in American movies??
My memories of this go back to the 1980s when I was first married, and honestly I don’t think it’s really changed very much since then. Some brands, like M&S previously mentioned, gained market share by being ‘generous’ with their sizing, made women feel good if they were ‘only’ a size 12 compared to a 14 from other retailers.
But in any case even within within one brand, one style, sizing has always bee subject to manufacturing vagaries. I recall one time visiting the Levi shop in SF, Cal, the home of the brand, as it were. I’d been running short of 501s so took the opportunity to buy about four pairs in different colours, all the same size (33w34l). I tried on a couple, but not every one, then got home to find that one of them was a good inch tighter round the waist than the others, another one ever so slightly more ‘comfortable’.
The mail-order, try on at home then return was a standard thing back in the day with catalogue shopping, like Littlewoods; was an inherent part of their offering. Was probably abused then just like it is today, with people wearing stuff for a night then returning it, no questions asked.
No. I ordered from Zalando maybe 50 times and always got what I ordered. People simply order 10 pairs of shoes to keep one pair. Because delivery and return are free.
I think zalando should start with charging return fees (or rather have the post charge them, logically) before deleting customers.
I personally appreciate free delivery and don’t take it for granted. Returning goods free of charge seems unreasonable unless the goods arrived broken or the wrong thing was delivered.
I play a trick with Zalando and their delivery charges for small orders. I simply order enough to not have to pay delivery charges. Then I simply keep what I want and send the rest back free. Sweet!
Good point. If you offer a free return, it doesn’t make sense to take a fee for an order up to a certain amount (it was introduced a few years ago, around 2022 or so). Nobody will pay it. They encourage buyers to return items.
Because it costs money to receive / send back parcels, whereas in a shop the cost is unrelated to the number tried on.
The sole fair rule can only be to charge each delivery (per item) and charge each return. If someone wants to try on 20 items and only buy 1, pay the costs to receive and send back, or they go to a physical shop.
It is actually massively expensive to take back the returns. Not just just because of package delivery costs but the handling and processing on the returns side when goods are received.
f they are not in pristine condition in original box etc. They just go into the bin.
And even then you save only on the re-stocking costs and not the cost of receiving, examining and processing the goods (recording into inventory system or writing it off) and disposal of packaging.
If the cost of re-stocking is $30 and cost to make and stock is $10, then sure it makes sense to scrap.
If it costs $40 to make and you sell at $70, you just lost all your margin on that product (ignoring VAT).
