# Is Vanity Sizing REAL?

Published: 2015-10-13T10:42:28.777880-04:00
Canonical URL: https://www.getmealplans.com/blog/2015/10/13/vanity-sizing-real/

I worked at a popular, semi-expensive retail clothing store as a student.

First day on the job, a woman asked for my help locating a size 8.

My coworker jumped between us and handed her a size 6.

“You’re too tiny for an 8,” she said.

Hesitantly, the woman went to the dressing room, but moments later, we heard a joyful shriek:

“OMG they fit!”

She burst through the curtains to show me, twirling like a schoolgirl…

euphoric as a new bride…

Never mind that the burgundy corduroy pants looked positively dreadful on her skin tone.

“I love this store,” she said to another customer.

I admit the size of clothes affects me. It shouldn’t, but it does.

**But it’s also fake.**

A trick to get you to buy burgundy corduroy ;)

My coworker later said to me, “A size 8 is a size 6 here. Helps them buy.”

**There’s another downside to these size shenanigans.**

A member shared recently:

“*I'm always reading things like "I've lost 10 lbs and 2 sizes". I lose 37 and wear the same size. Really?!? No. This is what happened - my clothes got tight and I bought new clothes. Miraculously, the new clothes were the same size of the tight clothes but I didn't question it because I didn't want to buy the next size. **There is only one logical explanation - the clothing industry has redefined the clothing sizes to keep women like me from admitting the truth all the while gaining more and more weight.***”

Then other members chimed in with similar experiences…

“*I have a dress/gown that I wore back in 99 that was tight on me then (even though I was about 20ish pounds heavier) but it should be really loose on me today if sizes didn't change.*” - Amy B

“*I used to wear size 9 back when I was in high school in the late 70s, but that translates to a size 2 or 4 now. When I weighed 120 about 10 or so years ago, that was a size 14 then, but it's a size 6 now.*” - Doris S.

I had my own experience recently with clothes I wore in high school 20 years ago.

I’m the same height and weight, and the clothes still fit, but the sizes are 8-14, whereas now I’m in a 0 or 2 in those stores.

**Have you experienced vanity sizing?**

If so please leave a comment below.

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