One Size Fits All Controversy
Ever since Brandy became popular, there was controversy over their clothing being one size fits all. It seems silly that Brady couldn't offer a variety of sizes, especially considering how much business the company gets. But the real issue may be that Brandy doesn't want to have multiple sizes in order to weed out the customers that they don't want to be seen wearing their clothing. In an article on BuzzFeed in 2014, they had five different girls, Allison, Lara, Sheridan, Kristin, and Candace, with five different body types try on Brandy products. Here's what happened:
Trying on the "Emilia" skirt:
Click images for height and sizes
As we can see from the images, Brandy is not "one size fits all," it's only "one size." For a brand that claims their clothes can fit every body, it's interesting that this skirt fits none of these women. In the article, as to be expected, these women had nothing positive to say. Their comments were, "It's tiny, like for children, but requires childbearing hips. Made for Barbie," and "Trying to put this skirt on was like reliving nightmares of trying to fit in Hollister as a child in an effort to fit in. It isn't a good feeling," and "It really made me feel awful."
Here's what they had to say about the "Jada" dress:
Allison: "I would totally wear this. I feel like I could just throw it on and go."
Lara: "This dress was very short, and I felt like if I had to bend over or walk anywhere with a breeze, everyone would see my vagina. Basically, people are going to be seeing a lot of my vagina if I wear these clothes, OK???"
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Candace: "Even my being 5'6", it was extremely short, and my chest barely fit in the top portion. It's like, you have to have no chest."
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Sheridan: "I’m sure it would have looked great if it fit over my head — it probably would have been a crop top for me. I don’t see this working on someone who has curves; it’s very much a dress for the traditional model-type of body."
Kristin: "Why would anyone make a stretchy jersey dress with tightly sewn together, non-stretchy straps? You had one job, jersey dress."
What they had to say by the end:
Allison: "There's clearly no such thing as one size fits all! Everyone has a different shape, and clothing stores should embrace that instead of making people feel shitty for not being able to fit what they deem to be a universal size. '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."
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Lara: "It made me sad to realize that I felt better about myself when I actually could fit into these clothes. That's not how I should feel about clothing. When I couldn't fit, I felt sad. But why? No one body is the same, and that's how it should be. We're all different, so the idea of 'one size' for all of us is just absurd. DIFFERENT BODIES, UNITE!"
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Candace: "It's really hard to not be able to fit into clothes that should fit everyone, especially when I'm not even considered 'plus-size.' It's difficult to label clothes as one size fits all when all women are not created equal, physically. Instead of trying to fit into what someone considers the perfect size, I would rather celebrate my unique size and wear clothes that fit me beautifully rather than approximately right. Trying on some of these clothes unexpectedly made me upset and shameful of my body, which shouldn't ever happen."
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Sheridan: "I get that the makers of 'one size fits all' probably see the average girl as a certain size and a certain height. But the problem is that there is really no such thing as the average girl. You could be the same height as someone but a different size, a different weight, a different body type, and more. I’ve never been one to get upset about sizing and the controversy behind it, but shit like this makes me angry. Am I not allowed to be part of the 'all'?"
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Kristin: "As weird as some of the design choices were on some of the garments — why did that super-flowy tee have such tight sleeves, again? — I was amazed at how well some of the stuff fit me. Still, I don't think these clothes are so much 'one size fits all' as much as they are 'one size fits a mystery size, to be revealed when you actually try it on.' That said, that purple diaper was weird, and no one should wear it."