Saturday, May 27, 2006

How about just updating the petite section?

Apparently, several high-end department stores are eliminating their petite sections on the grounds that they don't make money. At the sametime, overall sales of petites have increased by 11%, according to the Times article. I can tell the department stores the problem: their petite sections are outdated and unfashionable. The reporter for the Times is correct when he says:

What did change is that petite departments gained a reputation for traditional — some would say frumpy — career-oriented clothing. Chic looks, clothing executives said, never made the leap from regular sizes to petite. So the very word petite became synonymous with many women who shopped there — working women over the age 50.

As a vertically challenged individual (I almost measure 5'1" if I stretch my neck), I buy all my suits in the petite section but never my casual clothes. The casual clothes are all ugly sweaters with sewn-on appliques and rhinestones--the over 60 stuff. The only jeans are mom jeans, and the khakis are what Brian likes to call "peg-legged."

The Gap, Banana Republic, Talbots, and Ann Taylor have all expanded their petite sections recently, which probably has hurt department store petite sales. Why would anyone buy high-waisted, peg-leg khakis when you can get hip-hugging, flare khakis in your size? Of course, the drawback is that most stores don't care all the petite options in the store, which means short vertically challenged women have to do their shopping online.

Oh, and I'd just like to point out that adding additional size 0 and 1 items in stores, as suggested by one of the people interviewed, will not meet the needs of most petite women....we may be short, but we're not all skinny!

posted by Michelle @ 3:01 PM,

3 Comments:

At 5/28/2006 10:59 AM,  A.M. Mora y Leon said...

Ann Taylor's near a buy point on the stock market. I notice I buy all my clothes from there these days, the stuff just plain looks good and it's lovely quality. If its chart continues to do the right thing, I'm buying not just the damn clothes but the stock, too.

 

At 5/28/2006 11:17 AM,  Michelle said...

I like Ann Taylor, too. Unfortunately too many of their styles are made for women with no hips and flat chests--so I have a tough time finding things that fit well.

 

At 7/28/2006 4:31 PM,  Amy said...

Saks is actually returning an expanded petite's selection to some of their stores in the fall. I guess they realized that they were their own problem - by carrying fuddy duddy clothing instead of fashion forward stuff (which they DO carry in the rest of the store).

I do have to say that carrying more smaller sizes in metropolitan areas won't hurt. I am 4'10" and have to get my 0's taken in, so some of us would be grateful! A lot of stores seem to have an allocation problem with their inventory - where the suburbs get too many small sizes and too few larger ones, which is the opposite problem of cities. You'd think they'd learn by now to cut costs however they can!

Amy

- store reviews and petite grumblings at: Some Small Sense

 

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