Sizing systems, fit models and target markets

I was commissioned to write the chapter "Sizing Surveys, Fit Models and Marketing" in a book aiming 'to provide a critical appreciation of key developments for designers, [graduate] students and manufacturers in the clothing and fashion industry'. It involved a survey of research literature, relevant technical developments, interviews and observation of industry practice - garment fitting sessions, dress stand manufacture, CEN (European Committee for Standardization) size labelling and SizeUK market segmentation – so as to construct a critique and map the way forward.

The specialist publisher, in association with the international professional body The Textile Institute, commissioned the publication to influence both understanding of and practice in the field for some years to come. The editor is Professor of Fiber Science and Apparel Design at Cornell University. An expert in each of the fields covered by the book was asked to research and write the chapters. I was invited to contribute as a result of my research into 3-D scanning and sizing, and presentations on SizeUK to US industrialists and ASTMS.

The three topics of the chapter have not previously been taken together. They also needed to be re-addressed following advances in 3-D scanning that have opened the way to better market segmentation, alternative means of fitting garments and the selection of fit models.

The technology makes it possible to collect, analyze and apply data in new ways, precipitating a revolution in apparel. I examine the impacts of automatic systems on sizing and shape, the changing role of the fit model and the potential to target market segments responsively, proposing opportunities for change that show how we might ensure consistency across processes and, through improved garment fit, enhance customer satisfaction to help alleviate industrial losses accrued through misfit.

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