Measuring and Shaping the Nation: SizeUK

This paper and presentation, reporting on all stages of the SizeUK project, describes its preparation, implementation and, for the first time, key findings. The database offers: the first national shape data and measurement data for men; data for UK women, updated after 50 years; and marketing information. Commercial partners were offered access to statistically analysed data via three routes: own analysis, using online tools; bespoke analysis, commissioned; access to national data that had already been analysed by a project team, managed by myself. The paper reports findings for the third of these.

There were four sets of data. Measurement and marketing data were analysed using traditional statistical techniques. My research included comparisons between average measurements of 1950s women and of Size UK; also between those for men and women in Size USA and Size UK.

Shape: this was the first study to offer 3-D analysis. New methods were trialled on scans captured by pilot studies I undertook. A further contribution was to source and create visual descriptors of all electronic and manual measurements listed in the specification used in the new online size chart compilation.

Findings cover the average size and shape of men, anthropometric changes across the female population, contrasts between UK and US populations, and distributions of UK population obesity. This work precipitated changes in sizing and marketing practices; retailers have confirmed reductions in garment returns, increased customer satisfaction, and economic benefits.

Alerting a wider audience to new national statistics helps to fuel a debate on body and garment sizing, shape and obesity across health, fashion and academic communities.

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