The Pants You're Buying At Big Retailers Are Actually WAY Larger Than Advertised
December 28, 2011 by Kevin Michael Gray
After over eating and enjoying the bounty of multiple Christmas party desserts, egg nog lattes, and finger food hor'dourves, today's featured article could not have come at a more poignant time. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has often wondered how it is that they have the same waist size from high school even after packing on a few extra pounds. Today's featured article comes from Business Insider and offers a behind the scenes look at marketing/advertising techniques of some of the largest pant manufacturers; the waistline that you think you are wearing may not be your actual waistline. Read more below:
Your pant size is probably lying to you to make you feel better about yourself, reports Abram Sauer at Esquire.
It's called "vanity sizing," and it's the reason why you find out your size is different at the various stores in the mall. It's an infamous tactic marketers use to influence women buyers, but they do it for men as well.
The folks at Esquire's Style blog put together this nifty graphic on the real size of pants, compared with what the brands advertise (for men's pants):
Apparently marketers think that the vanity factor outweighs the confusion the sizes create for customers.
One solution out there for consumers is a body scanner called MyBestFit, which can tell you your size in various brands. It's kind of creepy and airport-like, but it works.
What do you think of this practice? Do you want brands to make you feel better about yourself, or do you think they're just lying to you?
