November 21, 2015
The Shocking Difference Between Mannequins And The Average Female (Infographic)
The mannequins in your favourite department store are supposed to show you how the clothes you purchase will look on your frame, but it is no surprise that these plastic figurines are crafted to be startlingly slender. The average store mannequin is manufactured to be less than a size 2, with rail thin legs and mini midsections. While many people have complained to big retailers like Topshop that these figures should be made more realistic, nothing has changed.
A standard mannequin stands 6 feet tall with a 34-inch bust, a 24-inch waist and 34-inch hips. Their calves, wrists and ankles are sculpted to be extremely narrow. With the average female consumer being a size 14, standing at 5' 4" and undoubtedly having some curves and wider calves, these 'model' measurements don't compute.
“These mannequins emulate that [proportion], because sellers believe it makes their product look the best.” says Kathleen Hammond, VP of strategic accounts at a New York mannequin distributor. “Our store mannequins are highly stylized to represent an artistic prop and are in no way any attempt to accurately portray true-to-life proportions."
[bctt tweet="The Shocking Difference Between Mannequins And The Average Female"]
Mannequins have become less and less like human beings in recent years, making their beauty ideals less and less achievable. It would make sense of retailers in this body-positive age to embrace store figurines that represented the actual body types of their customers, but marketers and department store execs want to maintain a 'sameness' in all stores.
“Just like on a runway, you need to have sameness." explains Lisa Mauer of mannequin producer Siegal and Stockman. “It would be lovely to have all body types represented, but given the limited space in a store, having uniformity is crucial to the message coming across. You want your mannequin to show off the attitude of who you want your shopper to be.”
What are your thoughts on this issue? Sound off in the comments! Would you like to see stores represent all body types?
Source: Shape
[caption id="attachment_119727" align="alignleft" width="100"]
@BodyRockTV[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_119726" align="alignleft" width="100"]
@BodyRockOfficial[/caption]
A standard mannequin stands 6 feet tall with a 34-inch bust, a 24-inch waist and 34-inch hips. Their calves, wrists and ankles are sculpted to be extremely narrow. With the average female consumer being a size 14, standing at 5' 4" and undoubtedly having some curves and wider calves, these 'model' measurements don't compute.
“These mannequins emulate that [proportion], because sellers believe it makes their product look the best.” says Kathleen Hammond, VP of strategic accounts at a New York mannequin distributor. “Our store mannequins are highly stylized to represent an artistic prop and are in no way any attempt to accurately portray true-to-life proportions."
[bctt tweet="The Shocking Difference Between Mannequins And The Average Female"]
Mannequins have become less and less like human beings in recent years, making their beauty ideals less and less achievable. It would make sense of retailers in this body-positive age to embrace store figurines that represented the actual body types of their customers, but marketers and department store execs want to maintain a 'sameness' in all stores.
“Just like on a runway, you need to have sameness." explains Lisa Mauer of mannequin producer Siegal and Stockman. “It would be lovely to have all body types represented, but given the limited space in a store, having uniformity is crucial to the message coming across. You want your mannequin to show off the attitude of who you want your shopper to be.”
What are your thoughts on this issue? Sound off in the comments! Would you like to see stores represent all body types?
Source: Shape
[caption id="attachment_119727" align="alignleft" width="100"] @BodyRockTV[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_119726" align="alignleft" width="100"] @BodyRockOfficial[/caption]