Why I Refuse to Shop at Brandy Melville // Thursday's Thought

As a shopping addict, I was eager to visit the first Brandy Melville store in Massachusetts when it opened on Newbury Street in Boston last year. If you happen to live under a fashion rock and not know of this clothing brand, Brandy Melville is a California-inspired clothing brand that features casual clothing with a beachy vibe, targeted towards teens.

I was particularly excited to try on a popular tee featuring a “stay weird” design, as well as some other items. However, when my sister, friends, and I finally arrived at the store, I couldn’t find my usual size medium. Upon asking a store employee, I learned that Brandy Melville has a “one size fits most” policy.

“Umm, what? One size? Okay…”

As a woman who considers herself to be a healthy and average size and build, I was definitely disappointed to find that the tee I was lusting after was way too tight. Apparently, being a size medium is not in the “most” of the population.

We already live in a society where people are constantly judged on their appearance and feel the need to validate their worth based on their looks. Although men struggle with this issue as well, young girls and women the primarily victims of body image issues. We are constantly bombarded with images of “perfect” women everywhere we look. Brandy Melville is simply feeding this obsession with perfection and making women like me feel like we aren’t good enough. The fact that a healthy woman can not fit into their clothes is a clear indication that their policy of “one size fits most” is not just exclusionary, but also false.

As consumers, we make important decisions daily about what companies we want to financially support through purchases. Therefore, I will not support Brandy Melville by purchasing other items I would like to buy, like their affordable jewelry or trendy room décor. Money is power. I refuse to give Brandy Melville that power, unless they change their policies.

Other companies, like Forever21, have expanded their sizing to service more women. I hope that Brandy Melville follows suit.

What are your thoughts??

xoxo Ava