When it comes to fashion, one truth stands out: fit issues are never the same across all brands. Understanding these differences is essential for reducing returns, improving conversions, and building long-term customer loyalty.
During last week’s beta testing with several apparel companies, we uncovered valuable insights into how different brands experience fit challenges, and how those challenges vary by product type and fabric.
Activewear Brands: Elasticity Misconceptions
For activewear brands, the most common fit issue is related to elasticity. Shoppers often assume that stretchy fabrics will always provide a perfect fit, leading them to size down. But when fabric is stretched to its limits, comfort is compromised, and the garment fails to perform as intended.
The myth that “tighter means better” is one of the most persistent fit issues in activewear, and it directly contributes to higher return rates. Educating customers on how elastic fabrics should truly fit is a powerful step toward reducing unnecessary exchanges.
Business Wear: Understanding Ease
For brands that specialize in elegant shirts and business wear, fit issues look completely different. The challenge isn’t stretch – it’s ease. Ease refers to the extra space added to a garment to allow for natural movement and comfort.
Many customers don’t understand how much ease they need, which leads to confusion and size exchanges. These brands are discovering that balancing structure with comfort is critical, and not only for style but also for reducing returns. Addressing fit issues in this category requires clear communication about how ease works and why it matters.
Size Inclusivity: Meeting Real Demand
Some brands face fit issues at the inclusivity level, especially in markets with significant diversity in body shapes and sizes. Such brands want to know whether customers are browsing their site but leaving because they can’t find their size. This insight can reveal gaps in product offerings and unlock new opportunities in underserved markets.
With SizeSense.ai we are solving these challenges. SizeSense not only does precise size recommendation, but also provides analytical data to help brands better understand customer demand. Regardless of the size of the brand, making business decisions without basing them in data, in this day and age, would be reckless.
Detailed Measurements: A New Standard
One of the most surprising insights from our beta testing was how open brands were about sharing detailed product measurements. Instead of limiting data to bust, waist, and hips, many provided inseam, sleeve length, biceps, and more.
At first, we assumed brands would resist this level of transparency. But the opposite was true: those serious about solving fit issues see detailed measurements as a competitive advantage. Specificity allows for personalized recommendations, higher accuracy, and fewer returns.
Practical Tips for Brands to Tackle Fit Issues
If you want to reduce returns and build stronger customer trust, addressing fit issues must be part of your strategy. Here are some practical steps every brand can take:
- Communicate fit details and sizing data clearly on product pages
- If you can, use actual product measurements, rather than theoretical ones.
- Go beyond basic bust, waist, and hip dimensions. Provide inseam, sleeve, rise, and shoulder measurements to help customers compare against their own clothing.
- Highlight details like fabric elasticity, intended wear or fit type, to set correct expectations.
- Adopt advanced size recommendation tools
- Integrate a proven solution like SizeSense.ai, to provide shoppers with personalized sizing guidance.
- This not only reduces returns but also increases buyer confidence and conversion rates.
- Leverage customer feedback data
- Analyze return reasons and customer reviews to identify recurring fit issues.
- Use this information to update product descriptions and size charts.
- Embrace inclusivity
- Use SizeSense analytics to track customer behavior to understand if visitors leave because their size isn’t available.
- Expanding your size range can turn lost opportunities into loyal customers.
By combining clear communication, data insights, and innovative solutions like SizeSense.ai, brands can transform fit issues from a weakness into a strategic advantage.
Fit as a Strategic Advantage
The brands leading this shift recognize that solving fit issues isn’t just an operational task – it’s a strategic opportunity. In fashion, the right fit doesn’t just reduce returns:
Ultimately, solving fit issues is about more than clothing. It’s about creating confidence. And when customers feel confident, they don’t just buy once – they return again and again. You can install SizeSense from the Shopify App Store