H&M has revealed it is making its UK sizes bigger following years of complaints from customers who have struggled to fit into its clothes.
The retail giant has faced widespread criticism from shoppers who claimed its sizing was smaller than that of other high street chains.
Now, the high street fashion goliath has announced it is updating its sizing to bring it in line with standard UK measurements.
The changes have started with store stock and will be extended to include online offerings.
Criticism: The retail giant has faced widespread criticism from shoppers who claimed its sizing was smaller than that of other high street chains. Pictured, shopper Ruth Clemens, who usually takes a size 14 or 16, found herself struggling to tie a pair of H&M 16 jeans
Calling for change: The shopper shared her story on the H&M Facebook page last year
The high street clothing giant has faced criticism in the past for its inconsistent sizing compared with other stores. In August 2017, Samantha Bell, from Manchester, slammed H&M for its ‘crazy’ sizing after comparing a pair of its size 16 jeans (top) with a pair from Primark in the same size (pictured behind)
An H&M spokesperson told HuffPost UK: ‘Following customer feedback, we are taking the steps to change our womenswear measurements to be in line with UK sizing, for example the previous measurements and fit of a size 12 will now be the measurements of a size 10.’
It was revealed last week that the reason why shoppers often find themselves unable to squeeze into their regular dress size at H&M is because of the way it corresponds to its European size.
Every UK dress size has a corresponding European size with the smallest – a size 4 – being the equivalent to an EUR 32.
A UK 12 is an EUR 40, according to size conversion charts but at H&M it’s labelled a 38, meaning it’s actually a size 10.
Size 12 Lowri Byrne, a student from Swansea, shared photos of herself donning a size 16 dress and described the fit as ‘absolutely ridiculous’ and noted that she could ‘barely breathe’
This doesn’t just apply to a size 12 though. Images of H&M clothing has revealed that the UK size does not match up to its corresponding European size and is in fact one smaller.
Last week, on the brand’s Facebook page, size 12 Lowri Byrne, a 22-year-old student from Swansea, shared photos of herself donning a size 16 dress and described the fit as ‘absolutely ridiculous’ and noted that she could ‘barely breathe’.
Meanwhile Marianne Gray, 29, from Glasgow, who usually wears a UK size 12, was shocked to discover she only fitted a size 20 in store.
And in August 2017, Samantha Bell, from Manchester, took to Facebook to call out H&M for its ‘crazy’ sizing.
Bell discovered that their size 16 jeans were significantly smaller than jeans in the same size from Primark and saw her photo showing the difference go viral on social media.
Today, customers praised the news that H&M was altering its sizes.
Reacting to the announcement, Stephanie Lauren told MailOnline: ‘That’s great news. The amount of times I’ve felt fat because I can’t fit into my usual size of a 10 is ridiculous.
Meanwhile Marianne Gray, 29, from Glasgow, who usually wears a UK size 12, was shocked to discover she only fitted a size 20 in store
‘They were so tiny before, I ended up buying a size 14 once from there because the dress just wouldn’t zip up. It’s as though they were all made for petite women, or incredibly skinny women with no bumps and curves.
‘And their shoes are just as bad, I hope they change them too.’
Beth, 24 from North Wales, said: ‘It projects totally the wrong messages about body image. I don’t shop there because I refuse to buy something a size bigger than what I actually am.
‘It has a negative effect. It makes shopping really confusing and you can’t go in and grab something like you would elsewhere.
A size 16 top is labelled EUR 42, even though conversion tables list the size as EUR 40, meaning the garment is really a size 14
This top is apparently a size 10 and EUR 36, according to the label. But it’s commonly accepted that EUR 36 actually represents a size 8
‘I’m surprised its taken them this long and makes me wonder what is the actual point of doing it? Surely make them bigger at a smaller size if you want to do it wrong.’
The clothing retailer has already started sending out new labels to bring their sizes in line.
However, H&M has also asked for patience, saying that it will take time to bring all their stock up-to-date.
The spokesperson said: ‘This will be a gradual process and we cannot confirm when this will be 100 per cent complete.
‘The new sizing is in effect already in our stores and shortly will be online, we aim to make this transition as smooth as possible for the customer.’