Posted on 10/21/2025 9:07:32 PM PDT by Morgana
The a pair of off the rack women’s pants are sized for a women 5’9”. That makes those pants 6 inches too long for a 5’4” woman. In the fashion world, 5’4” is petite.
5’ 4” is average.
You’re right that 5’4” is an average height for women, but the clothing industry considers 5’4” and under to be petite. The sizing has something to do with proportions, too.
The fashion industry might be trying to curry favor with average size women by calling them petite.
No, that’s not what’s happening. The average woman is not petite-sized. Most women wouldn’t want to be this size. Petite sizes are hard to find. There’s not much selection.
It’s not so much about height. It’s about other measurements. Size P is not only shorter in the length of pants, but also smaller in other measurements, such as the arm holes in tops.
I don’t know how this subject started, but there it is.
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