Your favorite store’s mannequins may be getting a makeover.
Some companies have expressed a desire to change the mannequin game by introducing mannequins more representative of the average person with fat, saggy breasts, tattoos and even pubic hair, the Associated Press reported.
David’s Bridal is also set to introduce mannequins with measurements that are more accurate to the average woman’s body. Plus-sized mannequins will have flab.
According to the AP, although realistic mannequins are more expensive to produce, by giving customers a more accurate idea of how a garment will fit them, they could help bring in shoppers who would otherwise turn to online shopping.
Most mannequins aren’t representative of how the clothes will actually fit — usually tucked and pinned in the back to fit the mold.
And yet, the use of mannequins and how they are styled is crucial to a store’s image.
Isamari Sochuk, the visuals manager at Ann Taylor in the Oaks Mall, said the store uses mannequins to style the company’s clothes in a way that is trendy and could potentially appeal to both young and older customers.
Mannequins with tattoos would probably be appealing to a younger crowd, she said.
Sochuk said although she thinks more realistic figures and body art could bring in customers, the store isn’t planning to update their mannequins just yet.
Audrey Miller, a 19-year-old UF applied physiology and kinesiology sophomore, said she feels mannequins with more realistic features would be an improvement from the exaggeratedly thin mannequins.
Miller said, however, she doesn’t normally take great notice to the way mannequins look.
“Honestly, mannequins kind of freak me out, so it doesn’t change my opinion,” she said.
According to the AP report, customers do pay a lot of attention to mannequins. American Apparel, known for its tendency to be controversial, noticed a 30-percent increase in the number of customers since store mannequins with pubic hair were introduced.
Aseel Alhomsi, a UF telecommunication senior, said she thinks redesigning mannequins is a positive move.
She said it shows stores are “trying to reach people more than the image of what people are ‘supposed’ to look like.”
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 2/6/2014 under the headline "Stores introduce new mannequins with more realistic curves"]
