In 2001, a National Sizing Survey was conducted in collaboration with the British government, seventeen major British retailers, and leading academic institutions and technology companies. An anthropometrics research study, the first of its kind since 1950, utilized whole body scanners from [TC]2. The purpose of the study was to improve product for better fit and increase customer satisfaction. Over 11,000 body measurements in three regions of Great Britain were collected and evaluated. One of the results of the study revealed that 60 percent of people have trouble with the fit of their clothes and, among other things, people in Britain are taller and larger than they were in 1950s. The data is for sale and is posted on a secure website hosted by Bodymetrics.
See also Bodyscanning.
Historical Dictionary of the Fashion Industry. Francesca Sterlacci and Joanne Arbuckle.