UNISEX CLOTHING

FASHION BUSINESS RESEARCH & IT APPLICATIONS

Under the guidance of:

Dr. Rajdeep Singh Khanuja

A Research Report by:

Aryan Tiwari
Mitali Handa
Priya Thapliyal
Satakshi Bisht
Unisex Clothing

1. INTRODUCTION

Within fashion world of millennials and gen Z-ers, social conformity of gender and its rules are
disappearing, as individuality is given preference. To cater these evolved generations, fashion labels
are thinking outside the one-dimensional binary box. The face of contemporary fashion is changing
fast. The entire spring/summer 2019 season in Paris was dedicated to unisex clothing which felt like
a revolution of sorts. Whether it is new-age mindset or the new trend of fashion, the need of unisex
clothing has never been this high and if this need grows any further then retailers will be forced to
modify everything from marketing to fitting rooms to mannequins. Earlier, rarely questioned gender
roles were a norm. Men were breadwinners and women were expected to be homemakers. To no
surprise they even dressed in strict accordance to gender norms. Men wore masculine jackets and
trousers whereas women’s clothes were draped to distinctly highlight their features. Those who
didn’t conform to established gender roles were often mocked or ostracized but, in this day, and age
individuality is applauded and appreciated. Finding right clothing is like finding identity. In an old-
world unisex clothing would have been labelled androgynous but not anymore. More forward-
thinking fashion labels are attracting generation which views gender with more fluidity. Although
gender binary unisex clothes are not a new concept but its popularity is new. To break the
metaphorical wall and create equality, unisex clothing could be a small but effective dialogue.
Although without ignoring the benefits of unisex clothes that lets girls to look beyond pink, on the
other side, there’s little to nothing for boys who are tired of wearing just traditional menswear.
Unisex clothes being inclusive should contain both masculine and feminine dimension, unlike most
retailers who believes unisex clothes only includes menswear. Womenswear apparently appears to be
exclusively limited to females whereas menswear is now for everyone. Signaling femininity being
second to masculinity contradicts the idea of unisex clothing.
This study tries to find whether this half bargain is the reason why we rarely encounter men in
feminine unisex clothes or there exists any other factor, that need millennials and gen z-ers to break
more rules, for jeans and skirts, both to be accepted as unisex apparel.

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Unisex Clothing

2. Literature Review

2.1 Reviews

In “An International study of unisex and ‘same-name’ fragrance brand” by Scott Markham, Joe
Cangelosi published in the year 1991, researchers share the perception and preference of women for
regular vs unisex perfume. Survey was conducted within 9 cities of 3 continent namely Asia, Europe
and USA. Survey shows the existed differences in each continent on the basis of 10 factor.

In a Research Paper “Fashion, Gender and Social Identity” by Zoi Arvanitidou published at
University of Aegean Greece, researcher gives an insight on how gender is a social construct but also
reveals that fashion should be considered guilty for helping society to discriminate. Shedding a light
on feminine and male appearance and the role & value of dressing. For its survey, participants were
given “unisex styled photos” and their depiction of femininity and masculinity were asked.

In another research paper “Fe(-male) fashion: a feasibility study of the marketability of a gender-
neutral fashion brand” published by Sarah Jensen in the year 2010, researcher talks about a brand
which offers only unisex clothing “oz:u:mi” , while other brands only provide a section where we
can find unisex clothing , this brand aims to provide only unisex clothes . The price at which they
offer clothes is just high enough not to be out of customer reach and pricing strategy is also
characterized by high level of status, quality, and taste. With the emergence of concepts like
metrosexual man and gender equality brands like oz:u:mi are getting opportunity to create new style
that embodies the changed society .

In the research paper “A study about gender roles and children’s clothes” published by Sofia
Franséhn published at the Swedish school of textile, Boras in the year 2011, researcher states that the
motive behind this research was to identify what impacts fashion companies to incorporate certain
elements and communicate children clothes according to their sex to their target audience. There
were multiple reasons behind this biasness; one of the major reasons was that the consumers were
influenced by the fashion companies by sharing their viewpoint on social media with their friends
and acquaintances. The final result of the research showed that kids clothing can now be seen as a
symbol of social status.

In yet another Research Paper “Fashion has no gender norms to create a successful unisex
collection for Durban Market” published by Talitha Retallick published at Durban University of
Technology in the year 2015, discusses the relationship amongst gender, fashion and social identity.
Research shows that people are rejecting social conformity of gender role and that fashion is helping
people to express themselves more than ever.

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Unisex Clothing

In a Research Paper named “College men’s fashion: clothing preference, identity and avoidance”
published by Mijeong Noh, Meng Li, Kaleb Martin, Joseph Purpura in the year 2015, researchers
explain women outnumbers men for being fashion conscious but men, in this generation, are
experimenting and expressing themselves too with fashion. This research paper focuses on college
men and their aspiration and ways of communication through their fashion choices.

In a published Research report “The impact of menswear style on women’s fashion designing” by
Dr. Maarouf Ahmed Maarouf at Suez Canal University in the year 2015, researcher reveals that men’s
style has influenced women for selecting their fashion statements. Survey conducted on 300 women
shows women are interested in menswear clothing like Jeans, Shirts and Suits.

In a research paper “Perception on unisex clothing among apparel designers: A study” published
by Sunitha Vasan, S. R. Pujar & S. Gopalkrishnan published at NIFT, Chennai in the year 2017,
researchers verify that unisex clothing is fast catching up in India. Factors like Environment,
Comfort, Aesthetic affects the perception which is explained with a reliability test.

In another Research paper “Gender sensitivity in clothing impression” published by Tulika Ajwani
at International Journal of Development Research in the year 2017, researcher discusses that gender
is becoming vaguer. Research conducted shows fashion have changed significantly and women in
particular are more fashion conscious and wants to enhance their femininity.

In a Research Paper “Awareness on unisex clothing among fashion designers: A study” published
by Sunitha Vasan, S. R. Pujar & S. Gopalkrishnan at NIFT, Chennai in the year 2017, researchers try
to identify the existence of awareness about unisex clothing among fashion designing students as the
trend of unisex clothing is catching up in India. Study revels various barriers, difference in opinion
and attitude towards unisex clothing with the help of 90 questionnaire.

In a Published article “Joy of unisex: the rise of gender-neutral clothing” written by Emine Saner
at The Guardian in the year 2017, author lists out brands and designers who makes unisex clothes
and the article states that unisex clothing doesn’t just stop with adults as kids wear is getting gender
neutral as well.

In another research paper “It’s all blur: Exploring gender expressive fashion” published by
Natalie Victoria Arida published at Texas state university in the year 2017, researcher states that that
if the fundamental purpose of clothes is to conceal our sex, then the prime function of fashion or
styling is to exploit our gender. Many famous fashion designers showed unisex styled clothes in their
runway shows. Those shows became hit and those styles become popular and hence other fashion
companies followed the same. Millennials across the country have accepted it and for individuals
whose sexuality is represented by this fashion, they no longer need to cover it up under gender
restrictive clothes.

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Unisex Clothing

In a research topic “Analysis of user satisfaction for unisex medical uniforms” Published by Injoo
Kim, Brooks Brandewic published at Research Journal of Textile and Apparel in the year 2017,
researchers dwell on how people are adapting single dress code in their occupation and in this
research medical field has been chosen. All employees of a medical clinic were required to wear
same clothes like scrub shirts , pants and coats irrespective of their gender .The conclusion of the
research was that female employees were not satisfied as much of a male employee because all
female employees were facing the problem of size and fitting as the current uniform was developed
based on a male figure and there was a significant need for improving the fit of the female medical
uniform .

In a research paper “The unisex jeans: is it profitable and sustainable” published by Candace
Barritt published at Nottingham Trent University in the year 2017, researcher shares that there’s a
rise demand in unisex jeans hence its mass production with regards to shape, design is often seen in
the clothing industry.

In the research paper “Undressing the dress codes” published by Jaymie Arns published at
California State University, Sacramento in the year 2017, researcher justifies that in school where
there are standardized uniform women are automatically expected to cover certain parts of their body
ban certain items worn especially by women so that they don’t attract men. The main purpose of the
study was to identify what was the logic behind making dress code compulsory for the school student
and to identify how many rules based on dress code apply on the basis of gender. The researcher
concluded that there was discrimination on the set rules for dress code and it was only done because
of the social and political pressure which is unnecessary for the society.

In a published article “Gender neutral clothing the future of fashion?” written by Olivia Petter
published at independent.coc.uk in the year 2017, author explains that gender is no longer dictating
the way people are getting dressed up. those days are long gone where skirts were only worn by
females and trousers were only worn by males. on runway designers are combining women’s and
men’s collections. girls’ and boys’ labels on children clothes are removed by John Lewis. more and
more fashion brands are introducing gender neutral collection like wildfang and H&M. H&M
introduced unisex denim line, the future is fluid their recent project showcases the changing attitude
of society towards gender neutral clothing, plus 100 % of profit is donated for the LGBTQ causes.

In a punished article “Is gender free kids clothing the way forward” written by Victoria Lambert
at the Telegraph.co.uk in the year 2017, author states that whenever the parents go out for shopping
for their kids this stereotype haunts them that blue is only for boys only and pink for girls. No
wonder why many youngsters and their parents are utterly frustrated about the restricted choice of
clothing. John lewis was the first retailer who abolished this stereotype but then some parents were
not okay with it. The question is raised that if designers are merging women’s and men’s collections
then why not they are merging young boys and girls clothing as well.

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Unisex Clothing

In another Published article “How unisex fashion and attitudes have reached new levels in a
political age” written by Sara McAlpine published at Elle, UK in the year 2018, author points that
earlier it was a bold statement menswear and womenswear were mixed but now it’s a norm. Co-ed is
now as common as stealing your brother’s shirt or your girlfriend’s jeans. The article points that the
CFDA, organizer of New York fashion week, added unisex as a new category in February 2018.

In an article “What fashion need to understand by being gender neutral” written by Jamie Wylie
published at dazeddigital.com in the year 2018, author expresses that Famous brands like retail outlet
like H&M and Zara have different categories to present under unisex clothing such as hoodies ,
sweatshirts and t-shirts while their intention may have been positive but the collection were
presented in both womenswear and menswear , so the gender neutral costumer had to make a choice
as to where they should buy the desired merchandise and other problem is that girls clothes are made
exclusively for girls and clothes made for boys are basically for everyone ,here the major question
arises that when will skirts and dresses will become gender neutral ?

In an article “Gender fluid clothing is the future. Here’s how menswear is changing”, written by
Zak Maoui published at GQ, UK in the year 2018, author mentions with example of celebrities that
the world and fashion is moving forward. Gender binary fashion is a norm not just for new brands
but for established fashion houses as well. Article states that fashion labels are getting much more
sales than before as the line between femininity and masculinity has been blurred.

In a Research Paper “The shape & size for designing the unisex clothing: A study” published by
Sunitha Vasan, S. R. Pujar & S. Gopalkrishnan at NIFT, Chennai in the year 2019, researchers
identify various shapes, sizes and colours that works with unisex clothing with different body
structure. The study was conducted in 4 centers of NIFT namely Banglore, Kannur, Hyderabad and
Chennai. The conclusion gave important tips for marketers to strategize the fashion business.

In another Research paper “Functionality of unisex clothing among fashion Designers in

academic environment: an empirical study” by Sunitha Vasan, S. R. Pujar & S. Gopalkrishnan at
NIFT, Chennai in the year 2019, researchers reveal that clothing, accessories and aesthetic look
defines the functionality of unisex fashion. Data collected from 4 centers of NIFT namely Bangalore,
Kannur, Hyderabad and Chennai conclude that “fit & stylish” clothes were given preference.
Accessories such as “stole, belts, shoes, bags, rings/necklace” were preferred. For aesthetics “beauty
products, tattoos, perfumes” were preferred with higher impact.

In another article “Men are changing. Are brands Keeping up?” by Kati Chitrakorn published at
Business of Fashion in the year 2019, author shares that in the past #metoo era, toxic masculinity has
been tested and unisex clothing, androgyny is being explored with open arms. Brands have realized
the financial benefit of it and now are much more prone to experiment.

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Unisex Clothing

In an article “Does the world really need unisex clothing” published by Josh Sims in
Fashionbeans.com, author states there are many powerful looks incorporated by fashion icons for
specific genders for example Mary Quant’s iconic miniskirts from 60’s, helping women to liberate
themselves from social judgements. The author argues that clothes shouldn’t be classified according
to gender but should be accepted as just clothes to be worn. There are certain fashion brands like
ZARA launched its line of ‘ungendered clothes’ and H&M launched its ‘Denim United’ line for
workwear clothes for everybody irrespective of their genders. Many celebrities are now opting for
‘power suits’ for their Red-carpet look. The author finally concludes with giving the example of
David Bowie and remembers how David broke all the taboo by wearing gender neutral clothes,
makeup and coloured his hair. Author discusses about the cost effectiveness of these clothes and
encouraging your support to it because it supports slow moving fashion which is essential for the
environment. He draws the inference by saying that all body shapes and sizes should not fit into one
piece but the idea is to make a silhouette that is uniform and standardized and visually appealing.

In a research paper “Unisex clothing trends and rationale” published by K. Archana Ranjan
published at NIFT Raebareli, researcher states that unisex clothing concept is notable, since it is not
that much explored, and it is a clear example of bridging the gap between gender specific
stereotypes. in this research paper we came across certain facts like – 1. clothing is used by both men
and women as a device to communicate their personality and identity. 2 Women wearing masculine
inspired clothing is a dominant trend and 3. unisex clothing is not perceived as hindrance by men to
their masculinity. Thus, we can say that market is ready to accept unisex clothing.

2.2 Research Gaps

As from the literature review it can be seen that there are a lot of studies that have been conducted on
unisex clothing but there are certain topics which have remained untouched such as:
• Perception of consumers towards unisex clothing
• Attitude of men towards unisex clothing in India scenario
• Understanding whether unisex clothing is limited to menswear clothing
In this research paper all of the above-mentioned topics will be discussed

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Unisex Clothing

3. RESEARCH METHODOLGY

3.1 Research Objectives

• To analyze the attitude of men towards unisex clothing in Indian scenario.
• To know if unisex clothing is limited to menswear clothing only.
• To study fashion consciousness among men about unisex clothing brands.

3.2 Scope of Study

Unisex clothing first made an appearance in the 1960s, but it has boomed in popularity in recent years thanks
to the gender fluid movement. The paper tries to understand if unisex clothing is only restricted to menswear
clothes. The study has been conducted in Tier- I and Tier – II cities to understand if there is any contrast or
any similarity found in these two types. The study also revolves around the perception of people and trying to
decode their ideology towards gender fluid clothes. This study further tries to understand the acceptance of the
customers towards unisex clothes.

3.3 Sampling
This research consists of two sampling methods namely Purpose sampling and Convenience
sampling. Purposive sampling is when researchers thoroughly think through how they will establish
a sample population, even if it is not statistically representative of the greater population at hand. As
the name suggests, researchers went to this community on purpose because they think that these
individuals fit the profile of the people that they need to reach. Further convenience sampling, also
known as opportunity sampling, as it is a form of non-probability sampling that involves the sample
being drawn from the part of population that is in near researcher’s proximity. Sample size for this
research was 300 out of which only 230 responses were recorded and 21 responses.

3.4 Data Collection Tools

Primary data collection was conducted from the sample size. Questionnaire was used as a data
collection tool to analyse this quantitative research. A questionnaire is a set of questions conducted
by a researcher for the purpose to gather information from the respondents.
The questionnaire was floated in the form of google docs, e-mail and social media platforms. A study
was conducted for the end users that is the consumer to understand their psychology and knowledge
about unisex clothing.

3.5 Limitations of Study

• As there was limited time available to conduct this research thus only limited amount of
research has been done in this field.
• There were a lot of responses recorded by the respondents but some of the responses had to
be considered as null and void because of inappropriate answering of the questions in the
questionnaire.
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Unisex Clothing

• As unisex clothing was a new and extensive concept for respondents thus interpretation of the
topic varied from respondent to respondent.
• Biasness is seen in the sample size as convenience sampling is conducted in the research and
only the people who were conveniently available were contacted.

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Unisex Clothing

4. DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETAION

A study was conducted to know the perception of men towards unisex clothing under varied parameters,
their consciousness about brand that offers unisex clothing and to know whether unisex clothing is limited to
menswear clothing only. The study sees the use of both inferential and descriptive statistics to analyse
and interpret the data at hand.
The reliability of the questionnaire is tested through Cronbach’s Alpha. One-way ANOVA was used
to compare the attitude and perception of men according to various parameters.
A reliability analysis was carried out on the perception and consciousness of men towards unisex
clothing
Table 1

Reliability Statistics

Cronbach's
Alpha N of Items

.517 12

Table 2

Case Processing Summary

N %

Cases Valid 205 98.1

Excludeda 4 1.9

Total 209 100.0

a. Listwise deletion based on all variables in the

procedure.

Cronbach’s alpha showed the questionnaire to reach acceptable reliability, α = 0.517. Most items
appeared to be worthy of retention, resulting in a decrease in the alpha if deleted.
A one-way ANOVA was conducted to compare the attitude and perception of men towards unisex
clothing according to the age group (parameters: “comfort” , “whether it makes them question their
masculinity”, “influence of social media” , “blurring of gender lines” etc. )
H0 = There is no significant difference in the perception level of males of different age group
towards unisex clothing.
H1 = There is a significant difference in the perception level of males of different age group towards
unisex clothing.
Table 3

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 Descriptive
Unisex Clothing

Mean N Std. Deviation

Do you believe “Gender 15-20 2.5652 23 .94514
lines are blurring?” 21-25 2.5724 145 .76144
26-30 2.1875 32 .73780
31-35 2 4 .81650
36 & above 3.33 3 1.527
Total 2.5121 207 .80568
Do you believe “Clothes 15-20 2.5217 23 .995405
have gender too?” 21-25 2.4286 147 .99313
26-30 2.8125 32 1.20315
31-35 2.5 4 1.29099
36 & above 1.667 3 .57335
Total 2.4880 209 1.03362

Do you believe 15-20 2.1304 23 .86887

“Advertisement helps in 21-25 2.0274 146 .83
promotion of unisex 26-30 2.0313 32 .89747
clothing.” 31-35 2.75 4 .95743
36 & above 3 3 2
Total 2.0673 208 .87105
“Unisex clothes are 15-20 2.6957 23 1.01957
comfortable” Do you 21-25 2.4898 147 .87872
agree? 26-30 2.6563 32 .86544
31-35 2.2500 4 1.25831
36 & above 3.667 3 1.15470
Total 2.5502 209 .90862
The idea of unisex clothes 15-20 3.4783 23 1.03877
make you question your 21-25 3.4898 147 .99566
masculinity. 26-30 2.9355 31 1.03071
31-35 2.75 4 1.5
36 & above 2.667 3 1.527
Total 1.03792
3.3798 208

Would you like to see the 15-20 2.2174 23 .95139

increase of unisex clothes 21-25 1.9660 147 .91722
both in stores and online? 26-30 2.0625 32 .94826
31-35 1.75 4 .95743
36 & above 1.25 4 .55735
Total 2.0144 209 .92236
Would you purchase a 15-20 2 23 .51843
unisex product from 21-25 1.4354 147 .74086
women’s department if 26-30 1.2188 32 .55267
that said product is 31-35 1.25 4 .5
unavailable at men’s 36 & above 1.667 3 .57735
department? Total 1.3780 209 .69038

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Unisex Clothing

Have you ever seen male 15-20 1.2174 23 .51843

celebrity wearing unisex 21-25 1.4354 147 .74086
clothing with feminine 26-30 1.2188 32 .55267
dimensions? 31-35 1.25 4 .5
36 & above 1.667 3 .5735
Total 1.3780 209 .69038
Does social media or 15-20 1.7391 23 .75181
fashion celebrities impact 21-25 1.7007 147 .6636
your decision to wear 26-30 1.4062 32 .49899
unisex clothes? 31-35 1.5 4 .57735
36 & above 2.33 3 .57735
Total 1.6651 209 .65982
Do you think its attractive 15-20 1.5652 23 .84348
when women wear unisex 21-25 1.7808 146 .89051
clothes with masculine 26-30 1.4375 32 .80071
dimensions? 31-35 1.5 4 .57735
36 & above 2 3 1
Total
.87233
1.7019 208

Table 4
ANOVA

Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.

Do you believe Between Groups 7.036 4 1.759 2.805 .027

“Gender lines are Within Groups 126.683 202 .627
blurring?” Total 133.720 206
Do you believe Between Groups 5.939 4 1.485 1.401 .235
“Clothes have gender Within Groups 216.281 204 1.060
too?” Total 222.220 208
Do you believe Between Groups 4.840 4 1.210 1.614 .172
“Advertisement helps Within Groups 152.218 203 .750
in promotion of unisex Total
157.058 207
clothing.”
“Unisex clothes are Between Groups 5.483 4 1.371 1.682 .155
comfortable” Do you Within Groups 166.240 204 .815
agree? Total 171.722 208
The idea of unisex Between Groups 11.234 4 2.808 2.692 .032
clothes make you Within Groups 211.761 203 1.043

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Unisex Clothing

question your Total

222.995 207
masculinity.
Would you like to see Between Groups 2.922 4 .731 .856 .491
the increase of unisex Within Groups 174.035 204 .853
clothes both in stores Total
176.957 208
and online?
Would you purchase a Between Groups 4.692 4 1.173 1.702 .151
unisex product from Within Groups 140.552 204 .689
women’s department Total
if that said product is
145.244 208
unavailable at men’s
department?
Have you ever seen Between Groups 2.204 4 .551 1.160 .330
male celebrity wearing Within Groups 96.935 204 .475
unisex clothing with Total
99.139 208
feminine dimensions?
Does social media or Between Groups 3.905 4 .976 2.298 .060
fashion celebrities Within Groups 86.650 204 .425
impact your decision Total
to wear unisex 90.555 208
clothes?
Do you think its Between Groups 4.006 4 1.001 1.324 .262
attractive when Within Groups 153.513 203 .756
women wear unisex Total
clothes with masculine 157.519 207
dimensions?

The groups were made with the age bracket of 15 -20, 21 -25, 26 -30, 31 -35, 36 & above.
It was seen that in two parameters (“blurring of gender lines” and “unisex clothing questioning their
masculinity) there was a significant difference therefore H1 is accepted for these two parameters.
H1 = There is a significant difference in the perception level of males of different age group towards
unisex clothing.
Apart from these two parameters there is no such significant difference. It was seen that irrespective
of the different age groups the respondents stood in, there was no bearing on the different parameters
so tested. Therefore, H0 is accepted for the rest of parameters.
H0 = There is no significant difference in the perception level of males of different age group
towards unisex clothing.

A one-way ANOVA was conducted to compare the attitude and perception of men towards unisex
clothing according to different cities (tier 1 and tier 2 ) (parameters: “comfort” , “whether it makes
them question their masculinity”, “influence of social media” , “blurring of gender lines” etc. )

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Unisex Clothing

H0 = There is no significant difference in the perception level of males of different cities towards
unisex clothing.
H1 = There is a significant difference in the perception level of males of different age cities towards
unisex clothing.
Table 5
Descriptive

Mean N Std. Deviation

Do you believe “Gender lines Tier 1 2.4190 105 0.76938

are blurring?” Tier 2 2.6078 102 .83437

Total 2.5121 207 .80568

Do you believe “Clothes Tier 1 2.4 105 1.02

have gender too?” Tier 2 2.57 104 1.03

Total 2.48 209 1.033

Do you believe Tier 1 2.0476 105 .82487

“Advertisement helps in Tier 2 2.0874 103 .91936
promotion of unisex Total
2.0673 208 .87105
clothing.”

“Unisex clothes are Tier 1 2.3143 105 .83567

comfortable” Do you agree? Tier 2 2.7885 104 .92088

Total 2.5502 209 .90862

The idea of unisex clothes Tier 1 3.4381 105 1.05542

make you question your Tier 2 3.3204 103 1.02147
masculinity. Total 3.3798 208 1.03792

Would you like to see the Tier 1 2.0095 105 .95570

increase of unisex clothes Tier 2 2.0192 104 .89204
both in stores and online? .83564
Total 2.0144 209

Would you purchase a Tier 1 1.3429 105 .67694

unisex product from women’s Tier 2 1.4135 104 .70519
department if that said
product is unavailable at Total 1.3780 209 .69038
men’s department?

Have you ever seen male Tier 1 1.3429 105 .67694

celebrity wearing unisex Tier 2 1.4135 104 .70519
clothing with feminine Total
1.3780 209 .69038
dimensions?

Does social media or fashion Tier 1 1.6286 105 .66877

celebrities impact your Tier 2 1.7019 104 .65181

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Unisex Clothing

decision to wear unisex Total

1.6651 209 .65982
clothes?

Do you think its attractive Tier 1 1.7596 104 .89763

when women wear unisex Tier 2 1.6442 104 .84668
clothes with masculine Total
1.7019 208 .87233
dimensions?

Table 6

ANOVA

Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig.

Do you believe Between Groups 1.844 1 1.844 2.867 .092

“Gender lines are Within Groups 131.876 205 .643
blurring?” Total 133.720 206
Do you believe Between Groups 1.635 1 1.635 1.535 .217
“Clothes have Within Groups 220.585 207 1.066
gender too?” Total 222.220 208
Do you believe Between Groups .082 1 .082 .108 .743
“Advertisement Within Groups 156.975 206 .762
helps in Total
promotion of 157.058 207
unisex clothing.”
“Unisex clothes Between Groups 11.748 1 11.748 15.201 .000
are comfortable” Within Groups 159.975 207 .773
Do you agree? Total 171.722 208
The idea of Between Groups .720 1 .720 .668 .415
unisex clothes Within Groups 222.275 206 1.079
make you Total
question your 222.995 207
masculinity.
Would you like to Between Groups .005 1 .005 .006 .940
see the increase Within Groups 176.952 207 .855
of unisex clothes Total
both in stores 176.957 208
and online?
Would you Between Groups .922 1 .922 1.323 .251
purchase a Within Groups 144.322 207 .697

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Unisex Clothing

unisex product Total

from women’s
department if that
said product is 145.244 208
unavailable at
men’s
department?
Have you ever Between Groups .260 1 .260 .545 .461
seen male Within Groups 98.878 207 .478
celebrity wearing Total
unisex clothing
99.139 208
with feminine
dimensions?
Does social Between Groups .281 1 .281 .645 .423
media or fashion Within Groups 90.274 207 .436
celebrities impact Total
your decision to
90.555 208
wear unisex
clothes?
Do you think its Between Groups .692 1 .692 .909 .341
attractive when Within Groups 156.827 206 .761
women wear Total
unisex clothes
157.519 207
with masculine
dimensions?

There were no statistically significant differences, except in one parameter. Only one parameter
showed difference which was comfort of wearing unisex clothes, so for that parameter H 1 is
considered
H1 = There is a significant difference in the perception level of males of different age cities towards
unisex clothing.
Except that one parameter there was no significant difference therefore H0 will be accepted
H0 = There is no significant difference in the perception level of males of different cities towards
unisex clothing.

Further to know whether unisex clothing is limited to only menswear we asked respondent that what
according to them is unisex clothing and option given to them were –
a Skirt
b Shirt
c Trouser

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Unisex Clothing

d Crop top
e All of the above
figure 1

The above figures states that shirt and trouser are considered unisex clothing by most of the
respondents.

To know about the consciousness of men towards the brands that are offering unisex clothing we
asked the respondent whether they know any brand offering unisex clothing and we got the
following response
Figure 2

From the above figure it is seen that only 25.9 % of respondents know the brands which offers
unisex clothes.
To know the perception of men towards unisex clothes they were asked that whether it questions
their masculinity , following result was obtained

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Unisex Clothing

Figure 3

It can be seen that more 50 % of respondents are comfortable wearing it and it does not question
their masculinity .
We also tried to find how frequently people purchase unisex clothing and the result was following.

Figure 4

From the above figure it has been seen that majority of people haven’t purchased unisex clothes yet.
The research also tried to find out the impact and influence of social media or fashion influencer on
the respondents and the following result was obtained.

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Unisex Clothing

Figure 5

It can be seen that less than 50 % of respondents think that it influences their decision

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Unisex Clothing

5. MAJOR FINDINGS
i. As per analysis of the obtained data it can be noted that different age group have different
perceptions about blurring gender lines and their thoughts differed on the question that unisex
clothing made them question their masculinity.
ii. Another finding states that the perception of people residing in tier I cities was more
comfortable in wearing and accepting other people wearing unisex clothing.
iii. According to the analysis it was found that shirt and trouser had the maximum vote when
asked about their perception of unisex clothes and thus it can be stated that people have
perceived mostly shirts and trousers a unisex clothes.
iv. After interpretation of the result it was observed that only 25.9% people were aware about
different unisex brands. According to the responses recorded, respondents only knew about
some of the unisex brands like Zara, Nike, H&M, Levis, Forever 21 and Uniqlo.
v. As per the research it was observed that 120 people out of 209 have never bought any unisex
clothes yet.
vi. As per the finds it was noted that 78% of the respondents believed that Advertisements can
help in promotion of unisex clothes.
vii. In this research it was noted that 41.2% get influenced by fashion celebrity and the presence
of social media.
viii. The perception of men towards unisex clothing is in favour as 53% of the respondents (i.e
more than half of the respondents) believe that unisex clothing does not question their
masculinity .

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Unisex Clothing

6. SUGGESTIONS:

According to the research it can be suggested that unisex clothes have a huge potential market
and any retailer investing in this line would have high profits as there is low competition and the
demand is also increasing.

As it is an era of social media and people get influenced by social celebrities very quickly thus it
can be interpreted that social media plays a vital role in accepting the new trends of unisex
clothing.

As unisex clothing can be used by both men and women, thus it is considered to be cost effective
for the retailer as well as consumer therefore consumers should be sensitized by the importance
of unisex clothing.

Further suggestions can be given for the marketing mix of unisex clothing brands.

Marketing Mix:
After the development of marketing strategy, business should keep on re-evaluating its business
activities time and again. The seven Ps that a business should keep in mind are:
• Product
• Place
• Promotion
• Price
• Physical Evidence
• Process
• People

This research will focus on 2ps of marketing mix.

I. PROMOTION
Since the demand of unisex clothing are on a rise but these are still not conveniently available.
Unisex clothing has a lot of scope in the fashion markets and promotions are not very effectively
reaching the target audience. One of the findings from the research was noted as that 78% people that

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Unisex Clothing

Advertisement helps in promotion of unisex clothes. Thus some of the steps that could be
incorporated in making the promotion more powerful are:
i. Brand endorsements:
These are a form of advertising wherein a famous personality promotes a product by lending
their names or image to promote a product or service. Ranveer Singh can be chosen for the
endorsement of a brand in unisex clothing as he is seen as a person who can carry unisex
clothes effortlessly and make unisex clothes widely accepted by the society.
ii. Fashion shows in mall:
Monthly fashion shows can be conducted in mall having a unisex theme fashion show. As
people will get to know about new styles in unisex clothing and further it might influence
them to buy it.
iii. Visual Merchandising:
Visual merchandising plays a vital role in promotion of merchandises displayed in the store.
No bifurcation of different departments according to genders should be promoted. Gender-
less mannequin should be used to give an atmosphere of a unisex store.
iv. Fashion influencers:
Fashion influencers are those people who have a large number of followers on social media
and create fashion content for the same. They have the ability to influence their followers in
terms of purchasing of merchandises with sharing of their experiences.
v. Social media marketing:
Social media marketing is the use of social media platforms to connect with your audience to
build your brand and increase sales. Marketing through social media is that it helps you
improve visibility, and thus increase recognition for your brand. Thus a brand should make
sure that is visible on most of the social media platforms.

II. PLACE
The place is where your product or service is actually sold. Develop the habit of reviewing and
reflecting upon the exact location and place where your merchandises will be kept. Sometimes a
change in place can lead to a rapid increase in sales. Through the research it has been found that
respondents of tier I cities were more confident and comfortable in wearing unisex clothes than tier II
cities. Another finding in this research was noted that 43.1% people were willing to see more of
unisex.
Thus some of the suggestions that could be followed for Place are:
1. A store should be located in such a place where fashion conscious people reside.
2. Make your presence in as many social media platforms as possible. As social media
platforms give you a wider audience.
3. Make your own web page for easy accessibility for the target audience and their convenience.
4. A unisex brand can collaborate with bigger brand like Myntra, Flipkart and Amazon where
their products can be showcased and storage responsibilities will be taken care by these big
brands.

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Unisex Clothing

7. CONCLUSION

Unisex clothing isn’t going anywhere. This is a good thing. For too long, mainstream fashion has
pushed only men’s and women’s collections. This, in today’s landscape is a notion that simply
doesn’t fit. Fashion designers are combining men’s and women’s collections on the runway and have
abolished “girls” and “boys” labels on children’s clothes, and more fashion brands are launching
gender-neutral collections, one of these is streetwear-inspired label: Wildfang. Following in the
footsteps of H&M (who announced their unisex denim line in March), the forward-thinking
brand is leading the way in gender-neutral fashion. In mainstream fashion, the collections aren't so
much genderless as toned-down versions of male clothing. H&M's collection, for example, looked
distinctly masculine; there were plenty of trousers for women, but no skirts for men.

As per the findings it can be noted that different respondents of different age groups had varied
perception and understanding about unisex clothing. Also it can be further classified according to
cities and it was observed that people living in Metropolitan cities had more exposure and acceptance
towards unisex clothing as Metropolitan cities are always the one benefitted from launching of a
brand because the brand first establishes them in tier I cities.

Less than 50% of the respondents were aware about the brands who offer unisex clothing thus it can
be concluded that there is a potential market for unisex clothes. People are not yet aware about
unisex clothing concept but when they were asked about whether they will buy it in near future most
of the respondents said yes, thus unisex clothing has a huge market to capture.

It is observed that unisex clothes in present scenario is only restricted to menswear, people have not
yet accepted skirts, sheer tops as unisex clothing.

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Unisex Clothing

8. REFERENCES

o https://www.fashionbeans.com/article/does-unisex-fashion-work/

o https://www.vogue.com/article/saskia-de-brauw-model-artist-vincent-van-de-
wijngaard-photographer-on-their-multimedia-project-ghosts-dont-walk-in-straight-
lines?verso=true

S
o https://www.vogue.com/article/jaden-smith-louis-vuitton-campaign?verso=true

o https://ezspss.com/one-way-anova-in-spss-including-interpretation/

o https://www.encyclopedia.com/fashion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-
maps/unisex-clothing

o https://www.fashionbeans.com/article/does-unisex-fashion-work/

o https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329466550_Perception_on_Unisex_Clothin
g_Among_Apparel_Designers_A_Study

o https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329466760_Awareness_on_Unisex_Clothin
g_Among_Fashion_Designers_A_Study

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Unisex Clothing

ANNEXURE

Questionnaire
On

Unisex clothing

Dear Respondents,
The present study is related to “Unisex Clothing”. The aim of this study is to detect awareness,
attitude and preference of men for unisex clothing. You are requested to give your free and frank
response to the following questionnaire. I assure you all the information provided by you will be kept
strictly confidential and will be used only for academic purpose only. I will be highly obliged for
your kind co-operation.

Personal Information
1. Name:
2. Gender
3. Age
4. Contact No./ Email:
5. City:

The concept of unisex clothing is not new but its popularity is. Unisex clothes can act as a bridge
between muscularity and femininity and create equality.

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Unisex Clothing

1. Do you believe “Gender lines are blurring?”

(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

2. Do you believe “Clothes have gender too?”

(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

3. Do you believe “Advertisement helps in promotion of unisex clothing.”

a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

4. “Unisex clothes are comfortable” Do you agree?

(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

5. Would you like to see the increase of unisex clothes both in stores and online?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

6. Does the idea of unisex clothes make you question your masculinity?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

7. Would you purchase a unisex product from women’s department if that said product is
unavailable at men’s department?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

8. Have you ever seen male celebrity wearing unisex clothing with feminine dimensions?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

9. Does social media or fashion celebrities impact your decision to wear unisex clothes?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

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Unisex Clothing

10. Do you think its attractive when women wear unisex clothes with masculine dimensions?
(a) Strongly agree b) Agree c) Neutral d) Disagree e) Strongly Disagree

11. According to you which of the following outfits are unisex?

(a) shirt (b) Skirt (c) Trouser (d) Shoes (e) Crop-top (f) All of the above

12. Do you know of any brand which offers unisex clothing?

(a)Yes (b) no (c) maybe

13. If yes, can you name a few brands which offers unisex clothes?
………………………………………………………………..

14. Have you ever purchased unisex clothes?

(a) Yes (b) No (c) Maybe

15. If no, would you like to purchase unisex clothing in future?

…………………………………………………

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CO-OPERATION

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