If you don’t know Universal Standard yet, then it’s time to learn the name. The luxury basics label helmed by Alexandra Waldman and Polina Veksler has staked its claim as the brand for EVERY woman, offering clothing in an unprecedented 00-40 size range. Earlier this year, Universal Standard collaborated with J.Crew, aiding the retailer in introducing extended sizing to its audience. Now, the company is launching a five-piece capsule collection with Gwyneth Paltrow’s wellness destination Goop. The Goop x Universal Standard offering features wardrobe essentials like a tailored tuxedo jacket, cropped trousers, a peacoat, a hi-low dress, and a jumpsuit.
“At Goop, I always say internally something that we try to do is eliminate shame by talking about things, whether it’s sexual health or stress or post-natal depression. I want Goop to be a place where women who are feeling marginalized in anyway can come and find content and product,” Paltrow, who invested in Universal Standard earlier this year, told Business of Fashion. “This is an area where we haven’t been great and I believe inclusivity is really important.”
“Goop has been a real disruptor by allowing women to really look at the whole idea of wellness in a new light, without any boundaries,” Waldman said of the partnership. “That fits perfectly with what we’re trying to do with clothing.”
Courtesy of Goop x Universal Standard
From a manufacturing standpoint, producing such a large size range isn’t always effortless. But Universal Standard’s work is affecting big and small industry changes. In the short-term, the brand is offering more stylish and higher quality clothing options to an underserved market; in the long-term, Universal Standard is acting as an agent of change in an industry that has ignored so many women for so long. And by teaming up with companies like Goop, as Waldman said, Universal Standard will be able to make “[size inclusivity] the new normal through a variety of channels.”