Streetwear brands overwhelmingly sell one size range rather than separate men's and women's lines. The practice reflects manufacturing economics as much as any statement about who the clothing is for.
One block halves the pattern work
Separate ranges require separate blocks, separate grading, separate samples and separate fit sessions for every garment in a collection.
A single range removes that duplication entirely, which matters most for small brands producing limited quantities under tight capital constraints.
Inventory risk falls at the same time, since stock is not split across two ranges that cannot substitute for one another.
Loose fits tolerate the compromise
Unisex sizing works because the garments are cut with substantial ease, so the pattern does not need to follow body contours closely.
A t-shirt or hoodie designed to hang away from the torso can accommodate a wide range of shapes without any of them being specifically fitted.
The same approach fails immediately on tailored or close-fitting garments, which is why unisex ranges concentrate in exactly the categories that are loose.
The block is usually a men's block
Unisex patterns in practice derive from menswear blocks, which means shoulder width, armhole depth and body length reflect a men's proportion.
Wearers with narrower shoulders and shorter torsos therefore find the shoulder seam sitting low and the body length long, which is the characteristic oversized effect.
That look has been embraced as intentional, though it originated as a fit consequence rather than as a designed proportion.
Sizing conventions vary widely between brands
No standard governs what a unisex medium measures, and brands set their own blocks according to the silhouette they want.
The result is that sizes are not comparable across labels, and the same nominal size can differ substantially in both width and length.
Published garment measurements are the only reliable comparison, which is why serious buyers work from chest width and body length rather than from the letter.
Fitted alternatives exist at scale
Larger brands with the capital to support multiple ranges do produce women's-specific cuts, particularly in categories where fit matters more.
Doing so requires committing to inventory in both ranges, which is precisely the risk that smaller labels avoid by staying unisex.
The size range offered is consequently a reasonable signal of a brand's production scale, independent of anything stated about its intended audience.