While most documentaries about corrupt brands persuade consumers not to shop there and prompt them to boycott, this was not the case for the popular brand, Brandy Melville. 

Brandy Melville is a widely known brand for its cheap and trendy clothing. It has a wide range of basics and graphics which are some of its most popular items. The brand has become so popular that shoppers wait in long lines to be let into stores.  

Brandy Melville is also widely known for their one-size-fits-most clothing that discriminates against other body types. It has also been said that the hiring process is highly discriminative in terms of race and body type. 

The documentary “Brandy Helville: & The Cult of Fast Fashion” was released on Max on April 9, 2024. This documentary sought to expose Brandy Melville for the exploitation and discrimination within the business as well as its contribution to the ever-growing issue of fast fashion. 

So why, after almost a year since the brand was exposed, has there been no significant change? Why are people still shopping at Brandy Melville despite everything that has been made known about the brand?  

The simple truth is that the brand knows exactly who its target customers are. Brandy Melville’s target customers are young women between the ages of 15 and 24. In this age range girls tend to use fashion as a way to express themselves. 

Brandy Melville is a brand that makes it easy for young girls to express themselves because it is one that not everyone can have. Due to its discriminative sizing, not everyone can fit into the clothes, which makes it exclusive. Regardless of how messed up this idea is, girls continue to shop there partly because they know the probability of other girls having the same or similar clothing items is low. 

Despite their intent of shopping at Brandy Melville to stand out from their peers, these young girls have slowly begun turning into carbon copies of each other. They have been dubbed the nickname: “Brandy Girls.” This nickname is given to the stereotypically skinny and pretty girls who are often seen shopping at Brandy. 

The desire to be a “Brandy girl” is part of the reason people continue to support the brand. What started as an attempt to rebel against the norm has become an easy invitation into a cult. 

Additionally, Brandy Melville is a fast fashion brand. While this is also something that should raise a red flag to its customers, people continue to shop there for its cheap prices. Their desire to fit in with the Brandy aesthetic and to be seen wearing the brand is greater than their desire to save the planet. 

Before the release of the documentary, “Brandy Helville: & The Cult of Fast Fashion,” Brandy Melville made 212.5 million dollars in sales in 2023. That was without changing anything about how the brand operates

Now it is 2025 and the brand continues to change nothing about the way they operate because they do not have to. Brandy Melville knows  their target customers are right where they need them to be to continue to be a successful brand. 

So long as Brandy Melville maintains their loyal customer base, it will most likely continue to be a corrupt business forever. 

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Hi! I’m Kayla Friedman, A Magazine’s editor-in-chief. My staff and I are committed to bringing you the most important and entertaining news from the realms of fashion, beauty and culture. We are full-time students and hard-working journalists. While we get support from the student media fee and earned revenue such as advertising, both of those continue to decline. Your generous gift of any amount will help enhance our student experience as we grow into working professionals. Please go here to donate to A Magazine.