Petite fashion first appeared in the late 1940s, according to the New York Times, when Hannah Troy noticed that regular clothing was too long-waisted for shorter women. However, for years after petite sizing was introduced in the fashion world, relatively few designers took note.
Although today not all manufacturers offer petite clothing, an increasing number of them do sell petite garments. Retailers are also continuing to expand their selections of petite clothing in order to meet their customers' needs.
In most cases, you'll find more petite clothing in your favorite retailers' online catalogues than in local stores, which typically devote more floor space to regular sized clothing. So shopping online definitely expands fashion options for petites.
