Frustrated Mom Calls Out Target Over Its Boys' Clothes

Emily McWilliams
A shelf with boys' shirts at Target
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

Kids' clothing designs can be surprisingly controversial. Over the years, there have been incidents where a design was approved, but parents soon noticed an inappropriate mistake which lead to the design being recalled. There's also been a big push from parents to make children's clothes more gender neutral to minimize gender stereotypes.

One mom recently took to TikTok to highlight a problem she sees frequently with boys' clothes and other parents online said they share her frustrations.

Like a lot of moms, Taylor Garner shops for her kids at Target.

Target shopping carts
Unsplash | Abhinav Bhardwaj

The discount superstore is a favorite with parents and kids because of the low prices and affordable fashions. Plus, the store has a pretty forgiving return policy when it comes to kids' clothes. However, the mom recently took to TikTok to make a complaint about the store's boy section.

In Taylor's video, she scans over a shelf stocked with boys' shirts.

A shelf with boys' shirts at Target
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

As she pans over the shelf, the mom can be heard saying, "The boys' section of every clothing store is going to dinosaur and shark you to death."

It quickly becomes apparent that Taylor isn't wrong — in this single display the vast majority of shirts feature a dinosaur or shark design.

Taylor wants more variety when it comes to boys' styles.

A dinosaur shirt at Target
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

In the video, she wonders where all the other animal designs are. At one point, she spots a shirt with a rhino on it and seriously considers buying it simply because it seems to be the only option without a shark or a dinosaur.

The video struck a chord with parents online.

A TikTok video comment
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

Many users and parents commented saying they've shared Taylor's frustration. One TikTok user even listed puppies, teddy bears, and frogs as alternatives to the never-ending cycle of shark and dinosaur designs.

Parents with little girls have a different problem.

A TikTok video comment
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

Instead of sharks and dinosaurs, parents with daughters are stuck with butterflies, flowers, mermaids, and unicorns on every shirt. It seems that kids' clothing designers could expand their horizons for all children.

In a follow-up video, Taylor responded to one user's comment about the struggle of even finding plain clothes for kids.

A mom in a white shirt speaking to the camera.
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

Taylor agreed with this user and said she would also be happy to see more solid-colored shirts for kids. Since her video went viral, many people suggested stores with more variety for children including Old Navy, Zara, and H&M.

However, while some people agreed with Taylor's criticism, they said their kids would only wear shark and dinosaur designs.

A TikTok video comment
TikTok | @taylor.dannise

At the end of the day, variety is always good but sometimes, the kids know exactly what they want and we just have to add another dinosaur shirt to the collection.

h/t The Sun