The other day I set out on a journey to find myself a professional leather portfolio, more commonly known as a padfolio.
I went to a store and asked for this elusive product, to which the saleswoman replied, “We don't have any that are feminine for you."
I was very confused because I was asking for a simple professional product.
“We only have them in the men's section."
This was a line that was repeated to me, store after store. It really didn't make sense because this was not the kind of item that had to be applied to either gender. I just wanted a damn zip-up folder for my legal pad and pens and business cards.
I did a quick search online and found that many stores placed the product only in the men's section on their sites, or that many men's stores sold them.
A lot of thoughts came to mind, many of which I said out loud to uninterested salespeople and my mother.
“Do women's products have to be pink or have flowers on them or be feminine?"
(Annoyed glance from the saleswoman).
“Do women not get to be professional…would we even be taken seriously with 'feminine' professional products?"
(Glares from the innocent male bystander).
“Why do they even have to attach a gender to stuff like this?"
(A quick “please don't cause an international incident, Maya" from my mother…a common request).
I finally found what I was looking store at a generic business product store that did not inquire of my gender or my choices. However, I was extremely frustrated. Not just by the fact that many of the people who were telling me that I needed something more feminine were women themselves, but by the blatant heteronormativity in products. If you want to take it even further, the lack of professional products for women--or the categorization of professional products for me--implies that women are not professionals. Or it implies that women are not big enough in the professional field to warrant such items.
At some point, the assumptions will need to stop. In the meantime, if you are looking for a nice padfolio, you better check the men's section.
