Abercrombie

[alrajee]

From a fashion standpoint, I think A&F also hit the jackpot with the type of clothing that people wanted to wear during the two decades it dominated mall traffic. There was never a day when I didn't see a guy walking around wearing a muscle shirt, slim boot-cut jeans, and leather flip-flops. Add T-shirts with sexual innuendos and colored polos with gigantic logos, and it's not surprising that A&F made a killing.

 

Around 2010, normcore became the fashion du jour, the complete opposite of A&F's style sensibility. Whereas other mall brands like American Eagle Outfitters, J. Crew, and even Express adapted to this trend, A&F stuck to their guns. It didn't work, and they've been playing catch-up ever since.

 

Personally, I like the eye candy of A&F during their prime. I'd always stop at their store at my local mall to admire the flip-flopped models and fall in line at their Fifth Avenue store just to check out the muscled greeter. I won't buy anything though—I hate how their clothes fit for my athletic built. My interest disappeared when they went through a makeover. Funny enough, A&F's clothes nowadays are more my speed, but I still won't shop there because I can get the same type of stuff elsewhere.

[+ nycman]

I never understood the appeal. It was overpriced moderately nice clothing.

The eye candy was nice. No doubt it was hypersexualized and homoerotic.

At the end of the day though, it was cheaper to wander over to the Gaiety

where you could actually touch the abs and then go shopping somewhere nice.

Edited April 1, 2021 by nycman

[Islesguy]

I was only ever interested in them for the eye candy. I stained many a catalogue.

 

Back when they were still an outdoor sporting goods store, their products were used as prizes on "Sale of the Century" in the mid 80s. The two male models, David and Greg, were very attractive and sometimes wore speedos.

[+ friendofsheila]

From the documentary, all the fleshy stuff stopped after that CEO left about 5 years ago.

 

So why aren't those shopping bags going for bigger bux on Ebay? The catalogs sure are.

[+ azdr0710]

I posted this elsewhere in the forum a couple years ago.....cool!

 

[lonely_john]

"In 2005, a class of ethnic/racial minorities and women who argued that promotions were offered disproportionately to white men sued Abercrombie and Fitch. The retailer agreed to a settlement of $40 million with members of the class. Since then individual employees have alleged that the company rates potential sales workers on their looks and offers existing workers more  opportunities if managers rate them higher on a scale of hotness.”

From the Book 'Beauty Pays' by Daniel S. Hamermesh.

Edited June 1, 2021 by lonely_john

[wsc]

 

"...company rates potential sales workers on their looks and offers existing workers more  opportunities if managers rate them higher on a scale of hotness."

And the waitresses at Hooters have big tits. So what? It's part of the brand and no brand is to everyone's taste. Hooters certainly isn't to mine, but I don't long to see them all  die.

Why isn't it enough to not shop or patronize a place or business if one doesn't like it, but rather also feel one must seek to destroy it because you find it not to your liking. These are manifestations of a cancel culture mentality where you are welcome only if you unreservedly and completely embrace my views and values. We no longer even pretend to be tolerant of differences and seek only to make the world safe  -not for diversity- but for a conformity of own creation, made in own image and likeness.

Edited June 1, 2021 by wsc

[CalTec]

Oh god...just brought back all my summer camp memories with those massive A&F quarterly mags!  Without going against the site rules, it was somewhat of an "awakening" lets just say!  

[+ sniper]

On 3/31/2021 at 5:17 PM, The_Impeccable_G said:

I am sure they did their market research and that was what their customers wanted. Let's stop bringing race to everything.

Their customers wanting white people doesn't make it not racism.  Holy shit, does that need to be explained?

[+ sniper]

Whatever happened to that insane CEO who was probably banging the models?

[rvwnsd]

44 minutes ago, sniper said:

Whatever happened to that insane CEO who was probably banging the models?

Officially, On December 9, 2014, Mike Jeffries stepped down as A&F CEO due to criticism of the company's performance and 11 straight quarters of negative company comparable-store sales. The shares jumped 8 percent after the move was announced, marking the biggest one-day gain in more than nine months. (paraphrased from Bloomberg Businessweek and Fortune)

The real reason is he stood too close to the fireplace and melted. 

[+ friendofsheila]

6 hours ago, rvwnsd said:

Officially, On December 9, 2014, Mike Jeffries stepped down as A&F CEO due to criticism of the company's performance and 11 straight quarters of negative company comparable-store sales. The shares jumped 8 percent after the move was announced, marking the biggest one-day gain in more than nine months. (paraphrased from Bloomberg Businessweek and Fortune)

The real reason is he stood too close to the fireplace and melted. 

That "before" looks like an "after", especially those Corningware teeth!

[lonely_john]

The CEO stepping down surely helped but he already made some statements that were no longer welcomed by shoppers. The 90s, when the A&F brand thrived were very forgiving of Political Incorrectness. The 2000s gave birth to a new generation of consumers - Millennials and Younger - who were no longer buying into these unrealistic ideals of beauty. Brands who recognized this and talked to consumers differently, trumped the market. Dove being the best example I can think of.

 

Edited June 5, 2021 by lonely_john

[pubic_assistance]

On 6/3/2021 at 12:19 PM, sniper said:

Their customers wanting white people doesn't make it not racism.  Holy shit, does that need to be explained?

So is all preference inherently racist now ?

[+ sniper]

23 minutes ago, pubic_assistance said:

So is all preference inherently racist now ?

A preference for the race of the person who rings you up at the store is racist.  This really isn't that hard.

[pubic_assistance]

I don't think the color of the cashier was the focus of Abercrombie. It was a lifestyle store. A lifestyle that blacks were never part of. They also didn't have old people or fat people working there. Those also didn't fit their brand. Same way a seafood restaurant probably doesnt sell burgers.

5 hours ago, sniper said:

 

 

[+ sniper]

8 hours ago, pubic_assistance said:

I don't think the color of the cashier was the focus of Abercrombie. It was a lifestyle store. A lifestyle that blacks were never part of. 

 

Because they were actively excluded. By things like...not hiring them.

[pubic_assistance]

3 hours ago, sniper said:

Because they were actively excluded. By things like...not hiring them.

Correct.

If memory serves, Abercrombie got around the fair labor laws by hiring them as models.