Abercrombie & Fitch - Summary

Summary: Although most people now associate the Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) name with sexually-provocative young models, A&F actually started out in the late 1800s as a store for outdoor/hunting enthusiasts. It was also the company that supposedly brought the game Mahjong to American and outfitted famous people of the early 20th Century like Charles Lindbergh (for his historic flight across the Atlantic). The company has changed hands several times: bought by Oshman Sports in 1978, then by the Limited Ltd. in 1988, finally becoming totally independent in 1998 and going public that same year.

Some Key Facts: Valued at $5 billion, the company now has revenues approaching $2 billion a year rolling in from 944 stores across four brands: Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie, Hollister and Ruehl. A&F sources from vendors in 37 countries and the US. The company sources its merchandise from approximately 258 factories and suppliers, primarily in Southeast Asia, and Central and South America.

A&F has been in the news for a number of issues:

• In 2005, a class action suit was filed against A&F on behalf of employees who alleged that they were wrongfully refused jobs or terminated based on their race, ethnicity, or national origin because they did not promote the "A&F Look." A&F settled with the employees for $40M and was forced to create an Office and Vice President of Diversity (other provisions of the settlement here.)
  
• In 2006, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued a formal order of investigation of the clothing retailer, and the trading in the company’s Class A shares.
• In 2002, A&F was one of 26 retailers to settle lawsuits filed by Sweatshop Watch, Global Exchange, Asian Law Caucus, Unite, and Saipan garment workers that alleged violations of U.S. labor laws and international human rights standards.
• A&F has been the target of boycotts and criticism for selling t-shirts with racist and sexist slogans.
• Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio has stated that it plans to rename its emergency room the "Abercrombie & Fitch Emergency Department and Trauma Center" in exchange for a $10 million donation. A letter written by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, and signed by over 100 doctors and children’s advocacy groups, urged the hospital not to go ahead with the renaming, arguing that, "Given this company's appalling history of targeting children with sexualized marketing and clothing, no public health institution should be advertising Abercrombie & Fitch."

Ohhhh . . . that is quite an assortment of controversy for one brand. But, maybe these are just the kind of stories that help sell newspapers or attract private donations or build credibility for the organizations on the attack? Maybe A&F is doing a lot of other good things that we don't know about? Well,they are doing . . . something. Read more about it on the Template post and the Recommendation post.

Personally Speaking: I always got a kick of the MadTV A&F spoofs. Check some out here on YouTube, if you like that sort of thing. (Warning: like much of MadTV, they are often politically incorrect.)