Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Give Your Abercrombie & Fitch Stuff To The Homeless
Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries is not a nice guy. In fact, he is pretty much always an a-hole. Recently he has taken the a-holery to a new level by saying the company does not want uncool kids to wear their stuff and definitely not anyone who is overweight, especially overweight women to wear their clothes. One guy decided to start a campaign to give A&F clothes to the homeless. He scoured thrift shops in LA and then went handing them out to the homeless. I wish everyone would give their A&F clothes to the homeless.
I will never, ever wear A&F again.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, you actually wore A&F? Second,this interview is from 2006 so you are a little late with your outrage. Lastly, you mean to tell me that the company that put out a catalog that was little more than a bunch of teenagers put into homoerotic and jailbait poses then photographed had a "no fat chicks" policy? Well clutch my pearls...
Delete+1 @daniel, I thought people justly boycotted A&F a looooong time ago. Idk why anyone pays attention to that company now
DeleteEVERY fashion brand does this, to a certain extent.
ReplyDeletewhy is this a thing?
ReplyDeletehow about let's put attention on something that deserves it, like education, health, environmental conservation, etc....
let the company make skinny jeans and move on.
It's funny, the only people I know who still think it's cool are probably not demographics he wants in it.
ReplyDeleteMy gay male friends wear it a lot, and a lot of kids that aren't in the in crowd but want to be.
I think it's creepy that a grown man approaching the age of 70 is so invested in the lives of the "cool high school" kids. It's just f'ing weird.
ReplyDeleteAnd the fact that he looks like Jocelyn Wildenstein cracks me up. Easy on the fillers and botox, bro :)
DeleteAnd the fact that he looks like Jocelyn Wildenstein cracks me up. Easy on the fillers and botox, bro :)
Delete@bar fly I see the resemblance. I think he looks like the white orc myself
DeleteI have never worn abercrombie. It's over priced, the music in the store is too loud, It's too dark and the clothes are so bland. I won't even buy the clothes for my kids for the same reason. Besides the majority of the cool kids wear Hollister.
ReplyDeleteIt's the same store... Hollister is A&F's cheaper store geared toward younger teens.
DeleteI thought it was.more surfer/cali wear? And af is preppy? I have to confess to.working there in college.
Deletei think it is offensive to homeless people
ReplyDeleteI've never bought anything from A&F for myself or as a gift. I almost wish I had so I could give it away. When walking outside their store it always has a frat guy/date rapey smell to me.
ReplyDelete1.) This is horrible. I really hate people sometimes.
ReplyDelete2.) Mike Jeffries is too old and too successful to be this immature and insecure.
Abercrombie owns Holister
ReplyDelete"I used to have to wear ugly clothes with holes in them. I stay away from Abercrombie and Fitch." Ice-T
ReplyDelete@T. E. Cuz -- It doesn't have to be one or the other. One can be outraged at many different things... or even all of the things you mention.
ReplyDeleteThis is also the symptom of a much larger societal problem: a pervasive attitude that you are worthless of you don't fit a very specific physical mold, reinforced by people with power, money and/or influence. F that S.
Never liked their clothes anyway
ReplyDeleteI agree with DJ and think it is offensive to use homeless people as some type of statement. As if they aren't real people. This is as disgusting as Abercrombie & Fitch. ~signed a fat person who can't one decent, cute outfit to wear
ReplyDeleteMike Jeffries should be on "what not to do" posters in plastic surgery clinics.
ReplyDeleteSeriously though, do we need to give high school kids yet another thing to bully each other over?!
I wouldn't shop there anyway though, since its overpriced generic crap that I could buy at Target for 1/4 of the price.
My main problem with this is that it may be reinforcing the idea that being homeless is a shameful thing, and that homeless people are something to be scorned--while being homeless really sucks, and some of the people I see on the streets are kind of scary, I don't think they need what is (probably unintentionally) another reminder that they're seen as "less than". (IIRC, there was a group a few years ago giving out fur coats to the homeless w/a similar idea of making it less acceptable to wear them, although at least the coats would be warm in the winter.)
ReplyDeleteI've totally done this w/ my brothers A&F and Holister shirts he didn't want any more. I didn't personally hand give them to the homeless, but put them in the donation boxes @ the top of my street. Shit, I'm forever donating it seems. Ha, still waiting on that good karma tho.
ReplyDeleteI never liked their stuff. I don't like to feel like a walking billboard. Not to mention the Hollister logo is the Waste Disposal logo from Hollister CA...enough said haha
ReplyDeleteI would like to see his high school yearbook picture. He clearly is a loser with self-esteem issues if he thinks A & F clothing makes someone cool.
ReplyDeleteIronically, their clothes don't fit me. LOL. I guess that makes me NOT one of the cool kids? Wow. That sucks. I always thought I was! Glad they clarified it for me.
ReplyDeleteEverything about this story irks me. No need to bring in homeless people. And Abercrombie sucks. I always hated the stores and catalogues. Overpriced, overrated, poor lighting, really really bad customer service, loud music, creepy elitist attitude. All of these factors have made me a non-customer forevs.
ReplyDeleteThat said, at the end of the day, every retailer wants the "cool people" to wear their clothes. Isn't that the point? They're just not as crass about it. I hate to say I hope a company goes under because I do appreciate the jobs a company creates, but I really do not support this store in any way.
Never wore A&F stuff b/c I'm not the age group they target. But I won't be buying any A&F stuff for anyone anymore.
ReplyDeleteI've never really been into A&F. Always thought their clothes were kind of boring. I hear they are pretty well-made, though.
ReplyDeleteI work right next to the big store on 5th Ave in NYC. There is always a line going around the block, music pumping and a red carpet w/ ropes...like it's a club or something. The tourists always get in my way on my commute home. So annoying. The line starts early in the morning, before the store even opens.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why and what the hooplah is about. They have 1/2 naked male models (haven't see a hot one yet as I walk by)standing in the doorway. Bananna and Anthropology are way better, and no line. I just walk right into the store and shop like a human being.
Abercrombie hasn't been cool since 2000, has it? They mocked it on the O.C., back in the day, IIRC.
ReplyDelete@Let_Love_Rule I didn't realize their clothes were still popular either. I graduated in 93 and last time I wore an A&F shirt was 92!
ReplyDeleteNever shopped there either and this is nothing new btw. There was a story on some newsmagazine a few years back about their racist hiring practices, how they'd only accept applications from white candidates and secretly throw out any given by minorities.
ReplyDeleteI knew I was getting old when I went into the store to look for a gift and the music, and the fact it was too dark for me to see made me want to hightail it out of there. I felt totally out of place, lol. Not to mention the smell made my head explode. My nephew and I walked by the other day and the smell was so strong it was nauseating. I don't know how anyone can work in there.
ReplyDeleteThis all comes from an article that was posted on Salon.com in 2006. Not sure why it has popped up again but of course its being taken seriously now because it was turned into an internet meme with a photo. No one takes anything seriously anymore until its made into a photo with large letters on it. Articles, Links? Ain't nobody got time for that! Get a photo, put a quote on it, post it on Facebook and twitter, then it's real.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, the full story is quite interesting and eye opening. Yes, Mike Jeffries clearly has issues that he is trying to resolve through AF and Hollister. His private jet and his mansion are staffed with young men that he hires through a modeling agency. He requires them to wear AF jeans, boxers, polo shirts and that horrid cologne he sells.
AF/Hollister will not donate any of their unusable clothing to any charities, they will burn it instead. Again, this is because they do not want their clothes seen on the 'wrong' type of people. That is why giving them to homeless people is a thing, because it goes against their specific company policy.
Let's be honest. Nearly every fashion label does this. They don't want certain segments of the population wearing their stuff. Whether it's fat people, blacks, women over 40, homeless people--someone doesn't fit their criteria and they don't want our stench to sully their threads.
ReplyDeleteMost clothing is made reasonably well and can be purchased at moderate prices. And there are always thrift stores to consider.
So why bother with labels? I'm too damn good for labels. Aren't you? *points at fellow CDANers, LOL*
He doesn't want fat people to wear his clothes? Does he know that he has shops in the USA? Leaving more than a 90 % of your potential market out is not the best marketing strategyy.
ReplyDeleteI wore abercrombie in high school over 10 years ago (grad in 2000). I was a size 10 then and the pants weirdly enough were cut big then. (and they made 12's I believe).
ReplyDeleteHere's the thing-many stores do not make bigger sizes. I cannot put on shirts made by almost every designer. Anthropologie does not make shirts that girls with boobs can wear. He just came out and said what many companies already do. Skinny people don't boycott lane bryant bc they don't make clothes for them.
I can't fit in Abercrombie these days (I don't think-nor would I want to-it's for kids and foreigners) and I wasn't offended.If you are offended you probably are a little defensive and insecure about your size.
What is ridiculous is that many girls, who are athletic or not super skinny, are "a cool kid" in high school and beyond. So that part is just blatantly untrue.
@Story, I'm class of '91! Represent, haha!
ReplyDeleteits popular with the 6th-7th grade set here. my older kids won't wear it, meaning the 6th grader is living the A&F dream. she is 5 feet tall and weighs 75 lbs. that makes her a size large (kids). its actually nice to have something that she can wear in a jean, because she's so thin. but their shorts are skanky looking (way to short). all that stuff is poorly made, and over priced. plus, i hate anything with a label across the front.
ReplyDeletelots of the brands don't go beyond size 14. i'm more offended by the smell of their perfume, which overwhelms you before you even get to their door, than i am by this info.
I admit that I am dating myself, but when I was a child, Abercrombie & Fitch was an upscale sporting goods store. I actually bought my first sleeping bag from them -- saw a small ad in the NY Times and purchased it by mail! (This was probably in the early 1970s). The company was purchased in 1988 by Limited Brands, and thus began its (IMO) downfall. It was reopened as a seller of high priced, preppy teen apparel. It now seems the brand has lost popularity in the U.S. while expanding in Europe and Asia.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Ms Cool and Robin!
ReplyDeleteOk so I'm going to look for some Abercrombie clothes in my closet... All I need is a Delorean and Michael J Fox :-/
ReplyDeleteluv it, will never wear this brand
ReplyDeleteI'm fat so I can't fit into any of their clothes anyway but I gotta say, that store smells AWFUL. I get a headache every time in near one.
ReplyDeleteWasn't this also the same store that got in trouble for selling racist t-shirts? Anyhoo I have never even been in this place and all I can think of when I hear the name is that awful song from about 15 years ago where the singer says "I like girls who wear Abercrombie & Fitch/Chinese food makes me sick."
ReplyDeleteHaha me too!!!
DeleteI don't really get why everybody's so upset.
ReplyDeleteThe company doesn't support the obesity - what's wrong with that?!
If you are bigger than size 10 - well, u're more or less overweight and you should face it and take care of yourself, instead of complaining that the clothes are too small. And if u're ok with ur unhealthy size - well, then don't be a hypocrite and accept shopping in the stores that offer plus sizes as well.
So....No to obesity and yes to douchebaggery?
DeleteSplendid.
I don't wear A&F.
ReplyDeleteFuck A&C. Never worn that shit, never will. No great loss, but if the CEO's assholish remarks help clothe the homeless, then good!
ReplyDeleteOops, A&F, not that it matters.
ReplyDeleteI don't think this Abercrombie & Fitch person knows what the word cool means, because he and his clothes are most certainly not it.
ReplyDeletethis is SO A%F CEO, have you seen pics of the CEO??
ReplyDeletehttp://www.celebitchy.com/296803/abercrombie_fitch_ceo_a_lot_of_people_dont_belong_in_our_clothes/
he looks marginally mentally incapable, like too many footballs got kicked into his face in high school...although, I bet he allows dumb jocks to wear his clothes.
I was a fashion merchandiser for a huge clothes retailer, and I get catering to your demographic, but I still think this is a STUPID business plan. I'm cute, but I ain't skinny/blonde/tan but if I were, I still wouldn't buy their sh*t clothes based on this assanine principle.
Never even been in an A&C store, I think their advertising is BORING, lame and uncreative.
they should design a paper bag for their CEO to wear over his head. Woof.
I wore A&F when I was in college (graduated in '97) & for a few years after that, I guess through my late 20s/early 30s. They used to have better quality clothes back then, not so much these days & also the vibe in the store wasn't so clubby/catered only to hip cool people. Gah what a douche!
ReplyDeleteI wore A&F when I was in college (graduated in '97) & for a few years after that, I guess through my late 20s/early 30s. They used to have better quality clothes back then, not so much these days & also the vibe in the store wasn't so clubby/catered only to hip cool people. Gah what a douche!
ReplyDelete@Mirame: I take care of myself. I work out with a personal trainer three times a week. I do a cardio workout in my home gym three times a week. This will never change the fact that I have huge, amazing tits that don't fit into a size 10 t-shirt.
ReplyDeleteNow what?
@chopchop - then you are the exception, not the rule.
ReplyDeleteTruthfully, it is a line aimed at thin people. I don't see an issue. I have always been on the slim side, as the rest of my family. I had to order a petite wedding gown and have in lengthened in the torso because I am tall. Just as hard to find good clothes to fit you when you are thin, as when you are a larger person.
ReplyDeleteBrands aimed at heavier people are not marketed to me. A&F has their demographics, like Juicy. You can't hate them for targeting a market. There is a need for slim clothes, and if you don't fit into them you find another brand.
I should also add my daughter just donated a huge bag of Abercrombie to Goodwill. She figured she would do what she could make sure people who weren't supposed to have the clothes could have some.
ReplyDelete