Abercrombie and Fitch (A&F) (NYSE: ANF) is an American fashion retailer, headed by chairman and CEO Michael S. Jeffries. The A&F brand focuses on casualwear for a target consumer age of 18 through 22. With over 300 locations in the United States, the brand has embarked on international expansion throughout various world markets.Its youthful, racy image has become synonymous with the American youth and has been a mark of multiple parody and controversy. A&F currently operates four other brands: abercrombie, Hollister Co., Gilly Hicks, and RUEHL No.925 (shuttered by end of January 2010)collectively ranging between the ages of 7 through 35.
Founded in 1892 by David T. Abercrombie, A&F had been an outfitter of sporting and excursion goods. It struggled financially from the late 1960s until it was purchased by The Limited in 1988 and repositioned, under the management of Mike Jeffries, as the aspirational “Casual Luxury” lifestyle brand in present form.Prominent figures who patronized the company in its excursion goods days.
Management and marketing
Corporate officials
The following are the top corporate officials of Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
Michael S. Jeffries - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Jefferies has held this position since the 1990s. He has renovated the brand and oversees all aspects of the company.
Diane Chang - Executive Vice President of Sourcing
Leslee K. Herro - Executive Vice President of Planning and Allocation
David S. Cupps - Senior Vice President, Sec. and General Counsel
Thomas D. Lennox - Head of Corporate Communications
Richard Clarke - Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Amy Zehr - Vice President of Stores
The company is headquartered at “Home Office”. It has a European branch in Milan, Italy.
Advertising
The official logo of Abercrombie & Fitch is the moose. The company markets through its sensual photographs with a beach, architectural, or mountainous backdrop in grayscale. The marketing photographer is Bruce Weber, who is known for his sexual photography for Calvin Klein and Polo Ralph Lauren. Models and the photos pertaining to them were previewed seasonally on “A&F New Faces”, a previous feature on the official website. After only featuring select photography, it was renamed “Photo Gallery.” “A&F Casting” was introduced in place of “A&F New Faces” to advertise and to give information on being cast for marketing campaigns. The company only casts “brand reps” (store associates) for campaigns. They use especially good-looking models to attract young people to buy their clothes.
Merchandise and brand protection
The company uses trademark Casual Luxury to promote the brand. The brand defines the slogan as using “the finest cashmere, pima cottons, and highest quality leather to create the ultimate in casual, body conscious clothing,” and “implementing and/or incorporating time honored machinery …to produce the most exclusive denim…”
The brand carries Men’s fragrances Fierce, Cologne 41, Proof, and Colden. Women’s fragrances include Perfume 8, Classic, Perfume 41, and Wakely. Released at the same time, Fierce and 8 and Cologne41 and Perfume 41 are marketed to compliment one another. High-end fragrances Ezra Fitch (cologne) and Ezra parfum were described as the embodiment of “the Abercrombie & Fitch heritage,” until they were discontinued. Cologne Proof was released in Christmas 2006 to be removed a year later (though some stores still carry Cologne Proof). Perfumes Ready is also among the retired fragrances. Fierce and 8 are the most heavily marketed fragrances as they are the signature scents of the brand overall.
As the popularity of Abercrombie & Fitch goods increased, so did the counterfeiting of them. In 2006, the company launched the Abercrombie & Fitch Brand Protection Program to combat the issue worldwide (focusing more in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Japan and Korea) by working with legal forces globally.[28] Shane Berry, who joined the company in November 2005, was placed in charge of the program. Berry is a former Supervisory Special Agent from the FBI, and was a part of its Intellectual Property Rights Program. The news release from A&F announcing its initiative stated that the “program will improve current practices and strategies by focusing on eliminating the supply of illicit Abercrombie & Fitch products.”
The Brand Protection program covers all A&F brands; mainly A&F, Hollister and RUEHL {shuttered by end of January 2010). Assuring that its consumers are aware of the issue, the abercrombie and fitch Brand Protection and abercrombie and fitch brand protection features suggest customers to purchase from authentic stores and to report suspected A&F counterfeiting.
The company’s abercrombie and fitch brand gift cards have been recognized by Consumer Affairs as a “top pick” for not having deceptive features such as expiration dates, dormancy fees, and post-purchase fees.
Other A&F brands
A&F currently has four other concepts apart from its namesake, Abercrombie & Fitch. While referred to as subsidiaries, the brands do not operate separately contrary to the definition; all brands are completely managed under the same abercrombie and fitch workforce. abercrombie and fitch Co. holds full rights and ownership to every trademark of the following brands.
