Abercrombie and Fitch, Hollister - Dirty Little (or big) secrets

Some people love it, some people don't. I personally don't see what's so awesome about it. Hollister is basically the cheaper version of A&F (they're owned by the same company, surprise surprise). I never saw the big deal about Hollister when it opened up last year. I don't get the whole 'cologny', dim lights ambiance of the environment. I heard from a fellow pharmie that Hollister had really hot guys and so I went to check it out (last year). They were pretty good looking.

This year, A&F also opened at up the Eaton Centre. Again, another friend said that the guys there were hawt and that some of them walk around with their shirts half undone so you can see their abs. She also loves their clothing. Being curious (about the clothes, not the guys *wink*), I decided to walk inside. IT GAVE ME THE SAME FEELING AS HOLLISTER DID. I walked inside and was greeted by some guy with the most gorgeous blue eyes. I proceeded to walk around the store with my friend Emily and I glanced at the price of a normal hoodie. It was 90$!!!! This hoody was not made of the finest material or plated with gold, it was just your regular hoodie that was made to have a 'worn down' look, for almost 100$.

Now, I like shopping, and my friends can testify that I can be quite the shopaholic. But I really don't get these stores. First off, the smell of cologne was so strong that I was suppressing my cough until I left the store. Next, it's so dim that I can't even see the clothes properly! I think it's a marketing gimmick. Here's how it works You see something you like, and you try it on. Since it's so dark, (and dim lights do tend to make people look more 'sexy'), you think it looks great/okay on you and so you purchase it! Then you get home, and you try it under more realistic lighting only to find that it's not so great afterall. But, it still looks 'decent' in a way and you're not going to change it. That, I believe, is how these stores work.

I was reading Wikipedia (yes, I love wikipedia) and came across the following excerpts re: A&F.

"The company strictly regulates the store environment in an effort to provide a consistent, pleasureful experience for customers in a manner that can be replicated in each store. Factors such as visual presentation, music, and fragrance are not left to chance. The company also specifies in painstaking detail how lighting, layout, visual displays, marketing, and fixtures are to be placed and used in every store. Each store is spritzed every half hour with men’s cologne in order to ensure a pleasant sensory experience. Every store plays the same pre-produced music CD which is sent to each store. Every month stores receive a new CD and are instructed to discard the old one. The volume is set to the company regulated level and must not be changed for any reason.

It continues:
"The A&F Quarterly became a lightning rod for controversy shortly after it was published. It featured photographs of male and female models, often nude, posing in pairs or groups. Despite a company policy restricting sale of the publication to adults, critics charged that the publication was readily sold to minors. Several states threatened to pursue legal action, though the company was never charged with violating any related statutes.

The publication was also criticized on moral grounds, for featuring sexually explicit interviews with porn stars, and articles that, according to critics, glamorized alcohol consumption, sex, and homosexuality. In 2003, an array of religious organizations, women's rights activists, and Asian-American groups organized boycotts and protests over the publication, and the "Christmas Edition" of the catalog was removed from stores.[11] In 2004, "A&F Magazine", a comparatively tame collection of photos and essays about rising celebrities, replaced the publication altogether."

Lastly:
One shirt featured the slogan "Wong Brothers Laundry Service—Two Wongs Can Make It White" with smiling figures in conical hats, a 1900s popular-culture depiction of Chinese immigrants. The company discontinued the designs and apologized after a boycott by Asian-American student groups. That same year, the children's clothing division removed a line of thong underwear sold for girls in pre-teen children's sizes after parents mounted nationwide storefront protests. The underwear included phrases like "Eye Candy" and "Wink Wink" printed on the front.

More T-shirt controversy occurred twice in 2004. The first incident involved a shirt featuring the phrase, "It's All Relative in West Virginia," an apparent jab at incest relations in rural America. West Virginia governor Bob Wise spoke out against the company for depicting "an unfounded, negative stereotype of West Virginia," but the shirts were not removed.[12]

The second incident involved another t-shirt with the phrase "L is for Loser" written next to a picture of a male gymnast on the rings. The company stopped selling the shirt in October of 2004 after USA Gymnastics president Bob Colarossi announced a boycott of Abercrombie & Fitch for mocking the sport."



Next up - Applying PHM328 in the marketing business - the process of selection bias for A&F and Hollister - all employees must be hot!