I agree with Jessica Chen’s opinion that Abercrombie & Fitch should reconsider its business model. For the company, “Only cool people can wear Abercrombie & Fitch” concept has been the way to differentiate its product among the competitors.
In addition, an effort made by the company to establish a strong brand image and to protect it are both important factors for the company to survive and win the severe competition among apparel giants. Even so, belief held by Mike Jeffries, CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch for his brand may have been too extreme and offensive toward individual’s religion, gender, and appearance. In fact, his behavior has affected his own business in a negative manner. The graph below indicates the declining consumer perception for Abercrombie & Fitch in comparison with its competitors like H&M and American Eagle.
Leaders in business and political scene are always exposed to public views. This is the same for any extreme thought made by such leaders. Depending on how views are taken by the public, such leader can easily gain or turn away supporters. Such “charisma” model may be a fit for selective industry, but not for clothing industry where public have so much buying power with so many substitutes. If the customers dislike any part of that company, they can just start buying identical products from different stores, and if this trend continues, the company may end up losing its customers bringing fatal results to its financial performance. The most important thing for Abercrombie & Fitch in order to sustain business in this industry is to improve its social image immediately by effectively applying governance to CEO’s risky behaviors.
@Buzzfeed