Abercrombie and Fitc
h a premium brand feels their brand image is being tainted’, by Mike Sorrentino, a cast member of “Jersey Shore”. Mike, “The Situation,” has been spotted gallivanting around Europe intoxicated and insane. In response, Abercrombie offered Mike a substantial payment if he agrees to stop wearing Abercrombie. Abercrombie believes that they belong in the luxury brand sector that caters to only high income population. Therefore, Abercrombie believes that their image of elite, aspirational teens is not well represented by The Situation. Their profits were reportedly failing because of him. Is it ethical to disallow someone to wear a brand? After Abercrombie’s announcement to pay The Situation, their profits have fallen 7%. Abercrombie alienated their consumers. Abercrombie is too fixated on their brand image to realize that perhaps it’s their product needing a fix. A company cannot arbitrarily choose their consumers! Abercrombie’s elitist arrogance is tainting their brand. Shouldn’t anyone who pays for a product be allowed to wear it?
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I remember you telling me about your post so I was really keen on reading it. I think it’s crazy that Abercrombie is willing to pay Mike not to wear their brand. It’s just ridiculous. Snooki crashed a Fiat, should they pay her not to drive their cars?
I agree with the saying, there’s no such thing as bad publicity in this case. Mike wearing Abercrombie makes the brand even more known, his personality does not take away from their “image” they claim to uphold. Don’t most of their ads just have guys and their abs as the focus? Mike has got great abs; in a sense he’s the perfect model for them.
But in all seriousness, I would consider this a form of censorship. As a competitor, I would come in and offer Mike an endorsement. Customers would see this venture and start buying my brand, while Abercrombie’s profits continue to plummet. It makes Abercrombie look pretentious. If they are aiming for the elite teens, then it’s not Mike’s image destroying their image but their own marketing. I’m not elite, I wear Abercrombie. I think they just want attention on their brand by stirring in Mike.
Interesting post!
Here’s my comment:
https://blogs.ubc.ca/peienthong/2011/10/24/response-to-abercrombie-pays-%E2%80%9Cthe-situation%E2%80%9D-to-stop-wearing-their-brand/