Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Michael Jeffries released a statement claiming “Fat and not so cool kids shouldn’t be wearing our clothes”. He claims this is one of the main reasons why they don’t manufacture XL or XXL sizes of clothes of woman. In addition their hiring policy of recruiting only good-looking people as also been in question. Recent events have put the CEO on the spot light as patrons now take action by filing online petitions, video protest, and viral letter demanding that Abercrombie accept more diverse body types. Could this statement have harmed the way people see Abercrombie? Could it have affected the brand image of the firm?

In light of recent events, Abercrombie have reported a 30% drop in revenue, since the release of the CEO’s statement. They have also reported a significant amount of staff turnover and much less crowds at stores around the world. While the CEO tries to put back the pieces of the story, he released statements saying that Abercrombie and Fitch were completely opposed to any discrimination, bullying, derogatory characteristics or any other anti-social behavior. Nevertheless things don’t look too steady for Abercrombie yet as they try recovering from an unsatisfactory brand image.

Source:

http://www.businessinsider.com/abercrombie-statement-on-controversy-2013-5