The other night Tiffany posted on Facebook about how the CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch gave an interview with Salon magazine in 2006, where he said how much he disliked fat people and that his clothing were only for skinny people and the cool crowd. Read more HERE.
As an American I believe he has the right to feel and say whatever he wants. I also believe that we have the right to react however we want. Abercrombie & Fitch has been an iconic American company for so long it is a shame what it has come to. It is a far cry from the days of being an elite outfitter for outdoorsman, I doubt any of their “Models” have even been camping. Since Michael Jeffries took over it has become a symbol and message of what is wrong with America. There ads are borderline child pornography and the message which is clearly stated by it’s CEO is that it is okay to treat people like crap and make sure they know they don’t fit in.
What I find ironic about his stance is that from 2010-2011 A&F was slated to close over 100 stores because of Jeffries unwillingness to lower prices in a struggling economy. It was Jeffries having to cave in and introduce sales and lower prices that brought them back to financial solvency.
Michael Jeffries Top Jerk Quotes:
Quotable Quotes From Mike Jeffries, CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, About the Philosophy and Business Practices of Abercrombie & Fitch:
“How does a store look? How does it feel? How does it smell? That’s what I’m obsessed with.”
“We hire good-looking people in our stores. Because good-looking people attract other good-looking people, and we want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don’t market to anyone other than that.”
“I think that what we represent sexually is healthy. It’s playful. It’s not dark. It’s not degrading! And it’s not gay, and it’s not straight, and it’s not black, and it’s not white. It’s not about any labels. That would be cynical, and we’re not cynical! It’s all depicting this wonderful camaraderie, friendship, and playfulness that exist in this generation and, candidly, does not exist in the older generation.”
“People said we were cynical, that we were sexualizing little girls. But you know what? I still think those are cute underwear for little girls. And I think anybody who gets on a bandwagon about thongs for little girls is crazy. Just crazy! There’s so much craziness about sex in this country. It’s nuts! I can see getting upset about letting your girl hang out with a bunch of old pervs, but why would you let your girl hang out with a bunch of old pervs?”
“Listen, do we go too far sometimes? Absolutely. But we push the envelope, and we try to be funny, and we try to stay authentic and relevant to our target customer. I really don’t care what anyone other than our target customer thinks.”
“Dude, I’m not an old fart who wears his jeans up at his shoulders.”
“In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids,” he says. “Candidly, we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely. Those companies that are in trouble are trying to target everybody: young, old, fat, skinny. But then you become totally vanilla. You don’t alienate anybody, but you don’t excite anybody, either.”
YOU TWO ROCK!!! I am deeply offended by this man’s comments!!! I certainly would not even purchase any of his clothing at Goodwill!!! Thank you for supporting what is true and good and honest!!
P.S. I love the dog at the door and little Andie running through the video! LOL
I agree with you guys – this guy sounds like a jerk – i think there is a lot more of what they would consider (fat people or the uncool people) out there than there are supermodel / cool types of people out there so they will probably lose a lot of business due to that comment.
Hmm looks like I’ve found another company to boycott. What a jerk! His store does promote rank sexuality and porn. My kids and I won’t be shopping there again!
thanks for educating me. i’m definitely boycotting. i only wish we’d known this sooner.
ids and I won’t be shopping
Oh yes, I’m just crazy, crazy, crazy because I think thongs for little girls is sick! He’s sick. And he’s getting a paunch, he better watch it or he won’t be able to shop at his own store.
hey guys just give the clothes to a shelter or homeless people who cant really afford paying for it,
Wow. You guys are awesome. He is an absolute douche bag. I will never be buying his clothes again. In fact I think I have a few A&F clothing for goodwill. I am really glad yall posted this.
It’s great that you are donating the clothes to Goodwill. This idiot thinks he is cool.. We try in instill good moral values in our children and people like this just rip away self-esteem. So uncool!
I cant believe he actually said that! what a major JERK! I wil never ever ever buy anything from that company! Ty for bringing this out in the open. You guys rock!
You two are my heros. I appreciate you taking a stand against what this man and his company stands for. I decided long ago our family wouldn’t buy their clothes, when I saw the pornography he used to advertise his clothes. Thanks so much for your bravery to post this and for standing up for decent values. You guys are awesome!
My family and I will never support him by shopping at his stores. Everyone needs to expose him for the creep he is! Thanks for what you’re doing!
WOW!!! I never did like the company. I enjoyed the post, thank you.
This is exactly what is wrong with our country. Some of us still have a morals and a standard in the way we live. The sad thing is that only the stupid and greedy are the ones that are heard. I am sure his mom is proud.
I think I’ll go apply for a job in one of his stores. When they don’t hire me, I’ll turn around and take them to court for descrimination and use the “we only hire good looking people in our stores” quote against him. Of course I’ll give all the money to some group who help teens with self image issues. It’s people like him who are a part of whats wrong with this world. Can you shallow??
Best way to get back at them is do what I do go to the salvation army and get the clothes for 1 to 5.00 dollars.per item
You two are awesome and such and inspiration for what is right! Thanks for sharing – I had no idea, and wow, you guys are simply brilliant and amazing to donate!! That guy really is a jerk!
What a cool, sensible couple! And your kids prove that apples never fall far from their trees. Adorable, conscientious idea to donate to Goodwill. Mr. Jeffries is a loser.
Thanks Miss Jen, they are great kids!
Only hires Good looking people, when he himself has the face of a Blobfish!!
I agree with you guys, He sounds like a jerk and I will never buy anything at that store either. Thanks for sharing!!