Whether or not it is morally acceptable for Abercrombie and Fitch to use nudity and sexuality in its advertising is not the real question; rather, it is whether or not it is ethical for Abercrombie to use classical conditioning to program society in a manner that forces consumers to associate uncontrolled desires with a basic brand of clothing. This company has successfully associated two things which are the antithesis of one another: clothing and nudity.
Abercrombie and Fitch maintains its outstanding competitive advantage with its unparalleled marketing tactics. No firm in history has applied the use of sexuality and physical beauty in marketing better than Abercrombie and Fitch. They have successfully forced consumers to make
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It has asked, or perhaps forced, customers to think not with their head, but with their hormones: morally unacceptable.
Abercrombie and Fitch uses classical conditioning in a variety of different ways. The campaigns, which always contain photographs like the ones provided, have successfully conditioned consumers to elicit a response from their sexual desires from an extremely basic line of clothing. Abercrombie’s clothing is basic and almost never scandalous. Their clothing lines provide good and decent cover for customers. So what is the problem? The issue lies in the fact that this very basic, however very unique form of clothing has been used as a tool to elicit sexual feelings on the part of those who see the clothing, the name or the style.
First, they have elicited the responses based on feeling of beauty. The provided marketing catalogue rarely shows models actually wearing large amounts of clothing. The consumer is not able to evaluate any of the products characteristics when faced with an ad. Showing bodies that nearly all consumers will find attractive is a clear attempt to tie physical beauty with the product. Beauty, however, is a tactic that many firms use and may be less harmful than the following strategies.
Second, the whole purpose
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (A&F) is a fashion retailer that sells casual apparel, personal care products, and accessories to customers across North America, Europe, and Asia. The financial and the consulting industry in the tertiary sector of the economy generate revenue through providing services, knowledge, and skills. Unlike these industries, A&F is a retailer that generates revenue through selling its products. A&F has two subsidiaries brand, Hollister Co. and Abercrombie Kids, which operate not as spinoffs, but as divisions under the A&F umbrella.
This company now operates over 300 stores nationwide and sales everything from casual sportswear, jeans, outerwear, sleepwear, and accessories for women, men and kids (New York Times, 2014). Per Abercrombie’s mission statement “ It is our mission to continue ore efforts to support human rights, stand for and achieve diversity and inclusion, invest in our associates, give back to our communities, commit to environmental sustainability efforts and make responsible business decision. We believe in advancing corporate responsibility within our company and our industry. We are passionate about creating a stronger and more positive environment for everyone to enjoy” (Fitch,
Now-a-days, you can’t find appropriate clothing for your children because all stores are selling short-shorts and crop tops for 12-year-olds. This issue is contradicting; girls are being sexualized by being told not to wear clothes that show their skin, yet the only clothes that are currently being sold are clothes that only sexualize girls even more by showing too much skin that doesn’t fit their age group. Orenstein also argues that, “ For today’s girls, sexy appearance has been firmly conflated with strong womanhood.” Meaning, instead of having a princess birthday party at the park, preschoolers are now having mani-pedi spa birthday parties; or how the Elementary school cheer dance routine is more provocative; or when 9-year-olds are taught “all the ticks of beauty.” In our defence, when society depicts young women as sexual objects, they make young girls think that their beauty is more important than their brains(hence the reason why you can easily mistake a 13-year-old for a
Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F), an American retailer that concentrates on upscale casual wear for young consumers, which was founded in Manhattan, New York City in June 4, 1892 by two young minds of David T. Abercrombie and Ezra Fitch. Beginning with a rough journey of selling sporting outfits and excursion goods such as fishing and hunting equipment, A&F had to file bankruptcy in 1977. Soon thereafter, the company was revived after Jake Oshman, owner of Oshman Sporting Goods, bought A&F in 1978. A&F was relaunched as a mail-retailer company specializing in hunting wear and novelty items, but was bought by The Limited ten years after its revival. The gradual shift to focusing on apparels for young consumers began when A&F was a subsidiary of Limited Brands, and since then, A&F has grown to become one of the largest apparel firms in the United States. In 1998, A&F launched Abercrombie Kids, targeting consumers from age 7-14, which further increases its revenue. In 1999 to early 2000s, A&F’s sales skyrocketed as it hit its zenith, by portraying A&F clothing as the “coolest thing” through billboard-winning song that compliments A&F in the lyrics, as well as other advertisements. Furthermore, A&F launched a subsidiary called Hollister to tackle similar age group of target audience but with lower income. This expansion to dominate the market of teenagers through consideration of other demographic factor, namely income, was exceptional for A&F’s revenue. Presently, A&F focused on
The company Abercrombie and Fitch has been sued countless times because of the rules the government has imposed on hiring and firing people. Abercrombie is trying to target attractive looking people to their line of cloths. During an interview Salon Jeffries the CEO of Abercrombie stated… his business was built around sex appeal… “He believes that good-looking people attract other good-looking people”… If a clothing line
Then next week I was reading the Star Tribune newspaper when I came across and editorial written about Abercrombie and Fitch. The author was disgusted with the store because of its blatant promotion of college-age drinking. The issue came up in one of A&F's quarterly "magazines". Instead of sending out free catalogs of their merchandise to customers, A&F sells a retail "magazine" which they distribute four times a year for the small fee of five dollars per issue. The magazine is filled with pictures similar to the life-size ones which cover the store walls -- tan, beautiful and
The infamous Dutch men’s formal wear company Suit Supply is continually raising controversy in their campaigning. The fall 2010 campaign, accurately titled Shameless, advertised on the Suit Supply website and in the Westfield Suit Supply store windows suggests that dapper men, can score maximum attention with pulchritudinous women. The advertisement showing a male, well-dressed, looking up the dress of his female company. The company is using a “sex sells” attempt to amplify sales of suits to men. The use of women by Suit Supply in the Shameless campaign follows in the footsteps of other menswear company trying to use the sex driven mindset of men to sell clothing.
Looks and first impressions are key points for many things in our lifes. Now a days people are deep into fashion and everything is about looking presentable and well. This has made clothing companies compete even more day by day and do everything in their power to attract more people. To bring more people to the bussiness and sell as much as they can they have been using a method of prioritizing and aiming to certain group of poeple to sell to. This has lead companies such as Abercombie & Fitch to be seen as a store with a high profile of racism and discrimination. Aiming to a natural classic amarican style and to hiring only certain type of people has caused them to be sued multiple times. Abercombie & Fitch is a private company and there
In advertising, companies tend to use images in which they believe will help to promote and sell their product. One of the most common techniques that is seen in today’s society is the stereotypical portrayal of women, who tend to pose rather promiscuously as seen in Figure One. These types of images portray women as sex objects or as submissive housewives to their husbands. This comes into context with the advertising in which American Apparel portrays. American Apparel has drawn a lot of attention for their marketing techniques as well as advertising.
Consumers do not just buy products, they buy images. These images are how they want their life to be, how they want other people to see them, and how they want to see themselves. How companies are able to sell all of this to consumers with just one product is through advertising. Advertisements play a crucial role in the business world. The advertisements people view provoke them into either buying the product being sold or not. In some cases however, advertisements can be taken too far. Throughout this essay, I will argue how the over sexualizing nature of Abercrombie and Fitch’s advertisements promote sexual activities to the younger generations and how these ads can lead to young girls obtaining a negative body
“Sex sells” became Jefferie’s favorite subject and likewise to many others. Racy advertisments had media, religious groups, and loads of angry parents on edge. The belief that those ads were promoting teenage sex brought unbelievable amounts of conflict to Abercrombie’s
Sara Young, author of “Victoria’s Secret Sales Drop: Why Hypersexualized Lingerie Marketing Is Turning Off Underwear Shoppers,” discusses how Victoria’s Secret’s use of “racy advertising and flawless VS angels” to sell has caused a decline in their business because they have not strayed away from their “particular aesthetic.” Young states: “But, for some reason, Victoria’s Secret is yet to figure out that the best way to sell lingerie to women isn’t through hypersexualized marketing campaigns.” She also says that their use of women with “perfect”
The Influence of Marketing Strategies “Whether on the television, radio or city bus, consumers face a barrage of advertisements throughout the day” (Kossman, 2013). Most people might believe they are not fazed by the advertisements surrounding them. Some may be right, but many have no idea how influential and persuasive billboards, posters, and commercials can be. Hollister and American Eagle Outfitters are two clothing brands with different marketing strategies that greatly influence the market they belong to. The different marketing strategies are unique, one uses a sexual appeal to draw in consumers and the other uses self-expression and the sense of belonging.
Abercrombie & Fitch Stores Inc., commonly known as simply “Abercrombie”, is a national chain of clothings stores in America that requires all its employees to comply with a certain “Look policy” that reflects the store’s fashionable style and prohibits black clothing and caps, although the exact definition of the word “caps” is not explicitly stated in the policy. If a question is raised about the Look policy, or an applicant requests a accomodation or deviation from it, the interviewers of the store that the prospect is being questioned at are instructed to contact the corporate Human Resource Department of that area, which will determine whether or not an accommodation will be granted.
Even if the groups of people who shop there aren’t necessarily responding to the “sex sells” approach, they are still advocating it by buying Abercrombie as well as other stores that use sexuality in ads. It is rare to find someone that outwardly objects to this form of advertising; people have come to accept that this has become commonplace in the world of advertisement. This was not always the case though; the prevalence of this style of advertising is fairly new, only starting in the past 10 to 20 years. The difference between advertisements now and in the 60s is one that is shocking when considered in a side-by-side comparison.