Last week, Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries came under fire for comments he had made years ago. The comments, brought up in a recently published book about marketing, conveyed that Abercrombie & Fitch’s target audience is “cool and popular kids” – a category into which fat people apparently can never fall. Jefferies is quoted as stating the stores do not sell female clothing for larger women in order to protect the Abercrombie & Fitch brand from being seen on people who “don’t belong.”
The comments caused an uproar online and reignited debate about body image issues, exclusionary marketing, and weight-related health. Now, one man has taken it upon himself to remake the Abercrombie & Fitch brand on his own.
YouTube filmmaker Greg Karber (gkarber) scoured a Los Angeles Goodwill store for A & F apparel, which he then handed out to homeless people on Skid Row. He’s calling on viewers to donate their old A & F clothing to homeless shelters and share their experiences through social media using the #FitchTheHomeless hashtag.