Essay on "on Abercrombie & Fitch"

Essay 4 pages (1341 words) Sources: 3

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Target customers of Hot Topic believe and act in a way that proves that they aren't so concerned with fitting in, or with their image in society; rather, they believe more in individualism and standing out in the crowd. At A&F, however, the most important aspect of shopping is that the store capably evokes effective buyer response, and makes its customers feel that they belong, or conform, to the crowd; it also imparts a superior, high-class feeling. On the other hand, the most crucial aspect about shopping at Hot Topic stores is that buyers' emotional responses are valued, irrespective of how impassive or diverse they may be (Little, 2003).

How can A&F guard against becoming too mainstream and experiencing a customer backlash? Do you believe it is possible for A&F to remain popular with young shoppers for a span of many years?

A&F must be constantly on the lookout to ensure that they don't stock out-of-fashion apparel in a fast-changing, ever-evolving teenage and young adult market. To monitor these age groups, A&F enlists agents who frequent schools, colleges, and other youth-related areas, to identify new trends and styles. Another alternative would be making use of better promotional means. It is a great challenge for an apparel-seller to remain popular for long periods of time. A&F admits forthrightly that its employees are hired, not on the basis of skill, but depending on their looks, and how they act. A&F stores welcome young shoppers, who do not pay heed to purchase advice from staff; therefore, the store's staff doesn't need to offer help with making choices. The employees' duty is welcoming clients, making their presence known, and looking great. Lonnie Fogel, director of investor relations, states that they aren't charmed by sales agents. The key focus of A&F is the emerging youth market segment, which proves a challenge as youngsters may very easily shift stores, going to one which offers more trendy, currently-in-vogue apparel. A&F needs to consider two alternatives: One, attempting to keep up with teenage likes, interests, and new styles. The second alternative could be trying to get acquainted with A&F's young shoppers and striving to retain these customers even as they become older, begin working, and develop a more refined taste in clothing. In order to remain popular, A&F should make frequent changes, search out and test new styles and retain their customer base. Putting it plainly, A&F should expand its product range, and position themselves to remain at the top always (Giordani, Smith, Welch, & Sylvester, 2015).

Discuss the advantages and potential disadvantages of such a diversification strategy.

The benefits of diversifying the product line to include small children as well, is that they may become loyal customers of the brand, continuing this brand loyalty into their teenage and young adult years. Diversification also enables the retailer to introduce innovative designs to this younger customer segment and see whether they can grow into and maintain or have an influence on the line of products for older customer segment. A drawback of the diversification strategy is that the brand may face become too mainstream. Another disadvantage would be that children are messy; thus, parents might not be keen on splurging on high-end apparel for their kids, knowing that they will ultimately ruin them, or quickly outgrow them (Little, 2003).

References

Abercrombie & Fitch. (2011). A&F CARES 2010/2011 Corporate Responsibility Report. New Albany: Abercrombie & Fitch.

Giordani, R., Smith, R., Welch, A., & Sylvester, J. (2015). Abercrombie & Fitch Case Analysis.

Little, J. (2003). MAR3503 Case 4. Retrieved from: http://jerelllittle.com/img/clients/Case%204%20MAR3503.docx

Olson, J.C. (n.d.). Abercrombie & Fitch. Pennsylvania. READ MORE

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