In rebuilding the Abercrombie and Hollister businesses, Fran Horowitz, chief executive officer of Abercrombie & Fitch Co., has paid careful attention to the consumers’ needs.
First, she went to the malls to see the competition. “The first thing I realized is that both brands had really merged together and there wasn’t a big differentiation between the brands. And we had to make a decision, do we have one brand or two?” she said. “They are living their best lives. There’s nothing better than being a young Millennial. They live for the long weekend. Monday would come along and the most important thing for them was what was happening the next weekend,” she said. They prepared a 96-hour calendar of what those consumers were doing, such as bachelor and bachelorette parties, weddings, and time away with their friends. “We can actually make sure that we clothe them for those 96 hours.
In the past, Abercrombie was predominantly a men’s brand, but today it is predominantly a women’s brand, although the men’s business is catching up. “We’ve had three consecutive quarters of positive growth and we’re really excited about what we’re seeing in men’s,” she said. Some key categories are denim, outerwear, “and now dresses are terrific,” Horowitz said.