Aeropostale closing 150 stores; due to "logo placements"
Quote:
Aeropostale yesterday reported a 15% dive in sales for the three months through Nov. 3, marking its 13th straight quarter of falling or flat same-store sales. Chief Executive Officer Tom Johnson attributed the losing streak to a “seismic shift” in teen tastes away from logos in the past five years, which the retailer has been struggling to keep up with.
The shift away from the branded, preppy styles that Abercrombie popularized over the past two decades, something that retailer has been struggling with, has been felt the most acutely by Aeropostale. Today’s teens are increasingly rejecting the idea of wearing logos across their chests in favor of styling outfits from H&M, Forever 21 and discount-chains like Marshalls and Target.
“At its core, when you look at Aeropostale naked, it’s a price-driven version of Abercrombie & Fitch. And, with this week’s news that an activist investor is calling for the ouster of A&F’s CEO, that’s proof that there is trouble on the horizon for this style of apparel. After all, this is a trend-driven category whose DNA hasn’t changed in 15 years.”
Aeropostale also said it will close 175 namesake locations in the next two years, nearly double its previous plan to shutter 100 of its 976 stores, as it looks to preserve cash. (Its cash position has dwindled by $116 million in the past 12 months.)
Really? Because all the gays and girls be wearing their stuff.
In what country
On a side note, I went in a few months ago. Found some henley tees I really loved, so I went up to the cash register to pay. While I was handing it over, I noticed a small-medium sized AERO logo on the bottom half of the shirt. They could have gotten my $30 for both shirts, but all due to logo placement, they are rapidly losing money
Never liked Aeropostale anyways. What I don't understand is why they, A&F, etc. aren't just adapting. This has literally been going on for years now, that's plenty of time to try new designs
I've worked at American Eagle for a few years now and I saw this coming for a few months. Aero and A&F just don't want to adapt to the times. Even my job, American Eagle started removing logos from their clothes just a year ago. We were slow on the uptake, but we're better off than they are because of it. Our graphic Ts are still gross though.
