Dominique Baudis and his team will investigate whether or not the popular brand’s recruitment practices are based on physical appearance and therefore discriminatory.
Abercrombie & Fitch stores are known for the topless males that pose for photographs with customers. The investigation will hinge on whether these employees act as sales assistants or, as A&F have claimed, models. Baudis has stated “though physical appearance may legitimately be a key and determining professional factor for models, that’s not so for sales staff”.
Abercrombie & Fitch has continuously attracted controversy for their employment, marketing and sales policies. In an infamous interview with Salon, CEO Mike Jeffries explained “we go after the cool kids. We go after the attractive all-American kid with a great attitude and a lot of friends. A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely.”
In 2010, the company was placed on a ‘Sweatshop Wall of Shame’ by International Labor Rights Forum for their use of low-cost manufacturers. Many of their products have been accused of being inappropriate or over-sexaulised, and recently they have been criticised for not producing women’s trousers over size 10.
However, the brand remains extremely popular, with an annual revenue of over €3 billion. The company opened their first Irish store in Dublin last year.
