The Ultra Shop Shock - A Day at A&F

     It should be no surprise that Abercrombie & Fitch craves attention.  It's a store that isn't afraid to piss people off and boy does it do it oh so well.  The store has been involved in a number of high-profile controversies, most notably in 2004 with the González v. Abercrombie & Fitch debacle.  The case was about A&F denying minorities employment at their retail stores and only offering desirable positions to white American employees.  However, the case was resolved and A&F agreed to pay $45 million to unaccepted applicants and affected employees.   So, this proved to be a pivotal change as it advanced the store's infamous ad campaigns which started to include more diversity.  Well now they are at it again.

       When one enters an Abercrombie & Fitch, there are a few things you probably notice.  The toxic aura, the noise, the plaid-drenched employees, among many other things.  It would be hard to mistake the store for a club with excessive amounts of Fierce sprayed everywhere, however, one then realizes that it is a retail store.  You may also notice the giant, billboard like pictures of so-called models.  For the most part, these images are basically soft core pornography of a some sort and at the very least you would hope it would provide some level of arousal.  However, that is unfortunately not the case as it is anything but.
      I will admit that I own some apparel from this store and for the most part, the clothes are pretty decent.  Granted, they sure as hell are not worth the price they sell them for, but every now and then you find a good bargain.  So one day I decided to venture into a A&F for shits and giggles and came upon their new so called ad campaign and boy is it nothing short of "clever" and "shocking."  It's complete utter shite and that's no exaggeration.  Essentially, it's a four frame split screen of models exiting an audition room.  The catch is that their naked, but have items carefully placed covering their privates.  Oooooooh, so daring and erotic you say, but it really is anything but.  Now, you're probably wondering why I am badmouthing a store that is already pretty hated and has been using this dull, supposed-to-be-shocking ad campaign, well, to be honest, I couldn't help myself.   It's as if they do it intentionally for the reason to be insulted; it's just begging to be lambasted.   Alas, this store needs to rethink their advertising and not to mention lower the damn volume when you enter it so I can hear a human voice.  Also, air fresher wouldn't hurt once in a while.   Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go shopping at Hollister.