Abercrombie Kids
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Abercrombie Kids (stylized as abercrombie kids) is a children's clothing brand owned by Abercrombie & Fitch, introduced in 1998. Targeting consumers aged 7–14, the concept is designed as the children's version of its parent company A&F. There are 122 full-price abercrombie kids stores in the US, Canada, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom; including standalone retail stores and "carve-outs" in larger Abercrombie & Fitch locations.


History

Abercrombie & Fitch introduced "abercrombie" in 1998 with 9 stores. The purpose was to attract a younger audience to the adult Abercrombie brand. The name of the concept took the same font of its parent, but with a
navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
color. The abbreviation from "Abercrombie & Fitch" to "abercrombie" with lowercase letters was intended to provide a children's image. The store prototype was as the A&F one, but with variations also intended to appeal to the younger audience. Early abercrombie
model A model is an informative representation of an object, person or system. The term originally denoted the plans of a building in late 16th-century English, and derived via French and Italian ultimately from Latin ''modulus'', a measure. Models c ...
s include Ronnie Smith,
Cassie Ventura Casandra Elizabeth Ventura (born August 26, 1986), known professionally as Cassie, is an American singer, songwriter, model, actress and dancer. Born in New London, Connecticut, she began her career as a result of meeting record producer Ryan Le ...
, Christina Akatsuka, Christian Valentin, Lindsay Lohan, and model
Karlie Kloss Karlie Elizabeth Kloss (born August 3, 1992) is an American fashion model. ''Vogue Paris'' declared her one of the "top 30 models of the 2000s" when she was 17. Kloss was a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2013 until 2015; she resigned to study at ...
.


Stores and expansion

Abercrombie kids stores are designed to give off a "classic cool" effect. They are designed as "canoe stores," displaying a similar floor layout as Abercrombie & Fitch's (the retail space is divided into multiple rooms). However, the kids' prototype does bear differences. It has no
louver A louver (American English) or louvre (British English; see spelling differences) is a window blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain and direct sunshine. The angle of the sla ...
s to cover the windows, has brighter lighting, is smaller in retail space, blasts electronic dance music and
pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...
from young artists, and displays marketing pictures with young models resembling those at A&F. The signature fragrance, "Fierce", is sprayed store-wide. As of August 2012, abercrombie operates a total of 154 stores in the United States. The Abercrombie Kids brand began its international expansion when it opened its first Canadian store on August 21, 2008, at
Sherway Gardens Sherway Gardens (corporately known as CF Sherway Gardens) is a large retail shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The mall is located west of Downtown Toronto, near the interchange of Highway 427 with the Queen Elizabeth Way and Gardiner ...
in
Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Another abercrombie kids store opened at
Toronto Eaton Centre The Toronto Eaton Centre (corporately styled as the CF Toronto Eaton Centre since September 2015, and commonly referred to simply as the Eaton Centre) is a shopping mall and office complex in the downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is ...
in Toronto on November 26, 2008. It opened its first
flagship store A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
in
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
on October 29, 2009. It is located within the Abercrombie & Fitch Milanese flagship at 12 Corso Matteotti. The practice of placing abercrombie kids stores inside Abercrombie & Fitch flagship stores continued in Düsseldorf and Munich stores. There was one in the
West Edmonton Mall West Edmonton Mall (WEM) is a shopping mall in Edmonton, Alberta, that is owned, managed, and operated by Triple Five Group. It is the second most visited mall in Canada, after the Toronto Eaton Centre in Toronto, followed by Metrotown Mall in ...
, but it relocated inside the mall's Abercrombie & Fitch while the old location was replaced with a
Microsoft Store Microsoft Store (formerly known as Windows Store) is a digital distribution platform operated by Microsoft. It started as an app store for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 as the primary means of distributing Universal Windows Platform app ...
. The store closed in 2022 and was the only Abercrombie Kids left in Western Canada, the only 2 are still open are in the Toronto Eaton Centre and Sherway Gardens in Toronto. As of May 2015, there are 101 standalone Abercrombie Kids stores in the United States, two in Canada, and one in the United Kingdom. Abercrombie Kids "carve-outs" occupy space in Abercrombie & Fitch's flagship stores in Italy and Germany, as well as in fourteen full-line Abercrombie & Fitch stores in the United States and Canada. The abercrombie kids "carve-out" locations are an initial attempt for Abercrombie & Fitch to phase out the brand, similar to how Gilly Hicks items were placed in Hollister Co. stores shortly before Gilly Hicks folded in 2013.


Abercrombie kids goods

Abercrombie kids' apparel is designed to mimic Abercrombie & Fitch clothing, and the brand carries most of the styles that A&F does. Most abercrombie kids clothes that have the labeled moose on them are to resemble their parent company "Abercrombie & Fitch" but the kids signature moose is smaller to symbolize that they are children. The trademarked term, "classic cool", was used to promote the clothing on an in-store and website level from abercrombie and it acted as a more juvenile version of A&F's slogan "Casual Luxury". The "classic cool" trade mark was retired in 2007 along with Abercrombie and Fitch's "Casual Luxury". Jeans bear the same back-pocket-stitching pattern as A&F as well as the same fits respective to sex. The logo moose is prominently displayed on clothing as is the name "abercrombie" as well as the year of establishment, "1892" (Abercrombie & Fitch was itself established in 1892, but in reality, the children's line "abercrombie" was not started until 1998). Clothing is categorized within the "guys" and "girls" divisions. Price points are on par with those at sister brand Hollister Co. The brand currently carries the following fragrance collections: "Fierce" cologne as well as "Play" and "Life" fragrances. The brand released the "abercrombie" cologne and perfume set previous to 2006; however, it was retired
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
2007. Chase and Spirit were released
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
2006 and were followed by Cologne 15 and Perfume 15 being released
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
2007. Chase and Spirit have begun the phasing-out process and have had their price reduced permanently, as of Fall 2010. New fragrance Phelps and Emerson were released for
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
2008. On July 9, 2010, the newest girl's fragrance was launched called "Hadley", while the newest guy's fragrance, "Clutch," was released as part of the
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
floor-set 2010, and has a scent similar to that of "Fierce," although more age appropriate and subdued.


Controversy


Sexually suggestive designs

Humor T-shirts from the brand have resulted in criticism and controversy. Many slogans are taken as degrading to girls (e.g. "I'm not allowed to date unless you're hot"). Some show arrogant messages or disrespectful slogans ("'I will make you an all-star on the walk of shame'"). They are anti-education slogans as well: 'I'd do your homework, but I don't even do mine'; 'School is for catching up on sleep'. Girls' shirts are sold with slogans that typically show off their looks ("It's better being brunette", etc.). Perhaps the most controversial of all was the line of underwear for young girls with the sayings "Wink Wink" and "Eye Candy" screenprinted on them. Parents mounted storefront protests in outrage of the sexually-suggestive underwear. CEO and Chairman of the Board Mike Jeffries said to an interviewer that he did not think the underwear to be "bad", but more "cute." In mid-2011, Today Show featured a segment on padded triangle bikini tops being marketed towards 7- to 16-year-old girls. The bikini was criticized as being "sexually ostentatious" and "promiscuous."


Proposed shop on Savile Row

In 2012, A&F announced plans that it would open its Abercrombie Kids shop at No. 3 on
Savile Row Savile Row (pronounced ) is a street in Mayfair, central London. Known principally for its traditional bespoke tailoring for men, the street has had a varied history that has included accommodating the headquarters of the Royal Geographical ...
, next door to Gieves & Hawkes. The building in question has cultural significance because it was the former home of
Apple Corps Apple Corps Limited (informally known as Apple) is a multi-armed multimedia corporation founded in London in January 1968 by the members of the Beatles to replace their earlier company (Beatles Ltd.) and to form a conglomerate. Its name (pron ...
and
The Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...
once played on top of the roof. The plans drew criticism and opposition from the tailors of the Row, who were already unhappy about the presence of the main A&F store on Burlington Gardens at the end of the Row to begin with, which eventually led to a protest organized by ''
The Chap ''The Chap'' is a British humorous men's lifestyle magazine published quarterly. It was founded in 1999 by Gustav Temple and Vic Darkwood, and is still edited by Temple. The magazine proposes that men everywhere return to a more gentlemanly wa ...
'' magazine on Monday, April 23, 2012. During the consultation period, objections were lodged to
Westminster City Council Westminster City Council is the local authority for the City of Westminster in Greater London, England. The city is divided into 20 wards, each electing three councillors. The council is currently composed of 31 Labour Party members and 23 Cons ...
and in February 2013 the Council rejected many of A&F's proposals for the store, stating that the plans for fixed screens on the windows, shutting out light to create the nightclub feel, was “deeply flawed” and damaging to the character of the street and that the flagpoles that normally hang from Abercrombie & Fitch stores were “highly inappropriate” and branded the entire plans "utterly unacceptable." A public enquiry was then set for February 12 after A&F appealed. However, A&F seems to have managed to overcome the remaining obstacles and succeeded in opening the store in September 2014.Fashion United - Abercrombie Kids lands in the UK with debut store opening
(retrieved September 4, 2014)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Abercrombie Kids Abercrombie & Fitch brands Children's clothing brands 2000s fashion Clothing companies established in 1998 Retail companies established in 1998