Do you think Abercrombie should be allowed to staff its stores in a way that reinforces its marketing image? Why or why not? What are some alternative ways Abercrombie can staff its stores legally and still project a desirable image?
Answers should be approximately 300 words in length
Read the Opening Vignette 'Recruiting and Hiring to Promote a Brand Image'
To appeal to its target market of 18 to 22-year-old college students, clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch wanted to project an all American, collegiate image and make its store employees part of its marketing strategy. Paralleling the predominantly white, youthful, and attractive models used in Abercrombie's marketing materials, the company's salespeople, also called, "brand representatives," were also mostly good-looking, white, young adults.
Abercrombie & Finch's CEO Mike Jeffries wants to hire only attractive people as store employees to complement its marketing strategy targeting attractive, popular customers. To the company, this meant limiting its recruiting to certain fraternities and sororities known for their attractive, predominantly white members. One former Abercrombie manager said that a poster with images of the ideal Abercrombie white male and female hung in her office containing bullet points of the qualities an Abercrombie employee should possess, Qualities for a male included being a fraternity member who, likes sports, partying, and girls. A female should like to have fun, shop, and be a sorority member.
The company asks your opinion about the legality of the recruiting and staffing practice's it has adopted to reinforce its brand image and marketing strategy featuring predominantly white, attractive, young people.