Why Abercrombie & Fitch could benefit from a new owner

Teenage fashion giant Abercrombie & Fitch is thought to be looking for a new owner, having approached an investment bank to gain insight into the interest from other retailers and groups.

The troubled retailer has been struggling for years, having failed to keep up with changing times in the fast fashion industry. It lost its fashion credibility much like its sister company Hollister, who's relevancy has also undeniably waned since its 90s heyday.

But the Ohio, Oregon-based company could turn its business around under new leadership, as it struggles to gain a foothold with its new target demographic.

As part of its attempted revamp, A&F in 2016 changed tactic and moved away from its core collegiate customer, aiming to attract a more sophisticated and older demographic. Its advertisements, once a source of inspiration captured by Bruce Weber's all-American clean-cut-and-sexy aesthetic, became dull and lifeless, failing to communicate what the brand now stood for. It's clothing offer was once fashion for beautiful preppy young adults, before it suddenly became a product without a difference or usp.

A&F lost its aesthetic as much as its ideology

According to Forbes, "as hot as the brand was in the late 1990s, with Hollister following suit in the early and mid-2000s, these two companies have fallen out of favor in recent years, not just from an aesthetic standpoint, but from an ideological one as well."

Reports that the company discriminated against overweight customers, or disabled ones, or Muslim job applicants only reinforced the growing suspicion that the brand was only really suited to one particular type of customer: white, conventionally attractive and thin.

Earlier this year, The Business of Fashion, published an article why “America’s most beloved mall brands”—J. Crew, Gap, The Limited, and Abercrombie & Fitch—are all in crisis. The short answer being the Internet. Millennials tend to spend money on gadgets, rather than clothes, and rarely go to the mall. The middle of the market has disappeared.

According to the New Yorker, "aimless, open-minded shoppers are happy to haunt Zara and H&M, whereas discerning ones turn every purchase into a research project," scouting for niche brands that have something to say.

Millennials don't want to be part of a tribe. They want authenticity, to stand out in social media as themselves, not as fashion caricatures. The Abercrombie & Fitch that once dressed muscled Springbreakers on holiday, no longer is appealing to a generation who want to be individuals.

Under new ownership, A&F could re-find its footing and attract a new Millenial customer. There will always be room for brands who are aspirational, selling us dreams and a lifestyle. But that dream needs to be inclusive.

Photo credit:Abercrombie campaign by Bruce Weber