Abercrombie and Fitch report Essay Example for Free

Abercrombie and foumart report EssayAbercrombie Fitch was depicted in 1892, and origin completelyy was a retailer of outdoor and sporting goods. In 1976, it went bankrupted and was acquired by Limited Brands in 1988. Michael Jeffries was nominated to become chief executive officer in 1992, and he dramatic wholey improved the consideration of AF to be a global fashion retailer. Now the symbol of Ameri asshole style and beloved crisscross by many clients worldwide, Abercrombie and Fitch produces mainly appargonl, smell and lifestyle goods targeting at consumers aged from 18 to 25. There be 4 sub- provokers in AF which atomic number 18 Abercrombie and Fitch, Abercrombie Kids, Hollister and Gilly Hicks. each(prenominal) sub- dent has its own characteristics and its positioning in the fashion food trade is slightly different. Abercrombie Fitch is rooted in East Coast traditions and Ivy League heritage, it is the essence of privilege and casual luxury (Abercrombie and Fit ch Co. 2012, P. 3).Abercrombie Kids is for the kids who want to be like their older br new(prenominal)s or sisters and the marrow squash concept of it is casual and preppy looks. Hollisters heritage stems from Southern California and was designed to re toast cool beach style. Gilly Hicks is the newest and smallest brand in AF made wholly for the girls clothes or underwear. With the opening of a flagship store in Canada in 2005, AF started to enter the global market. Now it has 139 stores outside of the US, and it tardily opened stores in Seoul, South Korea and in abduct, China to expand into the Asian market. We chose Abercrombie and Fitch since we would like to see how successful this multinational app bel phoner can be by insisting its All-American style in different cultures. We wanted to explore its unique retail system and brand positioning as this brand is sought after a lot of young adult. Several contr everywheresial issues of AF were the deciding factor in our choice of company.Work Oriented CultureOf all the methods which exist for explaining cultural differences, the dimensional approach is more influential (Peng Meyer, 2011). GeertHostede, a Dutch professor, established the overarching theory consisting of five cultural dimensions. The maiden is indicator withdrawnness which outlines the expectation and acceptance of the unequal distri preciselyion of power by the less powerful members of a country (Peng Meyer, 2011). Individualism vs. collectivism is the cultural dimension characterized by whether thecitizens view themselves as distinctly different or bloodsucking upon group involvement. The third cultural dimension is maleness vs. femininity which refers to the values, traditional male or female, which are held in the highest regard. Determining the ex ten dollar billt to which an individual go away embrace uncertain circumstances is the uncertainty avoidance dimension. Finally, huge-term orientation deals with the emphasis the cit izens lieu upon perseverance and savings for future betterment (Peng Meyer, 2011). The US is the domicile country of Abercrombie and Fitch.Power DistanceIndividualityMasculinity/FemininityUncertainty Avoidance long-term OrientationScoring a 40 caused the US to be in the lower half of the countries for power distance. Hierarchy is established for convenience (Geert-hofstede.com, 2014) as superiors are easily accessible and communicate informally. Information is free flowing as managers take input form their subordinates. The US received the highest individuality score of 91. Citizens are considered the best joiners in the world (Geert-hofstede.com, 2014). It is non extreme for Americans to work with people with whom they are non familiar as deep friendships are non unremarkably formed. What an individual is capable of doing or has already dvirtuoso provide determine their value of beinghired or promoted. Ranking 15th on the masculinity scale with a score of 62 indicates a masc uline nation. US firms make a culture of live to work (Geert-hofstede.com, 2014) where higher status and monetary rewards are key driving factors. Leaders which are forceful and decisive are highly valued. Employees who are less visible and indecisive are not able to attain successWith a score of 46, the US is shown to have a below average uncertainty avoidance. Innovation is extremely valued as new ideas are quickly accepted. As compared to firms in higher uncertainty avoidance countries, US firms entrust quickly go after new, emerging, and risky opportunities. The US is seventh from the bottom of the list for long-term orientation with a score of 29. fleck future planning is involved in US firms decision reservation process, quarterly reports are fantastically significant and limit the time firms can look ahead. Employees savings rates in countries such(prenominal)(prenominal) as the US are much lower than those in long-term oriented nations.Home Region Oriented FirmRugman an d Verbeke in 2004 established a triad of economic power consisting of Asia, the EU, and North America. Analysis of 380 firms determined how many were dental plate- vicinity oriented, bi-regional, host-region oriented, or global (Rugman Verbeke, 2004). A home-region oriented firm has at least 50% of their sales in their home region of the triad (Rugman Verbeke, 2004). To be a bi-regional company, at least 20% of all sales must take place in two regions, hardly the company cannot have more than 50% in the region where the company is based. If a firm has more than 50% of its sales in a region different than its home region and so the firm is considered host region oriented. In order to be global, a firm must have at least 20% of their sales in all three regions of the triad, but less than 50% in any one region (Rugman Verbeke, 2004).AF is considered a home region oriented company based upon the released date from 2013. Of the $4,116.9 million in sales, 64.59% or $2,659.09 million is begind in the home region, North America. $1,116.78 million or 27.13% of all their sales take place in the EU region. Asia is far behind as the remaining 8.28% of sales, 341.03 thousand dollars, is dispersed across therest of the world. No calculations were needed as the sales figures and percentages were given. (Csimarket.com, 2014). The industry for which AF operates can explain their sales dissemination. As the company is in the fashion and retail industry, its sales are incredibly dependent upon the affinity of the customers for specific brands and styles. Since the company is based in North America, the firm is much more familiar with the prevalent style which would need to be present to increase sales. AF also established itself in their home country before expanding. These factors could explain the firms international orientation.Ownership AdvantagesFirst, one downstream self-possession advantage of AF is the possession of a specific brand image which is not easily im i panel. The firm operates under different brands Abercrombie Fitch, Abercrombie Kids, Hollister, and Gill Hicks for slightly different targets. Each sub-brand represents a different brand image but they eventually add up to one big image, American Cool. To the fashion retailers, the most master(prenominal) ownership advantage is their own irreplaceable brand image. In this context, AF has its distinct position in the fashion market and is using their brand image successfully to take up the customers (Abercrombie Fitch Co. 2012, P. 3).Second, the other ownership advantage of AF is its in-store experience. AF stimulates the customers senses of sight, sound, smell, and touch by utilizing handsome male ideals, music, fragrances, rich fabrics and interior design. Customers (mainly females) can get a guess to take a photo with the models, and this became a representative in-store experience of AF. In addition to this, AF uses certain perfume to attract customers and to make them remember AF for a weeklong time than just seeing, which is called scent marketing. Also, the stores always play the video of the American beach to emphasize its cool brand image. AF merely effects up the flagship stores and controls them through with(predicate) the managers who are trained in the US and sent to the international flagship stores to monitor the whole operation. This system makes it assertable to transfer this in-store experience to the newly established flagship stores real well.Therefore, all AF stores, even thoseoverseas, are committing the standardized in-store experience by offering customers the same experience (Abercrombie and Fitch Co. 2012, p. 4). Uppsala Model Network multinationalization Model Differences The Uppsala model views that market knowledge is gained only by operating directly in a market thus the model focuses on experimental knowledge (Childs Jin 2013, p. 38). check to the Uppsala model, will increase their market commitment gradually based upon their experience in the market and based on the knowledge they gain in the market. On the other hand, according to the Network internationalization model, firms can start their internationalization before they enter the market by settling network race in advance. Therefore, firms do not have to follow the stages of the Uppsala model but building a number of such affinitys constitutes a large and important enthronization, and once established, and organizational or ownership advantage (Vahlne Johanson 2013, p. 195).Uppsala Model Network Internationalization Model Similarities Both models consider the network as important knowledge that firms should gain. The network facilitates learning and experience by building up the trust in a relationship and also by learning from other market players. Within the Uppsala model, the core concept of the gradual extension of a companys internationalization into a market, which gains the company valuable experience, should be base d on the interplay with customers, suppliers, and other competitors. As the companys network broadens, it can get more knowledge and at the same time its degree of internationalization will become higher. In this context, we can find akinity betwixt the two models. International TrajectoryIn 2005, AF first opened its flagship store in Canada. Starting from this, AF entered the European market with opening flagship stores in major cities of the European countries, such as London, Milan, Paris, and Amsterdam. On December 15, 2009, AF opened its first Asian flagship store in Tokyo as a starting point to enter the Asian market. Currently, AF owns 19 flagship stores in Canada, 110 in Europe, and 11 in Asia. Among those stores, 39 are sales subsidiaries. In Canada, the Netherlands, and Hong Kong, AF has wholly-owned subsidiaries because there are DCs in those countries, meaning that they are the most important countries in each continent (Abercrombie Fitch Co. 2012, PP. 19, 101102). Fir ms who have a lovesome brand image and possess asset specificity (a unique product or a unique way of doing business) are more likely to internationalize quickly (Childs Jin, 2013). AF is a good example of this case, so it could skip the lower stages of the Uppsala model, such as sporadic exports or exports through sales agents, and could set up the subsidiaries directly overseas, which only takes 7-9years. Consequently, now we can assume that the company is already in a quite higher stage of the Uppsala-based stages model with its sales subsidiaries and wholly-owned subsidiaries. Degree and Nature of International SourcingAbercrombie and Fitch does not own factories producing the products and it has not sourced more than 10% of its ware from any single member of its approximately 155 vendors in 20 countries, including the get together States, China, Vietnam and Guatemala (Abercrombie Fitch Co. 2012, p. 4). In caseicular, more than 90% of its suppliers are in Asia (Google.com, 2011). The company has established supplier product quality standards to ensure the high quality of fabrics and other materials used in the companys products (Abercrombie Fitch Co. 2012, p. 5). Abercrombie and Fitch has two diffusion centers (DCs) in New Albany, Ohio. The two DCs were initially responsible for the distribution of merchandise to the stores and direct-toconsumer customers, both regionally and internationally. Since 2009, AF has offshored its DCs by using a third- weakeny DC (TNT Fashion) in Roosendaal, the Netherlands for the distribution of merchandise to stores and direct-to-consumer customers located in Europe and a third-party DC in Hong Kong since 2011 for the distribution of merchandise to stores located in Asia. Its two DCs in New Albany, Ohio currently only support its North American stores, and direct-to-consumer customers outside of Europe (Abercrombie Fitch Co. 2012, p. 5).The nature of offshoring the DCs is to broaden the direct-toconsumer business wor ldwide and facilitate the international expansion of Abercrombie and Fitch stores in Europe and Asia. Furthermore, Abercrombie and Fitch has a strong, cooperative and long-term relationship with its vendor factories. When the CEO Mike Jeffries was asked about the cost pressures from raw materials and labor costs, he emphasizedthat a strong relationship with vendors has been key since they had assisted AF and been sporting in terms of cotton prices and other increases. He also added that AF and vendors have been there for each other for the long term (Barrie, 2010). Strategic Advantages and Drawbacks of International Sourcing and Offshoring The first advantage of international sourcing is that AF can hedge against the supplier risks. Since AF has relationships with over 100 vendors in 20 countries, it can flexibly switch from one source to another(prenominal) when necessary.AF has the ability to increase its total supply capacity. Even if there are a sudden wave of demand for certai n products, having a strong relationship with over 100 vendors will ensure AF a certain supply of products and therefore the supply chain will be more stable (Inboundlogistics.com, 2011). However, such global sourcing system also brings some disadvantages. The source of production activity is too dispersed it is a challenge to find qualified executives who know the local anaesthetic business purlieu and understand the corporations inner works especially in the Asia Pacific region (Inboundlogistics.com, 2011). We would advise Abercrombie and Fitch to send executives from the US to those countries and hire local managers simultaneously to ensure the production activity smooth.The primary advantage of offshoring is to reduce costs. Offshoring its distribution centers in Europe and Asia can save distribution and transportation costs of merchandise to stores in Europe and Asia. However, if the third-party distribution center in the Netherlands or Hong Kong shuts down suddenly, the di stribution of merchandise in Europe and Asia will be totally disrupted. Therefore, AF should leverage the risk by running an additional distribution center in some low-cost countries, such as Vietnam. This conk will also support AFs future expansion.Opportunities and Threats in VietnamOpportunitiesLabor cost in Vietnam are absolutely lower than that of China (JETRO, 2011) (NWPC, 2014). See vermiform process 1 for figure 1.Government policy to attract FDI (Kim, lee(prenominal) Cheong, 2011). See AppendixThreats2.TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) Cost reduction, lead time reduction, and tax benefit. See Appendix 3 for table 1.Currently only 16% of AF clothes are produced in Vietnam (Google.com, 2011). See Appendix 4 for figure 2.Vietnam has a better status for lead times, infrastructure, and working circumstances than other developing countries (Kim, Lee Cheong, 2011). As AF doesnt operate their own manufacturing facilities but uses vendors, it can be intense competition among the companies who want to attract vendors in Vietnam.Bangladesh, Cambodia, and Sri Lanka which have lower labor cost than Vietnam are trying to develop their infrastructure and manufacturing conditions to attract vendors. In the future, those undeveloped countries can be a threat to the Vietnam market.Minimum wage in Vietnam is increasing by 15% in 2013, and 17% in 2014 (Vettoretti Huyen, 2013).Suggestions for the Emerging MarketWe suggest establishing a distribution center (DC) in Vietnam as a strategy to create synergy with the new manufacturing facilities in Vietnam. Currently, many global fashion retailers are trying to generate vertical integration in the emerging markets because they can control the demand fluctuation easily and simplify procurement and administrative procedures eliminating the need to deal with a wide variety of suppliers and distributors. If TPP is concluded, the degree of tariffs will decrease, so it would be better to concentrate on upstream investment in Vi etnam. Because emerging markets are not wellorganized and there is more lack of conditions than the developed market, owning a DC will be more stable and protective. Eventually, a DC in Vietnam will create good access to the Asian market.Inoverseas developed markets, AF doesnt own the distribution centers but uses third-party DCs in the Netherlands and Hong Kong. However in Vietnam, we assume that AF would set up a distribution center as a wholly-owned subsidiary. The third-party logistics in outsourcing the whole distribution to a specialized company would reduce the cost. Now AF has only third-party DCs in overseas and there is a threat to be shut down. In order to prevent this status in advance, owning at least one wholly-owned DC is practical. Because a wholly-owned DC totally controlled by the company, the company can adjust to the demand fluctuation better than a third-party DC. Therefore wholly-owned DC will function as a safety net in a case there is an uncontrollable probl em in a third-party DC. Strategic Objectives of ingress ChinaWith regard to market seeking, China will represent the biggest market potential for our brands, said Craig Brommers, senior vice president of marketing for AF (Fashionunited.com, 2014). Undoubtedly, China is a huge and growing market with a population of approximately 1.4 billion. Therefore, AF has been trying to locate its potential customers by opening the first flagship store in Shanghai and 8 Hollister stores in different cities since 2012. The company plans to open over 100 new stores under its Hollister and AFs label in China over the next ten years (Fashionunited.com, 2014). With regard to efficiency seeking, there are an abundant suppliers and a low-cost labor force. Specifically, over 60% of its vendors were located in China in 2011 (Google.com, 2011). Also, there has been a distribution center in Hong Kong since 2011. Therefore, AF can achieve lower transportation costs since the delivery is closer to its targe t markets.Past remote Entry ModesAbercrombie and Fitch started its international expansion in London by opening the first overseas flagship store in 2007, and it almost adopted a single foreign entry mode in the last 7 years. AF established a wholly-owned subsidiary when entering a new market, such as the Netherlands, UK, HongKong, Singapore and Japan. However, AF opened its first Hollister store in Dubai in 2013 through a joint venture with Majid Al Futtaim Ventures and an AF flagship store is expected to open in Dubai in 2014 the same way (Majid Al Futtaim Ventures, 2014).For Abercrombie and Fitch, establishing wholly-owned subsidiaries is a better entry mode for international expansion. AF can enjoy full control of the international stores since it pursues an intensely American retail and marketing strategy (Marx, 2010). Therefore, establishing a wholly-owned subsidiary enables AF to integrate the operation of its subsidiaries tightly with itself and to control what the subsidia ry should follow. In addition, it takes a lot of cases to establish an effective relationship in a joint venture and the cultures of the companies may be incompatible. Financially, The parent company can consolidate the takes of its wholly-owned subsidiaries into one financial narration (Basu, 2014).Considering that AF is opening more international stores worldwide, the financial reporting would be too complicated if it engages in joint ventures in many different countries. Multinational schema Home Replication StageThe multinational strategy of Abercrombie and Fitch closely resembles the home replication strategy. There are several evidences from practice. First of all, the local reactivity of AFs international stores is very low. The staff greets shoppers in English, rather than the local language of the foreign countries. This results in foreign customer alienation since some customers will be forced to surface their rusty English during the transaction (Marx, 2010). AF rep licates its home country-based competencies such as brand positioning. Sex appeal is a big part of the brands charm in the United States AF also puts this masculine ideal into practice of its international stores. Particularly, many of the male staff members are half-naked in the stores (Marx, 2010). Finally, the implementation of its marketing strategy and operation is easier. The store design and the interior are the same worldwide along with extremely dim lightings, a strong smell of cologne and perfume and the staff singing or dancing with thepounding American songs.Real-life Social and Environmental DilemmasA real life complaisant dilemma has adversely impacted AF in recent years surrounding its CEO. The official website of the company states the company strives to be an inclusive environment that values the differences of its associates and customers (Anfcareers.com, 2014). While this is the official statement, an interview with the CEO, Mike Jeffries, brought a contrasting v iew to light. Jeffries identified his target market by claiming, a lot of people dont belong in our clothesAre we exclusionary? Absolutely (Walker, 2014). AF has since released an apology, but boycotts, negative celebrity statements, and petitions were enacted. This issue is an ethical dilemma to the firm because of their strategic place in the clothing market. In order to stay popular, an essence of exclusivity has been built around the brand, since the more exclusive the brand appears, the more interest the brand receives. This has been AFs approach, but this strategy is not inclusive.The firm had to determine whether to increase their size options or continue with the current productive model. The most important stakeholders for this dilemma are the CEO and those who hold a large portion of AFs stock. If AF is not able to effectively remedy the situation then the companys profits will continue to suffer. AF is a public company so their performance directly affects their stock. If the dilemma is not resolved quickly, it could trigger a chain reaction of a loss in profits which leads to lower stock causing several holders of the stock to drop it effectively dropping the value of the stock. The effects of this dilemma could have extremely long lasting repercussions.An environmental issue which has become a dilemma for AF is the implementation of harmful chemicals in their signature fragrances. Within the fragrance Fierce, 11 secret chemicals that are not listed on the label (Henricks, Malkan, Shils, 2014) were found that heighten allergic reactions. This particular fragrance caused reactions from various activist groups such as Physicians for Social Responsibility, MomsRising, and others which total over 1.5 million people (Henricks, Malkan, Shils, 2014). Utilizing harmful chemicals is an ethical environmental dilemma for AFbecause the current formula has generated incredible revenue. The official website of the company addresses large environmental impact a reas such as limiting their carbon emissions, but nothing addresses somethingwhich impacts the environmental on this particular scale.If AF is able to hide these chemicals and still gain their desired sales results then it has little motivation to stop acting in this manner. The most important stakeholders surrounding this dilemma are not only the executives and upper management of the company, but also the lowest store employees. A loss in serious sales will affect most employees in a company, but this situation would directly affect individual store employees.Customers may stay away from the stores in order to avoid the negative side effects resulting in a loss of profit and jobs for store employees.Developing a Globally Standardized StrategyCurrently, Abercrombie and Fitch already has an established a globally standardized strategy to cope with the selected dilemmas. The strategy is laid out on a website by the company which was created specifically for divulgeing the considerat e side of AF. Covering everything from the sustainability to collaborations to specific policies, AF clearly display their globally standardized strategy to ensure that the highest values of human rights are being upheld at our headquarters, in our stores and within our supply chain (anfcares.org, 2014). AF should have a globally standardized strategy. Even if ethical imperialism is not wise, the specific industry operations call for a globalized solution. Several ethical viewpoints are almost world-wide for garment manufacturing. Several unethical decisions such as environmental negligence and the use of harmful chemicals have resulted in scandals and dilemmas because of the accessibility of information. For example, the infamous interview with the CEO was conducted years before it gained notoriety. By having a globally standardized strategy, AF could mitigate potential situations before they arise.The selected dilemmas have global relevance. Inclusion, the principle dealt with in the social dilemma, is incredibly important to a multitude ofcultures across the world. A store in the Netherlands which openly admitted to not wanting homosexual customers would experience a similar backlash. The environment issues also reaches across borders. Asthma, one of the problems which are heightened by the fragrances, is prevalent in an estimated 300 million people (Aaaai.org, 2014).Abercrombie and Fitchs Actions Compared to UnileverThe actual solutions by AF are not similar to the solutions practiced by Unilever. Both AF and Unilever have explicit codes of conduct and plans to deal with ethical dilemmas which arise. Even though these plans exist, AF has demonstrated that its actions do not always ordain with their official stance. Unilevers approach to social impact such as gender equality has been greatly documented, and one of their main goals by 2020 is to help more than 1 billion people improve their health well-being (Vis, 2014). The implementation of this policy is seen as Unilever has helped generate around 65,000 microentrepreneurs (Vis, 2014). A stark contrast exists between Unilevers actions and those of AF. Unlike Unilever, the ultimate actions of AF and their refusal to stock larger size clothing proves the company is dedicated to portraying a positive image without actually portion to make a positive change in society.AFs actions toward their environmental impact align almost with their actions for social justice. Although its official stance is to reduce its environmental footprint, the company has taken no action in light of the protests by environmental groups driven to get rid toxic chemicals from the environment (Lutz, 2013) which are the result of their colognes. Unilevers approach towards economic longevity has been greatly noted as 75% sites send zero waste to landfill (Vis, 2014). Unilevers approach is much more preferred to AFs approach. From a social standpoint, Unilevers actions have actively made a beneficial social ch ange as Unilever continues to fulfill their promises. AF continues to ignore their customers plight even though the company claims to truly care. From a corporate standpoint, Unilevers approach is better because many news outlets have cited the company as making a positive change, while AF continues to have controversies resulting in a sales drop of 10%. Overall, Unilever has a much better strategy than AF.Appendix 1Figure 1 Average Monthly Wage of Asian Countries (Nwpc.dole.gov.ph, 2014)Appendix 2Improvement of the Vietnam Government Policy on FDI (Kim, Lee and Cheong, 2011) The Vietnam administration policy for FDI was dramatically improved by registering into WTO (World Trade Organization) and preparing for PNTR (Permanent Normal Trade Relations). Besides, the government adopted global standards, abolished discrimination of foreigners, and opened the service part such as finance or communication. As a result, FDI into Vietnam broadened to various areas, for example, fabrics, min ing, energy, finance, logistic and so on. Especially concluding PNTR between the US made it possible to participating into WTO and encouraged foreing investors to enter into the Vietnam market. Another important change in the policy is related to the modification of legal restrictions or rules. On 1st of July, 2006, the government changed the original law for FDI which had been adapted only to the local people into the newly modified law for FDI which is commonly adapted to the both parts of foreigners and local people. This was the effort of the government to create more competitive investment conditions which are changing subject of application, and abolishing double price and repatriation tax. Also the government has been modifying the original business law, investment law, land law, and corporate taxation.References1) Aaaai.org 2014, Asthma Statistics AAAAI. online Available athttp//www.aaaai.org/about-the aaaai/newsroom/asthma-statistics.aspx Accessed 14 May. 2014. 2) Abercrom bie and Fitch 2012, Annual report 2012, Abercrombie and Fitch Co., New Albany, Ohio.3) Anfcareers.com 2014, Abercrombie Fitch Careers. online Available athttp//www.anfcareers.com/ scalawag/Diversity Accessed 15 May. 2014. 4) Anfcares.org 2014, AF Cares Our Strategy. online Available athttp//www.anfcares.org/sustainability/environment/strategy.jsp Accessed 16 May. 2014. 5) Barrie, L. 2010, Abercrombie Fitch sees opportunities in higher costs. online Just-style.com. Available at http//www.just-style.com/analysis/abercrombie-fitch-sees-opportunities-in-highercosts_id109585.aspx Accessed 18 May. 2014. 6) Basu, C. 2014, The Advantages Disadvantages of a wholly Owned Subsidiary. online eHow. 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