Abercrombie & Fitch is in the midst of a serious comeback, however the retailer remains to be being haunted by the alleged sins of former chief executive Mike Jeffries.
The corporate was sued Friday for turning a blind eye to Jeffries’ alleged misconduct, court records show. He’s accused of running a sprawling sex trafficking ring that exploited young men hoping to change into models for the brand.
The suit alleges that Jeffries, who’s also listed as a defendant, sexually abused quite a few men under the guise it will land them coveted modeling contracts.
It comes just weeks after BBC published an investigation into Jeffries and Abercrombie that made similar accusations.
In response, an organization spokesperson told CNBC it doesn’t comment on pending litigation. Nevertheless, after the BBC story was published, the corporate said it was “appalled and disgusted” by Jeffries’ alleged behavior. It said it had contacted an out of doors law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the problems BBC raised.
“The corporate’s current executive leadership team and board of directors weren’t aware of the allegations of sexual misconduct by Mr. Jeffries,” the corporate said on the time.
“For near a decade, a recent executive leadership team and refreshed board of directors have successfully transformed our brands and culture into the values-driven organization we’re today. We’ve zero tolerance for abuse, harassment or discrimination of any kind.”
Brian Bieber, Jeffries’ attorney, didn’t deny the claims when contacted by CNBC.
“Mr. Jeffries is not going to comment within the press on this recent lawsuit, as he has likewise chosen to not regarding litigation previously. The courtroom is where we are going to cope with this matter,” Bieber said in an email.
David Bradberry, who brought the suit, claims he was recruited for a modeling opportunity in 2010 and introduced to a scout who said he was working on behalf of the brand.
“He then made it clear to David Bradberry that he held the important thing to the following level within the Abercrombie process and that unless he let the scout perform oral sex on him, Bradberry wouldn’t be meeting with Abercrombie or its CEO, Michael Jeffries,” the lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court, states.
Bradberry was then assaulted by the scout and paid, the lawsuit states.
Soon after, he was invited to a casting event at Jeffries’ house within the Hamptons that Bradberry assumed was a “legitimate Abercrombie-sponsored function” since it included a gathering with the CEO and he was forced to wear the brand’s clothes for the event, the lawsuit states.
But as an alternative of knowledgeable casting event, Bradberry was soon raped by Jeffries and compelled to take poppers, a form of drug that made him feel lightheaded, the suit states.
“Amidst the confusion attributable to the poppers, David Bradberry began to concentrate on the 4 older, larger, physically fit men who seemed to be security guards observing the activity within the room,” the lawsuit alleges.
“These imposing men, wearing Abercrombie clothing, caused Bradberry to feel like there was no way that he could leave the room safely or resist what Jeffries was demanding.”
Following the event, Bradberry was flown to Nice, France, where he was again forced to perform sex acts on Jeffries, the suit states.
The lawsuit, which is searching for class motion status, alleges that similar events happened to greater than 100 other victims and Abercrombie allowed it to occur.
Jeffries, who previously served because the president of the bankrupt women’s retail chain Alcott & Andrews, was tapped by Abercrombie’s former owner Leslie Wexner to be the brand’s CEO in 1992 and produce it back to life.
Under his tenure, Abercrombie became one of the crucial outstanding names in retail and was known for its sexually charged promoting and shirtless male models, who were often positioned outside of the brand’s stores.
The corporate saw regular growth in earnings and sales during that point, but its success was soon overshadowed by accusations of discrimination against its staff and claims that its clothes were only meant for attractive people.
In 2004, Abercrombie paid $40 million to settle a category motion lawsuit that accused the corporate of discriminating against Black, Hispanic and Asian employees. In 2012, it settled a case brought by a former pilot that accused the corporate of age discrimination.
Following its mid-2000s heyday, Abercrombie developed a repute for racism and being a clothing brand that was only reserved for certain kinds of people and lost relevancy amongst American consumers.
Jeffries left the corporate in 2014 and Abercrombie has since rebranded itself as an inclusive retailer under CEO Fran Horowitz, who became the corporate’s chief executive in 2017.
Recently, Abercrombie has surprised Wall Street with earnings and profits that blew past estimates and has opened recent stores, whilst other retailers close doors and the economic outlook stays uncertain.
The corporate’s shares have greater than doubled this yr.
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