Single Size Clothing Brand Controversial Performance Is Still Reversed

Through the single size brand "Don't Ask Why", the US leisure trend clothing retailer American Eagle Outfitters (Mei Ying Ao Fei, hereinafter referred to as AEO) has achieved a performance reversal.

In the 2014 fiscal year, AEO's net income fell by 1%, and its sales decreased by 5% compared with the same period last year.

In order to improve its performance, the company launched the "Don't Ask Why" brand in the autumn.

Loose skirt, high waist shorts and soft pure color loose sweater and other styles, hoping to increase the consumption of young people.

At present, this strategy has worked.

In May 20th, AEO announced the first quarter quarterly report of the 2015 fiscal year, its net income increased by 8%, and sales increased by 7% over the same period.

The launch of "Don't Ask Why" is also aimed at coping with the impact of Brandy Melville, a new rival.

The styles of the two brands are very similar.

Italy brand Brandy Melville has entered the US market in the past five years. With its relaxed and simple style, it has become the first brand of American teenage women's wear.

"We are trying to make this brand reflect the trend of girls' dress.

In recent years, a comfortable knitted dress has been popular. We have established a long-term cooperative relationship with the Italy cooperation partners, providing cloth and some garments for each other.

We will also send teams to Italy to assist them in their work.

Chad Kessler, President of AEO company, said in an interview with Racked website.

Carter Harrison, a retail analyst, believes that AEO is in line with the needs of consumers. It can better compete with brands such as Forever21 and Zara through developing a simple fashion brand.

Although the brand needs further improvement, it can not be denied that the company has made a big step towards the right direction of development.

AEO has also increased its investment in social media such as Instagram to better contact key customers, enhance interaction, understand and meet consumer needs.

"Don't Ask Why"

The launch has also been questioned and dissatisfied with some people. They believe that the brand's clothing size is single and has the tendency to convey inferiority awareness and body discrimination to women.

But for American Eagle, a single size means "fast". A style with a single size can be put into production only by a fitting procedure, which saves the tedious fitting process and enables the design to be realized faster.

At present, only 50 American Eagle stores sell "Don't Ask Why" clothing, and customers can also buy the brand online.

AEO said the brand is still in the experimental stage. If the feedback is enthusiastic, it will consider setting up an independent brand store for the brand.

The company, founded in 1977 and headquartered in Pittsburgh, has sixteen countries including China.

There are nearly 1000 stores.