According to a BBC investigation, several men accuse the ex-head of the US fashion group Abercrombie & Fitch, Michael “Mike” Jeffries, and his partner of sexually exploiting them at events. The couple used a middleman to find young men for themselves, the British broadcaster said.
Eight men told the BBC that they had taken part in such events. Some told the station that they had been exploited or mistreated. No legal steps have been taken yet. Jeffries and his partner did not comment when contacted by the BBC.
The couple’s alleged middleman denied the allegations. The men concerned knew what they were getting into, he told the BBC. The station also reported that two former U.S. prosecutors, after reviewing documents and statements, would call for an investigation to determine whether sex trafficking charges could be filed.
The fashion group Abercrombie & Fitch, which also sells the Hollister brand and previously scored points with, among other things, offensive advertising, said in a statement that it was “horrified and disgusted”. Mike Jeffries resigned from Abercrombie & Fitch in 2014 after years of criticism.
The image of the company founded in New York suffered several times in the past. Jeffries, now 79, determined the company’s strategy for a long time with sentences like this: “We want the cool kids. Many people have no business wearing our clothes.” Exclusion was part of the concept.
In addition, there were always headlines that didn’t fit the cool image. There were accusations of racism because almost exclusively white people worked in US branches. At the same time, reports circulated about questionable working conditions for seamstresses in Asia.