David Abercrombie began the business in 1892, joining with former attorney Ezra Fitch in 1900. Fitch had been one of the store’s regular customers, and a wealthy attorney. He left his practice and purchased shares in the store. The store at this point had been a very upscale sporting goods store in New York. Fitch’s name was not added until 1904, when the business changed to Abercrombie & Fitch Co.. In the following you will learn the real story about Abercrombie company history.

Their business arrangement did not last forever, and it ended badly. They both had different ideas about the direction of the business. Abercrombie wanted the business to remain strictly sporting goods, while Fitch wanted it to be more for the general public. Abercrombie ended up selling out to Fitch in 1907. Fitch got other partners and kept the business going.

Fitch continued with his expansions, and they nearly ran him into bankruptcy, however, they did pay off in many ways. Abercrombie and Fitch put out their first catalog in 1909. It cost them a dollar each to publish them, which was a small fortune in that time period. The catalogs were given away free to any customers that visited the store. The were able to make their historical landmark by being the first New York store to sell clothing to men and women. In 1913, when the moved, they started a sportswear line, and in 1917, they moved to a twelve story building on Madison Avenue, of which they occupied all twelve stories. They became the first American store to import Mahjong. A customer inquired about the game she had played in China, Fitch had it imported, translated into English, and A&F became the center for Mahjong.

A&F supplied Charles Lindberg with his outfit in 1927 when he made his historic flight over the Atlantic. Fitch retired in 1928, selling his shares to Cobb, who was his brother-in-law. Cobb bought several other companies.

The depression took its toll on Abercrombie just as it did on every other business, and they began to recover slightly by 1938. They did fairly well during the sixties by providing a location for the film Man’s Favorite Sport, with Rock Hudson and Paula Prentiss. The seventies were not so good. They filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1977. A sporting goods retailer, Oshman’s bought Abercrombie in 1978 and opened new stores in Beverly Hills and Dallas. More stores continued to open.

By 1988, Limited had purchased A&F, but it was still in trouble. Michael Jeffries became the president and decided to direct the market toward teen clothing. The teen market seemed to be the best way for the business to go financially, and it was a success. What would Abercrombie & Fitch have thought about the LFO Song, Summer Girls? Fitch probably would have appreciated the free advertising.

Closing Comments

Currently, Abercrombie and Fitch are still going, hanging in there even in this economy and are the sixth most popular brand by teenagers. They have had quite the memorable run and they are still going. Good luck Abercrombie. Now you have had the opportunity to discover the Abercrombie company history.

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