How do you orchestrate a full-scale transformation of a venerable 133-year-old brand, tarnished by previous mismanagement and hubris? You can when you are a retail radical. Being a retail radical has many dimensions, not the least of which is doing what you do so well that you consistently deliver successful results.
ANF already ended their 2023 fiscal year with annual revenue of $4.28B and a full-year operating margin of 11.3 percent, the highest in 15 years. Plus, 2023 was a defining year for A&F Co., which achieved its best operating margin in 15 years and increased sales year-over-year.
Radical Transformation
The architect of Abercrombie & Fitch Co.’s impressive turnaround is Fran Horowitz, Chief Executive Officer and Principal Executive Officer. Based at A&F headquarters in Columbus, Ohio, Horowitz arrived at the company in 2014 as the Hollister Brand President. Ten years later, now as CEO, she has been the driving force behind the plan that helped A&F skyrocket, overseeing more than 25,000 associates globally across the company’s family of brands, including Abercrombie & Fitch, abercrombie kids, YPB (Your Personal Best, A&F’s active line), Hollister, and Gilly Hicks.
Fran Horowitz joins the 2024 roster of Crave Retail Radicals including John Venhuizen, CEO of Ace Hardware; Sumit Singh, CEO of Chewy; Michelle Crossan-Matos, CMO at Ulta Beauty and Denise Incandela, Executive VP, Fashion at Walmart. Each of these five retail radicals has the foresight, innovation, and unconventional thinking to drive their brands and the industry at large forward to exceed customers’ expectations. They drive major transformations within their respective retail brands as game-changing legacy retailers and DTC marketplace disrupters.
Radical Thinking
Fran Horowitz recognizes the value of retail radicals, and her experience as a brand builder shifted the organization’s focus to center on the customer for all decision-making. “It may not sound radical, but putting the customer at the center of everything we do is one of the most important and difficult things a retailer can do.
When I joined A&F Co., I had to empower the team to shift their thinking to be about the customer. For so long, the brands were focused on telling the customers what they should buy and how to wear our product, instead of listening to their needs. Now, we operate the business to ensure we are set up to listen, take customer feedback and evolve as needed.”
A&F Co. redefined each of its brands, positioning Hollister as a global teen brand and repositioning Abercrombie & Fitch to target 20-somethings. By listening to its customers, A&F Co. delivers quality, on-trend products, communicates in relevant ways through social media channels and provides a seamless experience no matter how they shop.
Radical Culture
Fran Horowitz says she has systematically created a culture of innovation, “It has been a journey, but when I joined A&F Co. in 2014, I was met with a lot of smart, curious, optimistic leaders who were ready for, and embraced change. Part of that was changing our organization from one that was top-down, to one where all associates were empowered and were expected to bring their ideas to the table.
To build a culture of innovation at A&F Co. we believe good ideas come from anywhere and we try to create a culture that balances high empowerment with high expectations. We have a strong test- and-learn culture and are not afraid to try new and bold things. Does everything work the first time? No, but we quickly recognize and own it when something isn’t working, and then we pivot and move forward.”
Matthew Cyr, CEO and Co-Founder of Crave Retail states, “Fran Horowitz’s leadership at Abercrombie & Fitch feels personal to me. My own retail journey started there, where I first learned the value of high standards and the discipline required to meet them. To see Fran transform A&F into a brand that truly understands and adapts to its customers is remarkable. Her work is more than a turnaround — it’s a reinvention that will leave a lasting mark on the retail industry for years to come.”
Horowitz is a firm believer that customer insights can propel change. “Search not found” can be an invaluable tool for product development. When Abercrombie noticed customers repeatedly searching “active” on its website with no results, it launched an activewear line, YPB, in March 2022. The power of partnerships prompted a collaboration with the McLaren Team in 2023 to create licensed branded apparel based on the global popularity of Formula 1 racing. More recently, in March 2024, “The A&F Wedding Shop” collection debuted in response to how important weddings and the surrounding events were in the lives of its customers.
Radical Bottom Line
A&F Co. defined positioning at each of its global brands with unique edit points, a smaller, modernized and more profitable omni-enabled store base, close to 50 percent annual digital penetration and meaningful cash generation. In June 2022, the company hosted an Investor Day to present its Always Forward Plan, which anticipated annual revenues of $4.1 billion to $4.3 billion and a sustainable annual operating margin rate at or above 8 percent by the end of fiscal 2025.
ANF already ended their 2023 fiscal year with annual revenue of $4.28 billion and a full-year operating margin of 11.3 percent, the highest in 15 years. Plus, 2023 was a defining year for A&F Co., which achieved its best operating margin in 15 years and increased sales year-over-year.
A Radical Path
Fran Horowitz says the foundation of the A&F transformation has been supporting her workforce by “being there for you on your journey to being and becoming who you are.” This level of empathy influences how A&F Co. has shown up for its associates, customers and communities. She adds that Abercrombie’s commitment to creating a place of belonging for its stakeholders is an ongoing path with no finish line. The strategy is paying off, the company was again recognized in 2024 as a Best Workplace in Retail by Great Place to Work and Fortune and received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign’s 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index for the 17th consecutive year.
Radical Future
When asked what initiatives she is most proud of, she says, “I recently celebrated my ten-year anniversary with A&F Co., and the past decade with the Abercrombie and Hollister brands has been a remarkable journey, one filled with challenges, but more notably, a journey with more accomplishments than many thought possible. What I’m most proud of is how we have turned these iconic brands around—it has been the greatest highlight of my career. The transformation we’ve undergone and the success we’ve achieved in recent years would not have been possible without my resilient team and we’re looking forward to continued growth.”
Horowitz says A&F is entering its next phase by staying on the pulse of its customers’ needs, both existing and new ones, and by identifying areas of untapped potential. For example, it is exporting its successful playbook in EMEA and APAC and building teams in markets to bring product, voice and experience to its customers in locally relevant ways.
She observes “The only thing constant in retail is change, which is what I love about this industry. Each day, with our customers at the center of all that we do, our global teams come in and solve new challenges. Our customers’ preferences will continue to evolve, whether it’s the product they’re looking for, or how they want to shop, but our job is to stay agile and adapt to their ever changing needs. In the last ten years, we’ve transformed our operating model to do just that.
We’re providing the right product at the right time and through the right channels. With a relentless focus on our customers and a culture rooted in purpose, today we curate aspirational, trend-relevant products combined with great quality and value and we will continue to do that no matter how the industry evolves.”
How do this year’s Crave Retail Radicals compare to the 2023 cohort? Check out last year’s winners.
