Abercrombie offers cash to controversial star to shed its clothes

Aug 17, 2011, 20:41 GMT

Los Angeles - Fashion brands spend billions of dollars each year to snare celebrity endorsements. But Abercombie & Fitch has become possibly the first clothing retailer to offer a star cash not to wear its clothes.

The company, which itself has courted controversy with its sexy marketing to teens, has offered to pay members of MTV's raucous reality show Jersey Shore not to wear its clothes.

The offer, which was seen as a publicity stunt rather than a serious business move, was made in a press release Tuesday night and repeated in a conference call by Abercrombie chief executive Mike Jeffries on Wednesday, after Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino had been filmed wearing the company's duds in a recent episode.

While such appearances are usually worth a fortune in exposure, Abercrombie believed that the show is so outrageous that it had a negative impact on the brand.

'We are deeply concerned that Mr Sorrentino's association with our brand could cause significant damage to our image,' the company said in a press release.

'We understand that the show is for entertainment purposes, but believe this association is contrary to the aspirational nature of our brand, and may be distressing to many of our fans,' the statement continued.

'We have therefore offered a substantial payment to Michael 'The Situation' Sorrentino and the producers of MTV's The Jersey Shore to have the character wear an alternate brand. We have also extended this offer to other members of the cast, and are urgently waiting a response.'

MTV duly responded Wednesday with a put-down to Abercrombie's reverse marketing strategy.

'We'd love to work with them on other ways they can leverage Jersey Shore to reach the largest youth audience on television,' an MTV spokesperson said.