Abercrombie offers to pay ‘Situation’ to shop elsewhere
ASSOCIATED PRESS August 17, 2011 7:48AM
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Updated: November 3, 2011 9:43AM
Here’s the situation: Abercrombie & Fitch wants nothing to do with Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino from MTV’s “Jersey Shore.”
Companies often pay for product placement on hot TV shows. But Abercrombie says it has offered a “substantial payment” to The Situation to get him to stop wearing their clothes.
Sorrentino was sporting a tight pair of A&F sweat pants in last week’s episode, filmed in Florence.
The offer extends to all of the “Jersey Shore” stars. Abercrombie said the series is “contrary to the aspirational nature of the brand.”
“We are deeply concerned that Mr. Sorrentino’s association with our brand could cause significant damage to our image,” the retailer said in a press release.
The company’s CEO says it’s having fun with the ploy, and marketing experts say the company may wind up laughing all the way to the bank.
“It gets their name further out into the marketplace with one of the hottest brands on TV right now at the peak of the back-to-school season,” said Wall Street Strategies analyst Brian Sozzi. “It’s free marketing. Because the approach is so ridiculous, everybody’s talking about it.”
MTV called the move a “clever PR stunt” by Abercrombie.
“We’d love to work with them on other ways they can leverage ‘Jersey Shore’ to reach the largest youth audience on television,” the network said Wednesday.
AP
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