LAUNCHED IN 2010, THE SITCH ON FITCH BECAME THE INSPIRED, RESPECTED BRAND OF PASSION OVER THE ACHIEVEMENTS AND PRESTIGE OF ABERCROMBIE & FITCH CO. (ADMIRATION FOR ITS PAST GOING BACK TO 1892 AND FOR THE MODERN-TIME HEIGHTS OF THE MIKE JEFFRIES ERA); IT WAS OFFICIALLY, POSITIVELY RECOGNIZED BY A&F HOME OFFICE BY APRIL 2012, WITH A DIRECT EMAIL TO THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, DURING ITS GROWTH AS THE ONE-OF-A-KIND, MULTINATIONAL ONLINE PUBLICATION, WITH HIGH-GRADE PRESENTATION WHICH EVOLVED OVER ITS RUN, FOR RELEVANT, UNIQUE, IN-DEPTH BUSINESS, CULTURE, AND STYLE CONTENT FOR THE COMMUNITY OF CUSTOMERS AND ASSOCIATES WORLDWIDE (MONTHLY PAGEVIEWS SURPASSED 110K BY AUGUST 2012); AND IT WAS FOLDED BY SEPTEMBER 2015 AFTER THE DECEMBER 2014 RETIREMENT OF MIKE JEFFRIES AND THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF'S DISTASTE WITH THE FURTHER DEGRADATION OF THE COMPANY BY ITS NEW MANAGEMENT. WITH CONTENT BY THE PERSPECTIVE OF DEVOTED CUSTOMERS AND ASSOCIATES FROM AMERICA, EUROPE AND FAR EAST ASIA, THE SITCH ON FITCH (2010-2015) REMAINS AS A HISTORICAL, ZEITGEIST ONLINE PUBLICATION OVER THE FINAL YEARS OF THE MIKE JEFFRIES ERA. THIS SITE WILL BE REVAMPED SOON TO OFFICIATE AN INTELLIGENT ARCHIVE FOR THE USE OF ALL PARTIES INTERESTED IN THE CONTENT PUBLISHED DURING THE PUBLICATION'S ORIGINAL RUN.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Abercrombie & Fitch in Dublin...the Luck of the Irish!

The gray building with the balconies and people in front is 34 College Green...the future A&F Dublin. (image source)









Finally, Abercrombie & Fitch will open doors in charming ole Ireland! The Company is prepping up to open its first store in Ireland in Dublin as a part of its flagship openings for 2011. Following along with its high standards, A&F will open doors on the stately College Green square - the most ideal place for A&F to showcase its coolness (and upscale image) to the Irish consumer.

The news made headlines back in Ferbuary (2011), but there were many things left unclear and the news reports made some errors. Grafton Street - a street Cushman & Wakefield named the 5th most expensive in the world (2008) - was incorrectly said to be the address. That is an error. The upcoming A&F flagship will be located at 34 College Green in a structure that offers more of a statement than anything on Grafton Street would have provided for...Abercrombie & Fitch has penchant for structures with detail and integrity.
“The deal will come as a major boost to retailing in Dublin. Abercrombie and Fitch are joining an already impressive line-up of national and international fashion and lifestyle brands now trading here. Their decision to locate here was influenced by our strong tourist base, our young population demographic and the significant level of brand recognition that exists here”. - Larry Brennan of Savills Ireland, which acted for Clarendon Properties for the lease.
Rumors of Abercrombie & Fitch opening shop in Dublin had been circulating since 2008, and the Company finally secured a location earlier in 2011. The building will offer about 26,000 square feet of space and will come at around €750,000 ($1.1 million USD) per annum. (The contract was made for 10-years lease: 2011 through 2021). As a result, the shopping area is said to probably gain much from the opening of Abercrombie & Fitch. The popular brand will bring in a "boost" for College Green "which has attracted a rash of unfavourable publicity over the past two years because many of its shops are over-rented and others are difficult to let due to a fall off in consumer spending."

After opening in all key European cities of fashion and consumerism, an opening in Ireland is much in order. There's a great demand for Abercrombie & Fitch on Ireland and the fans are finally going to get a store of their own. There is no known date on when the flagship will open. The Sitch on Fitch will keep you posted whenever we get word on the opening day - we'll post it here - so refer back to this post. Doors open Thursday, November 1, 11AM!

Join the FIERCE conversation for A&F Dublin on Twitter...



#AFDublin




Stay FIERCE!


UPDATE (29 August 2012): Applications are now online: careers.abercrombie.com ( password: sydney32 ). Recruiters are also out and about the city looking for hot guys and girls for store models.
UPDATE (3 April 2012): Construction for A&F Dublin has begun! Read this for more info including images of the development!

UPDATE (15 February 2012): ABERCROMBIE WILL BE OPENING IN DUBLIN FOR 2012!!! After much delay and uncertainty, it's totally official now! In its Fiscal 2011 summary report (released on 15 February 2012), which included a 2012 outlook, the Company confirmed Dublin as one of the five Abercrombie & Fitch flagships opening this year! It is likely that the store will be opening during the Christmas 2012 A&F season which launches in late-October! Read this awesome report for more: Corporate Report! | Fiscal 2011 Results and Fiscal 2012 Outlook...


UPDATE (21 January 2012): A&F has floored its plans to open in Barcelona, deciding not to sign the contact for the location. This has altered its plans for Europe in the process. A financial slow down in Europe has been cited, since the October 2011 earnings call, as a reflection of "macroeconomic headwinds" (including a slow down in tourism which plays a prominent role in the performance of A&F flagships) causing uncertainty and inciting caution in the European market. Unfortunately, this may be what's affecting the Dublin opening which, as of now, is publicly uncertain. Openings for fiscal 2012 will be shared in the earnings call for fiscal 2011 by February.

UPDATE (31 December 2011): The flagship is being further delayed. It will not be opening in the spring...that's for sure. If the billboard advertising the store is not up yet, then that means there's still some time before the opening. A&F is already on track to open in Hamburg, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Munich, and Hong Kong in 2012. It would be really unfair and crazy for the Dublin store to be pushed into 2013. Let's hope that's not that case. More likely, it may just open in the latter half of 2012, but that's just speculation. If you're in Dublin and get to pass by the building occasionally, then you're more than welcome to leave a comment at the bottom of this post if you feel that you have something to share on the development of A&F Dublin.

UPDATE (26 October 2011): It seems to be that A&F Dublin has been pushed back to early-2012. The Sitch on Fitch will keep you posted.
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