By . Annabel Fenwick Elliott . Struggling teen fashion chain Abercrombie & Fitch has announced that the days of its tired nightclub themed stores are over, and will be undergoing a major makeover. Or a make-under as the case may be. In the coming months, the dim lights of its some 400 U.S. stores will be turned up, the thumping music turned down, the half-naked lingering models will acquire clothing and even the pungent perfume spritzes will be reduced by 25 per cent, according to The Business of Fashion. '[Abercrombie] is targeted to its customer, its customer is changing, and we’re ready to change with her and him', says Mike Jeffries, its characteristically stubborn 69-year-old CEO, notorious for once insisting that the brand only caters to 'cool' and 'attractive' kids. Growing up? Abercrombie & Fitch will be toning down its U.S. stores, lifting the lights, quietening the thumping music, covering up its bare-chested models and even lessening the over-zealous perfume spritzes . As part of the overhaul, the heavy, daylight obscuring shutters on the windows have already been removed in 240 stores around the U.S. Even the logos are being toned down and made less prominent. The store, which still doesn't offer women's clothing in sizes that exceed 'Large', a notably small size ten, will also introduce the larger sizes it promised in November, later on this year. And in another 360 degree spin for Mr Jeffries, black will be introduced to some of the new designs, after years of his refusal to permit it previously. Hardly flying off the shelves: In response to poor sales, the brand's logos will also be made less prominent and clothes in larger sizes will be on sale later this year . A leaf out of their book? Teen favorite Forever 21 (pictured) is popular for its cheap, fast revolving stock which satisfies the fickle tastes of youngsters around the U.S. The ailing teen fashion brand has long been struggling to compete with cheaper, fast-turnaround chains such as H&M and Forever 21, as well as with the storming success of online portals with cult social media followings such as Nasty Gal. With that in mind, Abercrombie is also attempting to infiltrate the heaving beast of the teen blogosphere by striking deals with key influencers in the manner of its competitors. Which might be somewhat of a challenge, given the brand's persistent hangover from comments Mr Jeffries made back in 2006, sparking a boycott from stars including Miley Cyrus and Ellen Degeneres. Current season: Abercrombie's preppy, flesh exposing clothing once crawled the hallways of American high schools and remained popular and highly-desirable for decades . Hunks: Some shoppers swoon over the Greek god physiques of the  Abercrombie models scattered around stores, others are intimidated, but either way, the shirts are going back on . 'We hire good-looking people in our stores,' Jeffries said in 2006. 'Because good-looking people attract other good-looking people, and we want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that.' He continued: 'In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids.' When asked if he considered Abercrombie 'exclusionary', he replied: 'Absolutely. A lot of people don't belong [in our clothes], and they can't belong.' CEO: Mike Jeffries, 69, caused outrage in 2006 for agreeing that yes, Abercrombie is 'exclusionary', saying that 'a lot of people don't belong, and can't belong' in his stores . Abercrombie was originally established as a sporting goods retailer in 1892, and operated a New York store that was frequented by game-hunting enthusiasts like Theodore Roosevelt. The retailer changed ownership and direction many times and by the mid-1990s had transformed itself into a hub for teenage fashion. Abercrombie’s skin-tight ribbed tank tops, ripped flare jeans, hooded sweatshirts, and leather flip-flop sandals became stalwarts in the hallways of American high schools. 'We want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that' But the brand - confident in its established standing - has ultimately failed to innovate in recent years. Last November, even Abercrombie's own head of planning, Leslee Herro, called the label ‘a stale brand,’ Reuters reported. ‘We recognize that our businesses have been and will continue to be disrupted by both fast fashion and pure play e-commerce competitors,’ she said, further explaining: ‘While the company is playing good defense by cutting expenses, this does little to revitalize what we believe is a stale brand.’
The ailing teen fashion label will also be introducing larger sizes later this year .
Controversial CEO Mike Jeffries, 69, admits the brand is 'ready' to change for its customers .
By . Annabel Fenwick Elliott . Struggling teen fashion chain Abercrombie & Fitch has announced that the days of its tired nightclub themed stores are over, and will be undergoing a major makeover. Or a make-under as the case may be. In the coming months, the dim lights of its some 400 U.S. stores will be turned up, the thumping music turned down, the half-naked lingering models will acquire clothing and even the pungent perfume spritzes will be reduced by 25 per cent, according to The Business of Fashion. '[Abercrombie] is targeted to its customer, its customer is changing, and we’re ready to change with her and him', says Mike Jeffries, its characteristically stubborn 69-year-old CEO, notorious for once insisting that the brand only caters to 'cool' and 'attractive' kids. Growing up? Abercrombie & Fitch will be toning down its U.S. stores, lifting the lights, quietening the thumping music, covering up its bare-chested models and even lessening the over-zealous perfume spritzes . As part of the overhaul, the heavy, daylight obscuring shutters on the windows have already been removed in 240 stores around the U.S. Even the logos are being toned down and made less prominent. The store, which still doesn't offer women's clothing in sizes that exceed 'Large', a notably small size ten, will also introduce the larger sizes it promised in November, later on this year. And in another 360 degree spin for Mr Jeffries, black will be introduced to some of the new designs, after years of his refusal to permit it previously. Hardly flying off the shelves: In response to poor sales, the brand's logos will also be made less prominent and clothes in larger sizes will be on sale later this year . A leaf out of their book? Teen favorite Forever 21 (pictured) is popular for its cheap, fast revolving stock which satisfies the fickle tastes of youngsters around the U.S. The ailing teen fashion brand has long been struggling to compete with cheaper, fast-turnaround chains such as H&M and Forever 21, as well as with the storming success of online portals with cult social media followings such as Nasty Gal. With that in mind, Abercrombie is also attempting to infiltrate the heaving beast of the teen blogosphere by striking deals with key influencers in the manner of its competitors. Which might be somewhat of a challenge, given the brand's persistent hangover from comments Mr Jeffries made back in 2006, sparking a boycott from stars including Miley Cyrus and Ellen Degeneres. Current season: Abercrombie's preppy, flesh exposing clothing once crawled the hallways of American high schools and remained popular and highly-desirable for decades . Hunks: Some shoppers swoon over the Greek god physiques of the  Abercrombie models scattered around stores, others are intimidated, but either way, the shirts are going back on . 'We hire good-looking people in our stores,' Jeffries said in 2006. 'Because good-looking people attract other good-looking people, and we want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that.' He continued: 'In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids.' When asked if he considered Abercrombie 'exclusionary', he replied: 'Absolutely. A lot of people don't belong [in our clothes], and they can't belong.' CEO: Mike Jeffries, 69, caused outrage in 2006 for agreeing that yes, Abercrombie is 'exclusionary', saying that 'a lot of people don't belong, and can't belong' in his stores . Abercrombie was originally established as a sporting goods retailer in 1892, and operated a New York store that was frequented by game-hunting enthusiasts like Theodore Roosevelt. The retailer changed ownership and direction many times and by the mid-1990s had transformed itself into a hub for teenage fashion. Abercrombie’s skin-tight ribbed tank tops, ripped flare jeans, hooded sweatshirts, and leather flip-flop sandals became stalwarts in the hallways of American high schools. 'We want to market to cool, good-looking people. We don't market to anyone other than that' But the brand - confident in its established standing - has ultimately failed to innovate in recent years. Last November, even Abercrombie's own head of planning, Leslee Herro, called the label ‘a stale brand,’ Reuters reported. ‘We recognize that our businesses have been and will continue to be disrupted by both fast fashion and pure play e-commerce competitors,’ she said, further explaining: ‘While the company is playing good defense by cutting expenses, this does little to revitalize what we believe is a stale brand.’
customer is changing, and we’re ready to change poor sales, the brand's logos will also be made the U.S. The ailing teen fashion brand has long can't belong.' CEO: Mike Jeffries, 69, caused