Mike Jeffries Age, Wife, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Mike Jeffries

• In 1968, Mike Jeffries joined a management training program at Abraham & Straus, a department store in Brooklyn, owned by Federated Department Stores, which was rebranded Macy’s in 1994.

• He worked at Abraham & Straus for 12 years.

• Mike Jeffries then started working at Bullock’s, a store in Los Angeles, as an executive vice president for merchandising.

• After that, he worked for three years at Federated’s headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio.

• In 1984, Mike Jeffries started a women’s clothing brand named Alcott & Andrews in New York, Washington, and California.

• In 1989, the store went bankrupt due to expanding too quickly and closed. However, the critics stated that it lacked variety in its merchandise.

• After Alcott & Andrews, Mike Jeffries worked in merchandising at Paul Harris, a Midwest clothing chain, which also went bankrupt in 1991.

• In 1992, Les Wexner, CEO of LBrands (then The Limited), hired him in 1992 to rework Abercrombie & Fitch, which had gone bankrupt and was bought by LBrands in 1988.
  

  A young Mike Jeffries in 1998

• During his stint at Abercrombie & Fitch, Mike Jeffries changed the company’s brand, image, and focus, which led to notable success in the 1990s and early 2000s, but also faced controversy.

• He rebranded Abercrombie & Fitch as a deluxe clothing retailer targeting college-age customers.

• Mike Jeffries used sexualized marketing, including shirtless male models greeting customers in stores and provocative advertisements.
  

  Abercrombie & Fitch was known for its provocative marketing featuring shirtless male models

• His branding created a strong following among young shoppers, and by the mid-1990s, Abercrombie & Fitch had opened many new stores worldwide.

• The Wall Street Journal credited Mike Jeffries for making Abercrombie & Fitch a leader in teen fashion during the 1990s.

• He became known for his controversial public statements such as about hiring and marketing practices.

• Once, Mike Jeffries stated that Abercrombie & Fitch hires good-looking people to attract other good-looking people and markets only to cool and good-looking people.

• He criticized brands that try to appeal to everyone, saying they become “totally vanilla” and fail to excite anyone.

• His marketing approach brought financial success but caused HR and PR issues. The company faced backlash from groups like the feminist movement and the American Decency Association, leading to boycotts and lawsuits.

• In 2003, Black, Latino, and Asian American employees filed a class action lawsuit, claiming that the minority applicants were discouraged from applying.

• In 2004, Mike Jeffries earned about $25 million, including a reduced stay bonus of $6 million after criticism over excessive compensation.

• During the 2007-2008 financial crisis, he refused to lower prices or offer discounts, which led to sales losses for 17 months.

• In 2006, Salon.com, an American politically progressive and liberal news and opinion website, reported that Jeffries was a gay man who lived separately from his wife.

• In 2008, the Corporate Library named him the Highest Paid Worst Performer, as he received $71.8 million in compensation after the company’s poor performance.

• He changed this policy in September 2009, and sales started recovering in 2011.

• In 2011, his total compensation was estimated at $46.6 million, mostly from stock options.

• By 2012, Mike Jeffries owned about 2.9% of Abercrombie & Fitch shares, making it hard to remove him without his agreement.

• His contract guaranteed him over $100 million if he lost his job due to an ownership change.

• After that, Mike Jeffries became one of the highest-paid retail CEOs. However, his compensation sharply decreased from $48.1 million in 2011 to $8.16 million in 2012, and then to $2.24 million in 2013. This represented a 72% decline from the previous year.

• In October 2012, Bloomberg News reported on strict standards applied for crew members aboard Abercrombie’s Gulfstream G-V jet, used by Jeffries and his partner.

• In the standards, male stewards were required to wear Abercrombie-branded polos, jeans, boxer briefs, flip-flops, and cologne. The details appeared during a lawsuit claiming Jeffries fired his jet pilot to replace him with a younger man.

• The lawsuit involving Jeffries’ jet pilot was settled out of court after Jeffries was ordered to testify. Reportedly, the male house staff for Jeffries were provided by the same modelling firm that supplied staff for the company jet.
  

  A picture of the Abercrombie’s Gulfstream G-V jet crew

• His reputation declined in 2013. The company’s share price fell 40%, which led TheStreet’s Herb Greenberg to name him the ‘Worst CEO of 2013.’ CNBC’s Jim Cramer had earlier added him to his ‘Wall of Shame.’

• In 2013, Mike Jeffries was living with his partner, Matthew Smith, and three dogs. It was reported that Smith managed the Jeffries family office.

• On 9 December 2014, he stepped down as CEO after 11 straight quarters of declining sales.

• In 2014, Mike Jeffries left the company after financial struggles started with the 2007-2008 crisis and criticism of the brand.

• Abercrombie & Fitch shares rose 8% after the announcement, the biggest one-day gain in months.

• During his stint at Abercrombie & Fitch, Smith reviewed internal documents and provided advice on real estate. Reportedly, he did not hold an official role or have professional qualifications.

• Smith’s involvement in company matters was criticized as poor corporate governance. GQ once suggested that Smith’s influence may have contributed to Jeffries stepping down in 2014.

• Mike Jeffries received a lifetime bonus of about $1 million annually, which ended in 2023 after allegations of sex trafficking surfaced.

• In 2022, his time at A&F was shown in the Netflix documentary White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch, which highlighted his change of the brand and the controversies. It included the 2003 class-action lawsuit.
  

  The poster of the documentary series White Hot The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch

• In 2006, Mike Jeffries stated in a media interview that his clothing line was designed for “cool” people only, excluding overweight or unattractive individuals. He argued that brands targeting everyone become bland and unappealing. His remarks resurfaced in 2013, resulting in significant criticism and negative publicity for Abercrombie & Fitch.

• On 15 May 2013, he issued a public apology. He stated that the company opposed discrimination, bullying, and derogatory behaviour based on race, gender, body type, or other characteristics.

• In October 2023, following the BBC report about the exploitation of young men for sex, Mike Jeffries and others were sued in New York under a civil class action complaint of sex trafficking.

• A former model alleged that Jeffries and his partner, Matthew Smith, targeted young men online, offering money, drugs, and job opportunities in exchange for sexual cooperation.

• The lawsuit claimed that these practices happened from 1992 to 2014 and involved over 100 possible victims. Jeffries, Smith, and the Jeffries Family Office were named in the suit.

• On 22 October 2024, Mike Jeffries and his partner, Matthew Smith, were accused by federal prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. They face criminal charges of sex trafficking and interstate prostitution. These charges are separate from the 2023 civil class-action lawsuit.

• He was released on $10 million bail, secured by his house, and must wear a GPS monitor.
  

  Mike Jeffries while wearing an ankle GPS monitor

• Mike Jeffries pleaded not guilty during a legal proceeding on 25 October 2024.