The Canoe Room

Worth the wait? Now: complete playlists for all stores from 2000 to present.

It has been some time since my last post. Far too long really; I usually shoot for one entry every other day, but I think that you'll forgive me for my apparent lack of motivation once you check out the new Store Music (Playlist) section that I have established just for CanoeRoom.com members/passcard holders. The Store Music section features the internet's most comprehensive Abercrombie & Fitch, Abercrombie Kids, Hollister, Ruehl No.925 and Gilly Hicks store playlists from 2000 to present, with a most recent update of ANF May 2008. By signing up for the free CanoeRoom.com newsletter, you will be provided with a virtual pass-card that will grant you instant access to the playlist section and other exclusive and/or protected sections such as the 2003 Christmas Field Guide Photo Album!

Sign up for the newsletter and obtain a pass-card

After that, you can check out the ANF Store Music section or the Christmas Field Guide photo album (18 or older).

By the way, the featured photo is that of one of my friends. Her name is Breana. If you would like to have your picture posted with a future announcement (and you are a member of this place), email it to me at Jason@EverythingAbercrombie.com. If it is good, I will use it.

Abercrombie & Fitch Catalogue Index - By Dan Reines

Year in which David T. Abercrombie Co. was founded in New York City by trapper, prospector, topographer and railroad surveyor David Abercrombie: 1892

Year in which lawyer and devoted customer Ezra Fitch persuaded Abercrombie to take him on as a partner: 1900

Year in which the first Abercrombie & Fitch catalog was sent out: 1909

Number of catalogs distributed: 50,000

Number of pages in the first issue (hereafter: A&F 1909): 456

Circulation of the summer, 2002 issue of A&F Quarterly (hereafter: A&F 2002): 200,000

Number of pages in A&F 2002: 280
 

Abercrombie & Fitch UK: Flagship Store "New" In So Many Ways

Abercrombie & Fitch has opened its long-anticipated, first-ever overseas store in London, England. The flagship store, located in Burlington Gardens opened Thursday, March, 14th in a renovated Grade II listed building, originally built as a home in 1725. Renovations lasted over 18 months to incorporate the brand with the historical attributes, though the "All-American" retailer clearly does not care to observe Old-English cultural and historical attributes in the least as the neighboring traditional tailoring businesses are bridling at the sheer nerve of the newcomer. All of the the stores windows have been blacked out. High-energy dance music pulses from the entrance and is clearly audible from the street. Half-naked and extremely attractive models stand ready to greet customers about the entrance. From the outside, the new Abercrombie & Fitch could easily be mistaken one of London's most exclusive nightclubs. This is not just a shop. It's a place to see and be seen. This is confident, brash, American retailing at its best.

Mike Jeffries, the chairman and chief executive of Abercrombie & Fitch, said: "We are thrilled by the opening of the London store, which will truly become a worldwide flagship. Its location in one of the most historic districts in the retail world will provide an extraordinary showcase for the Abercrombie & Fitch brand." 

Abercrombie & Fitch Vs. Hot-Topic. Which Girl Would You Hire?

Shannon Nichols, goth-style Shannon Nichols (left), of Livermore, got the cold shoulder when she tried to apply for a job at a trendy retailer. Meanwhile, her blond friend Sarah Adams received a warm greeting and was encouraged to come back for an interview. IT TURNS OUT what your mother always tells you is true: People judge you by your looks.

Just ask Shannon Nichols, a senior at Livermore's Granada High School. Nichols, 18, recently tested that theory when she was applying for jobs.

One might think: Who wouldn't hire this bubbly young woman with a Barbie figure, long straight hair and a perfect grade point average?

Nichols and her friend, Sarah Adams, a Livermore High student, decided to do an extra credit project about society's perceptions of people based on how they look.

Abercrombie Store Music: "It's more of an aspirational feeling."

So you think you can mix a mean compilation CD. Maybe you can even arrange several hours of music, maintaining a consistent flow and a point of view that is specific yet broadly appealing. And perhaps you could make this arrangement out of songs that are obscure yet oddly familiar. For, say, a store that you wouldn't necessarily shop in. And you could do it again, every month, without repeating songs.

If so, and if you've fantasized about making mixes for a living, you might have a future with DMX Music Inc.

DMX creates soundtracks for businesses including Nike, Hilton Hotels, P.F. Chang's, Restoration Hardware, Gold's Gym and California Pizza Kitchen. Fewer than 6 percent of DMX's 450 employees are music programmers, and only five of those live in Austin. But their dream jobs do exist.

The heart of DMX is what they call "foreground music." Music is often the siren song when it comes to selling stuff. When you cross the threshold into a store or restaurant, or even pass by one, its music sends a message about whether you belong in there.