[...] might once have been edgy, but American Apparel’s sextastic time in the limelight may have passed. It’s associated with the new-new bohemians of the hipster ‘movement’, whose spiritual home [...]

I’ve seen people walking around hip neighborhoods in Los Angeles dressed like this, though. I don’t know how it became fashionable, but it did. It’s strange how the ads careen madly from month to month between church-campy and just plain camp.

please don’t let pleats come back.

Good Riddance! Dov is a filthy perv who deserves nothing less than eternal prison time for how he treated his employees, and offended women everywhere with those ridiculous ads. Rot in hell Dov.

American Apparel was insanely successful in its seminal years– this was before they bought up store after store just before the economic crash — so it’s doubtful that the company’s salary guidelines contributed to the downfall in any major way.

???

I’ve never been able to figure out what the hell American Apparel’s “look” is, and it appears that they Aren’t either. Yes, all of the clothes are must-haves for a trip to 1985, but because of the schizo nature of the ads, I can’t tell if final destination is a sweaty (paid) nooner in Canoga Park after aerobics class or helping Samantha Baker get over the fact that her parents forgot her 16th birthday. Either way, they’re singularly ugly, and that plus the notion that the nooner is with Dov and mandatory will keep me out of there forever.

Amen. I would rather my boyfriend watch Porn then stare at the American Apparel ads. Because the girls were “normal” pretty girls instead of glamazon models they became more threatening. They had some sexy ads, and they create a brand for themselves…but it did became very pretentious and obnoxious. I’ve only been to one of their stores once and it was five different items in ten different colors. Boring. Fashion should make a statement, not brand you by your color choice.

[...] brand of choice for horny hipsters is on the brink of total financial collapse. Judy Berman tracks American Apparel's downfall in ten [...]

American Apparel clothing should be doing better than it is but I don’t know that it has much to do with it’s advertising. In fact that’s what brought them to the dance in the first place. The problem with their business model is that they charge an inflated cost to the retail consumer by shopping in their premium locations around every major city in North America. They need to lower their prices on their clothes – plain & simple. I know the deals get OK if you buy bulk orders but how many white T’s does one need? I like the product – some of it anyway…I like their hoodies & t’s but…I hate all the pastel waify effeminate 80′s hipster shit. If they want to dig themselves out of the hole they dug for themselves they should try to appeal to more than one demographic. No one is going to confuse them for the Gap. (Dov is shitting his knee high stripey socks right now)
Hey, if they do tank (no pun intended) at least they have all that prime real estate to sell off.

Not to care for philosophy is to be a true philosopher. Not to care for a double Mac, is to be truly stupid.

Eddie Bauer and the Gap make their clothes in sweatshops in third world countries. That’s a well know fact. Gap once had to remove a portion of their children’s collection from stores when it was revealed by the media that those clothes were made by actual children (all under the age of 10) in one of Gap’s sweatshops in India. American Apparel, unlike every American corporation, actually contributes to the American economy by making all their stuff in their factories in LA. And OMG, the US tax paying workers earn a living wage, have health insurance, and a pension plan.
You might think that Dov is a perv, but he’s the only American CEO to ever have any compassion for humane treatment of industrial workers, fight sweatshop labor, and contribute to the American economy by not outsourcing and keeping it all American.

Amen to that KK, I agree 100% with everything you said.

Can you imagine – just imagine – if more CEO’s actually considered having – expanding – Omg – BUilding, more American factories? We actually would have an economy today.

I was in Piermont, NY the other day, and literally, probably NINETY PERCENT, of the cars in town were foreign.

Econimists have estimated that every 4th foreign automobile purchase… cost a US citizen their job.
It’s not just an auto assembly plant, but steel mill, tire factory, glass plant, engine-battery-spark plug-paint plant, whatever, etc., etc., etc.

Just think of all the industries that supply the above, from sand pits for glass production here to iron ore mines to Great Lakes freighters that haul it and railroads that supply the mills.

Ok but he’s still a perv and so be his demise…

I guess the people that think it’s ok to be a perv and only care that he doesn’t make his stuff in sweatshops are the same ones who are cool with Portland’s mayor Sam Adams just because of any good part of his track record (not the info about him with a younger man, possibly underage). It’s the big picture that counts!

New Hipster Ethics: It’s ok to do a young guy in the butt or sexually harass your female workers as long as the chickens were free range or nobody in Vietnam is making clothes.

It’s hard to focus with non-prescription ironic glasses.

Hey KK,

If you were keeping up with the news you might also know that AA got busted for having 1800 illegal aliens making their “100% American Made” clothes.