DISCLAIMER ABOUT AMERICAN APPAREL

Two American Apparel representatives - Cynthia Semon (Global Media Relations Director) and Roian Atwood  (Community Relations Director) – will be joining us for the event.  They will be telling us about the American Apparel story, how and why it has become the fastest growing “sweatshop-free” clothing company in the world, and how their vertically-integrated business model allows them to treat their workers fairly while still making a profit. Click here to read about their garment worker benefits.

The price of success?

American Apparel, like other clothing companies, uses very provocative print advertisements.  This is an unfortunate reality that is all too common in our day and age.  Since American Apparel does not use professional models, but rather ordinary people, some of the ads look very grainy and edgy, and push the envelope of decency.  Much like the Abercrombie & Fitch ads and the old Calvin Klein ads, they are a cause of concern to many people - including  Moeller High School.

We find many of these advertisements offensive and unnecessary and are concerned by the advertisement industry and marketing strategies aimed at young people – but we are not afraid to approach the issue.

Our guest speakers from American Apparel have happily agreed to discuss these issues with us. 

On the Saturday morning of our event, we will be discussing three things:

● their successful business model,
● their position on unionization, and
● their controversial advertising approach. 

We invite parents to attend this portion of the event and to join in the discussion.  Since American Apparel is opening a store in Cincinnati in a few months, their reps are eager to hear your thoughts.