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There are many reasons why we love Urban Outfitters. Hip clothing, awesome markdowns, fun home accessories… You are a haven for the wayward twenty-something (me). But oh man, some of your marketing decisions are beyond reprieve. Remember the blood-stained Kent State sweatshirt? How about the brand’s “Etsy-inspired” jewelry line? UO never fails to surprise us…[Photo: Shutterstock]
UO, Anthropologie & Free People Are All Connected
Did you know that Urban Outfitters' CEO Richard Hayne also owns Anthropologie and Free People? Kind of makes sense, right? UO was founded in 1970, and Anthropologie cropped up 22 years later in 1992. 22 years… so, that means that Urban Outfitter’s first 20-something customers were now into their 40s…? Exactly! Anthropologie was created to serve UO’s early customers, providing a more mature look (and price!) for aging Urban fans.
[Photo: Shutterstock]
“Ghettopoly” Was A Thing
In 2003, Urban hit a new low and began selling a BEYOND offensive Monopoly spin-off called “Ghettopoly.” Railroad properties were replaced by liquor stores, Taxation spots became “Police Shakedown” and “Carjacking” spaces, and the game’s iconic metal pawns took a “ghetto” turn for the worst, turning into a: pimp, ho, 40 oz, machine gun, marijuana leaf, crack rock, and basketball…
[Photo: MyShopify]
Urban Made An Incredibly Racist Mistake Involving President Obama
Back in 2010, Urban listed the fairly standard “BDG Burnout Henley” on its website. In the drop-down color menu, you had the choice to select either WHITE or BLACK — but, umm that’s not exactly what it said… The selection listed WHITE and OBAMA/BLACK as the two color options. And get this, it was somehow an innocent mistake…? UO posted this on Twitter following the mishap:
Many customers have brought to our attention one of the color names listed for our BDG Burnout Henley, and rightfully so. We screwed up, and are sincerely sorry. The burnout pattern on this shirt is comprised of two colors—one is an internally developed color we called "Obama Blue" and the other is "Black." Unfortunately our website database truncated this combination to read "Obama/Black." We should have caught the error, and apologize for offending anyone.
Somehow, this seems too perfect a storm…
[Photo: Splash News]
Urban Outfitters’ Liberal Leaning Is All A Facade!
CEO Richard Hayne is a crazy conservative, homophobic billionaire. In 2008, UO pulled an “I Support Same-Sex Marriage” T-Shirt from its website, citing “too much bad press,” but hmm… seems there was actually only ONE negative article related to the shirt. Looks like ~someone~ was looking for an easy out (no pun intended)…
[Photo: Shutterstock]
UO Wants You To “Eat Less”
Urban released this pro-eating-disorder T-shirt in 2014, and (naturally) people were not pleased. The gray tee, which was worn by a super slim model and suggests that customers should “Eat Less,” was pulled from the store soon after its release — or should I say, it “sold out.”
