I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (2024)

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Opinion by Gabbi Shaw

2022-01-11T15:08:11Z

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (1)

Y2K fashion is having a comeback in a huge way.
I recently visited an Abercrombie & Fitch store and was impressed by the changes it's undergone.
But when I walked into a Hollister Co. for the first time in a decade, I found it underwhelming.

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Last month, I visited an Abercrombie & Fitch for the first time in over a decade after seeing how the brand was making a comeback.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (2)

You can read more about my journey with Abercrombie here, but it was a pleasant surprise overall. I even bought a coat.

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I decided to visit another relic of my youth, Hollister Co.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (3)

Hollister is actually owned by Abercrombie & Fitch. The brand was established in 2000 — though Hollister has a fictional backstory that posits it was founded in 1922 in the California town it's named after.

As Bloomberg reported in 2015, a Piper Jaffray survey in fall 2013 asked teen girls to name the brands they no longer wear, with Abercrombie and Hollister coming in second and third. In fall 2020, Hollister was ranked second, while Abercrombie was ninth.

However, Hollister still provides the bulk of Abercrombie & Fitch Co.'s revenue, although it tends to skew younger than its sister brand.

"We are firing on all cylinders and experienced our best Q1 gross margin in over a decade in A&F women's, Hollister kids, boys and girls," CEO Fran Horowitz said in a May 2021 call, according to Forbes.

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Even more so than Abercrombie, I was afraid to walk into a Hollister store as a middle schooler.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (4)

Much like Abercrombie, Hollister was minimally lit, reeked of cologne, and sounded like a club, but something about Hollister made it seem even moreintimidating than its sister store.

As this TikTok puts it, I'm still traumatized.

Now, though, Hollister's mission statement is a bit different.

"Similar to the other brands in the Abercrombie & Fitch Co. portfolio, we are incredibly proud of how Hollister has evolved over the last several years," Kristin Scott, global brand president at Abercrombie & Fitch Co., told Insider in a statement.

"The Hollister brand is inherently different today; we became laser focused on our global Gen Z customers and on ensuring we help our teens feel comfortable and confident in their own skin. Whether it's through our products, marketing, charitable partners or digital and physical brand experiences, we aim to celebrate individuality and provide a space for teens to feel free to be who they are, no matter who that may be," she continued.

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Here's what it looked like in its heyday. Hollister, traditionally, had a more laid back, beachy vibe than Abercrombie.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (5)

If Abercrombie is all about East Coast, preppy vibes, Hollister was conceived as its laid-back, West Coast, surfer cousin.

"We're not going after the 'core surfing market. It's more about the lifestyle and inspiration, rather than the actual activity," a former spokesperson told Transworld Business.

At the time, I'd describe Hollister as the show "Laguna Beach" in store form.

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At the time, Hollister was just as popular as Abercrombie ...

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (6)

Yes, that's Johnny Knoxville of "Jackass" fame rocking a Hollister shirt.

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... but both stores faced a run of controversies.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (7)

Abercrombie & Fitch endured multiple controversies in the early 2000s. However, during the 2010s, after cutting back its number of stores and undergoing a significant rebrand, its shares began to soar. In 2018, Business Insider called it the "biggest retail comeback of the year."

Hollister has also faced its fair share of criticisms.

In 2014, Hollister removed a photo from its Facebook and Twitter accounts because followers said the model looked "emaciated." At the time, the brand told Business Insider: "Leading a healthy and active lifestyle is a core part of our brand and company culture. [...] Because the photo may not have been consistent with this message, we have removed it."

As part of a settlement in 2015, Hollister was ordered to get rid of the store's signature steps at entrances to make them more accessible. The move came after a six-year court battle with the Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition.

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To see what Hollister is like in 2022, I headed to a store on 34th Street in Manhattan, right across the street from Macy's.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (8)

Off the bat, I noticed, just like Abercrombie, the store was brighter and more open than before. Not a fake beach to be seen.

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Here's what the inside looked like at first glance. I immediately noticed some changes.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (9)

Like Abercrombie before them, Hollister used to have shirtless men working at the store — though Hollister called them lifeguards, The Washington Post reported. In 2015, the company announced they were dropping the lifeguards.

Additionally, the loud music was turned down and the lights were turned up by former CEO Mike Jeffries in spring 2014.

I noticed there was also not a heavy cologne scent, which could have something to do with the fact that Jeffries ordered a 25% decrease in spraying, Bloomberg reported in 2015.

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The first clothes I saw when I walked in were still covered in the Hollister name and seagull logo.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (10)

Unlike its sister store, which has largely dropped logos from its clothing, Hollister remains committed to its seagull and emblazoning its logo on everything, which surprised me. These sweatshirts look like they could've come straight from 2005 (and, in my opinion, not in a trendy way).

The name was all over the place.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (11)

Truly, Hollister was everywhere.

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Though there was some attempt to keep with the beach, laid-back, flowy vibes of Hollister past ...

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (12)

I thought this dress looked like it could've been sold at a PacSun or American Eagle, too.

... I noticed that the aesthetic overall was much preppier than it used to be — or at the very least, what I remembered it to be.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (13)

That makes sense — the preppy look is in style now, as you can see from all the tennis skirts and sweater vests everyone seems to be rocking on TikTok.

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Here's one of the sweater options I found.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (14)

I actually liked the clothes that weren't covered in Hollister logos or seagulls.

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Denim is still a huge part of the store, with almost an entire wall dedicated to different types.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (15)

I foundwaymore sizes than I remembered ever seeing the last time I walked into the Hollister at Roosevelt Field mall. (That store doesn't exist anymore, RIP).

As the Odyssey reported, "The clothing retailer has expanded to offering size XL or a size 17 in bottoms," as opposed to the original size 10 upper limit, presumably as part of Hollister's move to be more inclusive.

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The store wasn't really committed to any type of theme, though there were some attempts at adding a California vibe.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (16)

However, I thought the production value, overall, was low.

Upstairs, I found that half the floor was dedicated to Gilly Hicks, a brand I'd never heard of before.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (17)

Gilly Hicks is Abercrombie & Fitch Co.'s underwear brand.

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But apparently it's been around for a while.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (18)

It launched in 2008 and had over two dozen free-standing stores.

In 2013, however, all of the Gilly Hicks locations closed. It then made a comeback in 2017, but only inside Hollister stores.

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It was all athleisure, bras, and underwear, which has also become trendy.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (19)

As I recall, these types of items weren't part of Hollister's original aesthetic.

But with Aerie becoming such a huge boon for American Eagle, it's no wonder the powers that be decided to bring back Gilly Hicks. However, to me, it's not the catchiest name, and I thought the small display on the second floor didn't have much curb appeal.

I will give the brand credit though — in 2021, Gilly Hicks dropped an entirely gender-neutral collection of underwear, activewear, and loungewear.

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Overall, my experience at Hollister didn't leave me too excited. While the store has undergone a slight makeover, I didn't feel like I was getting anything that I couldn't get from Abercrombie ... or any other store, for that matter.

I stepped into Hollister for the first time in over a decade and now I don't know why I was ever intimidated to walk in (20)

My time at Hollister reminded me of another store I spent a fair amount of time in during high school, but wouldn't walk into now: Brandy Melville. Both have preppy vibes, but they just aren't for me anymore.

So, while I recognize and appreciate the efforts Hollister has made towards making the store and its clothing more accessible to everyone, I'll gladly take Abercrombie & Fitch any day.