Abercrombie & Fitch said Tuesday that CEO Mike Jeffries' retirement is effective immediately, which caused the struggling store's shares to jump 6.8 percent in premarket trading, Forbes reported on Tuesday.
After mounting opposition to Jeffries' leadership from activist investors, Jeffries' lost his chairman title in January.
Jeffries, 70, was present in his position for 11 straight quarters of decline in same-store sales. This is an important measurement for the company, which looks at performance at existing A&F retailers rather than looking at growth from new stores.
The store is looking at a lack-luster holiday sales season after the fallen teen chain missed its third quarter earnings estimates in November.
Perhaps most notably, Jeffries became immersed in controversy after statements he made were seen as fat-shaming by many.
Jeffries said that the teen retailer's clothes were only for cool, thin and attractive people in a seven-year-old interview with Salon, sparking a social media outcry when it was rediscovered earlier this year.
The company announced six months later that it would start offering plus sizes, though the store was already facing financial peril.
Not only has Jeffries' comments hurt the brand, but changing teen trends has forced A&F to reevaluate.
"The logo is no longer cool, unless you are a middle schooler in a rural middle school," Erik Gordon, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan's business school, told Business Insider.
Not concerned with labels, teens are looking for cheaper options at stores like Forever 21 and H&M.
"Half the time I don't really buy any brands," Olivia D'Amico, a 16-year-old from New York, said in a recent interview. "I just bought a pair of fake Doc Martens because I don't really care."
