A&F Quarterly
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| Editor-in-chief | Savas Abadsidis |
|---|---|
| Photographer | Bruce Weber |
| Categories | Magalog, lifestyle, sex, entertainment, travel, interviews |
| Frequency | quarterly |
| Circulation | 1.2 million (early 2000s) |
| Publisher | Shahid & Company, New York |
| Founder | Mike Jeffries |
| First issue | Fall 1997 |
| Company | Abercrombie & Fitch |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Website | A&F Quarterly |
A&F Quarterly was an American lifestyle periodical by Abercrombie & Fitch. Targeted towards the college-aged youth (18-22), the Quarterly primarily served as a promotional vehicle for the A&F brand. Its contents prominently feature photo spreads by A&F photographer Bruce Weber and also encompassed a variety of articles on lifestyle, sex, entertainment, travel, dining, and celebrity interviews.
The Quarterly's inclusion of nudity and sexuality has been a continual controversial topic. Positive criticism during its initial American run (1997–2003) called it an ingenious marketing tool, the envy of the publishing world, which "redefined the All-American look for teenagers." Negative criticism summarized the catalog as "soft porn" and racy. There were numerous lawsuits and boycotts focusing on moral and religious grounds which included the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families, the American Decency Association, and the Focus on the Family organization.
Abercrombie & Fitch discontinued A&F Quarterly in 2003, and later resurfaced it as a one-time limited edition exclusively for the European market (2008).A&F Quarterly returned in 2010 as an element for the Back-to-School marketing campaign, becoming the first issue sold simultaneously worldwide.
During its American publication, circulation reached a peak of 1.2 million. The Quarterly had a distribution of about 200,000 copies through sales in Abercrombie & Fitch stores (at US$6.00 a copy) and subscriptions ($12.00 a year). Advertisements for A&F Quarterly appeared in Interview, Out, Rolling Stone, and Vanity Fair.
Abercrombie & Fitch introduced A&F Quarterly as a marketing tool to express the A&F lifestyle. The Quarterly was meant to further establish the image of Abercrombie & Fitch as synonymous with sex and youth: The "neo-preppy and all-American perfection." The publication was coined a "magalog" for its purpose of serving as both a magazine and a catalog for the A&F brand. Its contents focused on entertaining, and giving advice to, the collegiate youth with an emphasis of having youthful fun and exploring sexuality.
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