Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Report shows how American Eagle stores have been affected by Sydney Sweeney campaign

American Eagle features Sydney Sweeney in controversial ad
  • Foot traffic at American Eagle stores significantly decreased in the weeks following the launch of a controversial advertising campaign featuring actress Sydney Sweeney.
  • The 'Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans' campaign faced widespread criticism for allegedly promoting eugenic ideals through wordplay on 'jeans' and 'genes', and for perceived racist undertones.
  • The controversy intensified after Sweeney's Republican voter registration became public, leading to figures like JD Vance, Ted Cruz, and Donald Trump defending her.
  • Data from Pass_by revealed a 9 percent drop in American Eagle's foot traffic during the week of August 3-9 compared to the same period last year, a larger decline than some competitors.
  • American Eagle maintained that the ad was solely about jeans, while Sweeney has not publicly commented on the backlash.
In full

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in