American Eagle's traffic falls after Sydney Sweeney campaign
- By Web Desk -
- Aug 13, 2025
The ‘great jeans’ campaign, starring Hollywood bombshell Sydney Sweeney, has costed clothing brand American Eagle more than a controversy!
Besides the controversy, hiring blonde starlet Sydney Sweeney for their latest campaign has also harmed American Eagle in terms of traffic, as according to the insights, the footfall across its stores has fallen by at least 9% in the past two weeks, ever since the series of ads was launched on July 23.
Sydney Sweeney – News and Updates
According to the details, the brand’s foot traffic declined by 3.9% in the first week of the controversial campaign, ending on August 2, whereas the following week witnessed a further slump to a total of 9%.
Per the data, the competing brands, including Abercrombie & Fitch, H&M, Gap and Urban Outfitters, also experienced a similar traffic trend, however, not as steep as American Eagle.
Meanwhile, AE is yet to comment on the development.
For the unversed, the controversy erupted when American Eagle first unveiled their new campaign, featuring Sweeney and her German Shepherd Sully Bear, last month.
“Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality and even eye colour. My genes are blue,” the ‘Euphoria’ star said in one of the videos, prompting an online firestorm for its racial undertones.
Also Read: Trump praises Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad
However, the clothing giant dismissed any intention of promoting eugenics with its ‘jeans/genes’ wordplay, coupled with Sweeney’s blue eyes and blonde hair, and clarified in a later statement that the tagline ‘is and always was about the jeans’ only.