Urban Outfitters was founded in 1970 in Philadelphia and incorporated in 1976. It aims to serve 18-30 year olds with counter-culture clothing. The company has grown to over 150 stores globally and also sells online. However, some of its products have offended groups and it has faced controversies and lawsuits. To keep growing, Urban Outfitters must stay attuned to trends, improve the customer experience through technology, and protect its brand reputation.

1. History
 Urban Outfitters is an apparel company that was incorporated in 1976.
 The company originated as “The Free People’s Store” in Philadelphia in
1970, with a concentration on “funky” household items and clothing.
 The founders were two Philadelphians, Scott Hayne and Scott Belair.
Mission
 Urban’s mission statement: “Lifestyle merchandising is our business and
our passion. The goal for our brands is to build a strong emotional bond
with the customer. To do this we must build lifestyle environments that
appeal emotionally, and offer fashion correct products on a timely basis.
Our customers are the reason and the inspiration for everything we do.”
Ownership
 Urban Outfitters is a publicly traded company, owned and chaired by
Robert Hayne. He holds the greatest amount of shares in the company, at
27.85 million shares. The company is also held by several large investors,
such as Fidelity Management & Research Company, Maverick Capital Ltd,
Vanguard Group, and Capital Guardian Trust Company.

2. Philosophy
 Urban Outfitter’s philosophy is: “Our established ability to understand our
customers and connect with them on an emotional level is the reason for our
success. The reason for this success is that our brands … are both compelling
and distinct… Our goal is to offer a product assortment and an environment
so compelling and distinctive that the customer feels an empathetic
connection to the brand and is persuaded to buy.”
Products & Services
 Much of their products have a very counter-
culture, hip, earthy, unconventional style. They
have men’s pants, shorts, shirts, jackets and
outerwear, shoes, bags, wallets, sunglasses,
hats, scarves, socks, underwear, ties, belts, and
watches. They carry women’s dresses,
swimwear, tops, bottoms, bags, outerwear,
accessories, and intimates. Also in-store and
online are various items for the home, including
all sorts of décor, music (such as vinyl records),
toys, novelties, cameras (think polaroid),
books, bedding, and even furniture.

3. Scope of Operations
 20% annual growth rate goal
 Stores average around 9,500 sq. feet, and carry 35,000 – 40,000 products
 Takes full advantage of e-commerce, sells all products on its site at
www.urbanoutfitters.com
 At the end of fiscal year 2010, Urban Outfitters had 155 locations across the
United States, Ireland, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, and
the United Kingdom.
Consumer Base
 Urban Outfitters aims to serve an 18 to 30 year old target market.
 Products for both men and women.
 Market generally includes single, affluent people who live in cities, with a
funky and unique sense of style.
 Defined as “metropolitan hipsters.”
 Creative, independent, and tech-savvy.
Competition
 Competitors of Urban Outfitters, Inc.
include GAP, Abercrombie & Fitch, Bebe,
H&M, and Guess.
 Compete in: apparel and accessories retail,
men’s clothing, women’s clothing, retail,
and consumer products manufacturers.

4. External Market Factors
 One of the major external market
factors that Urban has faced time
and again is controversies and even
lawsuits over questionable products.
The products have sometimes been
of questionable taste and have been
the source of multiple points of
contention over ethics and religious
issues in particular.
 In particular, some products have
offended people and organizations
through clothes and games such as a
“Jesus Dress-Up Game” with Jesus
depicted as hanging on the cross,
Ghettopoly (a play on “Monopoly”)
which was seen as racist, a shirt that
seemed to promote anorexia, and
various conflicts with the depiction
of Jewish stereotypes.

5. External Market Factors, cont.
 Urban purportedly “engaged in a
scheme to deceive the market and a
course of conduct that artificially
inflated Urban Outfitter stock price
... by misrepresenting the company's
operating condition and future
business prospects. Defendants
achieved this by making positive
statements about Urban Outfitters'
business and projecting strong
earnings for the company while they
knew that the company was
suffering.” On March 7th, 2011,
Urban disclosed financial results for
the quarter ending on January 31st,
2011, and the truth came out. Stock
price plunged 17 percent the next
day.

6. Proposed Marketing Strategy
 Every step should always be a step forward, so Urban outfitters needs to
continue to utilize current trends and technology, and aim to make a smooth and
easy shopping experience for their customers.
 Urban Outfitters could use Groupon – which offers deals to people if other
people commit to make a group purchase -to offer deals during times where the
store is slow, and could use a boost in traffic.
 Square is a mobile device you can plug into a smartphone or iPad and accept
credit/debit card payments; if every store associate had one, a customer could
potentially check out anywhere in the store, all they have to do is find a store
associate, and the associate can make the transaction on the spot.

7. Proposed Marketing Strategy, cont.
 They should broaden their global threshold, and build stores in newly developed
and urbanized markets, such as China. The Urban Outfitters brand appeals to the
trendy urban consumers, where countries such as China have a growing market in
this segment.

8. Proposed Marketing Strategy, cont.
 Urban Outfitters needs to work on its
company image. They have done several
things that have been viewed as
unfavorable by many people, and have
offended several different demographics.
 The president of the company has
donated several thousands of dollars to a
very anti-gay right wing conservative
Senator’s campaign. This could not be
good for the image of a store who sells
seemingly gay-friendly, youth-centric
fashion. So in order to redeem itself from
this image, it would be wise for Urban
Outfitters to invest in pro-gay
organizations in order to keep a healthy
image with its target market.
 Urban Outfitters needs to put a stop to
products that are offensive on a recurring
basis. When selling products, it would be
wise for the company to be sensitive to all
demographics.

10. • In order for Urban Outfitters to continue being a successful company, they need to
adapt to current trends, continuously use new technologies to make more
enjoyable experiences for their customers, and maintain their brand image in all
aspects.