Shadowing Practice: Why Abercrombie Is Copying Aritzia's Playbook - Learn English Speaking with Video
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We're in Soho, the heart of New York City's fashion district, where Abercrombie is unveiling a new store concept.
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Let's go inside and check it out.
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Opened in early June, the new 10,000 square foot space is a departure from the heydays of the 2000s,
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when the stores were infamous for loud music and low lighting.
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One of the biggest pain points that customers have is when they're shopping online, they go into a store, but the same merchandise isn't available.
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So what Abercrombie did here is they expanded into a much larger location.
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That allows them to carry a broader assortment so shoppers can go online and actually find the same stuff in the store.
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We heard from our customer they want the in-store experience.
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It showcases the brand's 130-year history as well as what Abercrombie is today and where we want to go into the future.
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The company grew annual sales by over 98% between 2020 and 2024.
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But in the most recent fiscal year, sales dropped.
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And now its stock is down about 30% year-to-date.
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To make sure it can keep growing sales and acquiring new customers, it's expanding into third-party accessories like Sperry and Hunter,
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and of course highlighting its own brand as well.
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In some ways, the company is taking a page out of rival Aritzia's playbook in its decision to add outside brands.
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The Canadian fashion brand has long offered external footwear brands in its stores and online.
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During its most recent fisc
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grew 35% with comps up 27% part of the reason Aritzia successful is because they of stayed top of mind,
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s relevant for that consumer trying to do the same thing continued relevance relevance.
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This is the first time that we're carrying footwear, full sunglasses and handbags, all in a dedicated space in an Abercrombie store.
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So here we have our own branded footwear, but we're also bringing in other brands that are very relevant to our customer and what they're looking for.
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Since partnering with Sperry in April, Abercrombie has since expanded and is now selling shoes from Puma, Fry, Hunter, and GH Bass.
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going to learn a lot from these in terms of what our customer is gravitating towards.
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We've seen other companies do this.
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Urban Outfitters is one where they stand out in the sense that they do have their own brands.
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They're more of a balanced mix of own brand and third-party brands.
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They have Vans, they have Nike, they have Ugg, and I think they realize that particularly for their customer, people look for brands in that category.
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They don't want the private label, they want the brands that they recognize.
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So I think that may be where Abercrombie kind of sees this opportunity to say we have a young female consumer, you have Foot Locker, you have JD, they tend to ski more male,
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where else can they shop for a variety of brands?
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Let's at least offer them the brands that they're shopping all in one place
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because no one else is really doing that outside of a company like Genesco and a little bit Urban Outfitters.
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For now, the only place Abercrombie is offering all of the brands together is at this new store.
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But based on how the release performs, they could could be expanded to more stores and online in the future.
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I think that this is a strategic move on their part to bring in a like-minded customer, a customer who has potential to shop the brand,
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maybe isn't already, and now will be introduced to the brand that way.
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Overall, category expansion will be one of the keys to Abercrombie's next chapter of growth.
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Abercrombie’s New Store Strategy: A Real-World Business Scenario
The video takes us inside Abercrombie’s new Soho store, where the brand is reimagining its in-store experience to stay competitive. It explains how the company is adding third-party brands like Sperry and Hunter, mirroring rival Aritzia’s successful playbook, to attract new customers and boost sales. This real-world business dialogue is perfect for english speaking practice, as it uses natural, conversational language about retail trends, challenges, and growth strategies.
Useful Chunks & Collocations to Master
- Take a page out of [someone’s] playbook: To copy a successful strategy from another person or company. Example: “Abercrombie is taking a page out of Aritzia’s playbook by adding external brands.”
- Stay top of mind: To remain memorable to customers. Example: “Aritzia’s success comes from staying top of mind with consumers.”
- Full assortment: A wide range of products. Example: “The new store carries a full assortment of merchandise, matching online options.”
- Category expansion: Growing into new product types. Example: “Category expansion is key to Abercrombie’s next growth phase.”
- Gravitate towards: To be drawn to something. Example: “The brand will learn what customers gravitate towards with third-party brands.”
Your Shadowing Challenge: Practice Real-World Speech
For shadowing practice, focus on the section where the speaker discusses Aritzia’s success and Abercrombie’s response. Play the clip, pause, and repeat each sentence aloud, mimicking the rhythm, tone, and stress. Pay attention to phrases like “stayed really relevant” and “balanced mix of own brand and third party brands”—these are common in business conversations. Use a shadowing site to record yourself and compare it to the original. This exercise will help you master shadow speech patterns and sound more natural in professional discussions. Keep practicing, and soon you’ll use these chunks effortlessly in your own English speaking!
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.