Introduction
Dov Charney founded a clothes brand named American Apparel at the end of the 20th century. In 2010th, the brand was claimed as one of the most influential ones in the fashion world. The company was famous for manufacturing the clothes in Los Angeles and quite provocative advertising since the retail products designed by American Apparel were claimed to be hipster cool and possessed the LA energy (Haigh, 2020). The company’s CEO Dov Charney was seen as an expert who created trends in the retail world. He managed the business successfully for more than fifteen years. Apart from successfully ruling the company, Charney was famous for his active social position. He openly supported LGBT rights and immigration and did not use models who were airbrushed or made up during his advertising campaigns (Haigh, 2020). Despite all that, Charney was an ambiguous person because he was repeatedly accused of sexual harassment, though it was not officially confirmed. All in all, it may be said that Dov Charney is a person who possesses a unique talent for management and can achieve his goals despite the difficulties and accusations they face.
Main body
When it comes to Charney’s years as the CEO of American Apparel, it should be mentioned that he established the company from scratch. In 1991 it was just a small local brand that produced basic t-shirts. In less than ten years, the production was transferred to a factory located in the center of Los Angeles. Charney positioned the brand as the clothes for adult teenagers from big cities. American Apparel was famous for its simple and provocative advertising and collaboration with small local brands (Haigh, 2020). Such an approach to the organization of the company’s work made American Apparel one of the most influential and well-known retail brands in the US.
It is possible to say that Charney’s leadership strategy throughout the whole term of being the company’s CEO remained the same. It was authentic leadership since Dov Charney always expressed his opinion freely, was not afraid of being himself, and showed his true self. At the beginning of the 200th, he even made photos and videos for the brand’s advertising campaigns and was not ashamed to state it publicly. Authentic leaders do not try to be like other great leaders and pave their own way to success; they are not afraid of taking risks and showing their authenticity (Bauer & Erdogan, 2021). When analyzing Charnye’s actions during his term as Americal Apparel’s CEO, it is possible to state that he stuck to the authentic leadership strategy all the time. Such an approach to management enabled him to establish a new business in 2020, while American Apparel, without him, went bankrupt.
Charney’s leadership went wrong due to the numerous assaults on sexual harassment that were pressed against him and attracted the attention of the shareholders in 2014. Since the company’s advertising strategy was always provocative and sometimes oversexualized, the board of directors, alongside the shareholders, believed the accusations against Charney (Haigh, 2020). Hence, he was removed from the position of CEO and later dismissed. However, American Apparel without Charney did not last long and faced bankruptcy in 2015, while Charney founded Los Angeles Apparel in 2020 when the scandal he was involved in was forgotten.
Conclusion
To conclude, it is necessary to state that Dov Charney’s case is a perfect example of a situation when unethical and provocative management decisions on a company’s advertising influence the image of its CEO. Ethical behavior in decision-making strategies is crucial for a company that wants to keep its face and reputation (Bauer & Erdogan, 2021). Hence, it is necessary for the business owner to think twice before launching provocative advertising campaigns because it may influence not only the company’s reputation but his own as well. What is more, the influence may not always be positive.
References
Bauer, T. & Erdogan, B. (2021). Organizational behavior: Bridging science and practice (v. 4.0.). FlatWorld.
Haigh, M. (2020). How American Apparel is trying to make a comeback after two bankruptcies. CNBC. Web.