American Eagle stood strong against woke critics after its recent ad with Sydney Sweeny caused a stir. The company made it clear it would not give in.
People said the ad pushed old beauty ideas. American Eagle said it was about jeans and style, not about genetics or politics.
Even with the fuss, the brand’s stock went up 16%, raising its market value above $2 billion. The fight gave the company free attention without hurting sales.
Some companies now take culture fights on purpose. They trust standing firm will win loyal fans and more attention than losing to critics.
“American Eagle defended the campaign, saying it was about jeans, not genetics.”
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/etimes/trending/american-eagle-defends-sydney-sweeney-ad-after-eugenics-male-gaze-criticism/articleshow/123063033.cms
“The campaign helped push the stock price up 16%, raising market capitalization above $2 billion.”
https://brobible.com/culture/article/american-eagle-market-cap-spike-sydney-sweeney-adds
Numbers NEVER lie.
Here are 2 different campaigns results:
American Eagle’s Sydney Sweeney ad:
– AE made $300m in a day
– $65m in free media exposureJaguar LGBTQ ad:
– sales in Europe plunged 97.5% in April
– from 180k sold in 2018 to 27k last yearBuyers has spoken! pic.twitter.com/xRuqSLMtJ3
— Patrick Bet-David (@patrickbetdavid) August 1, 2025