Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Bedbug Infestation Shuts Down Abercrombie & Fitch!
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 2, 2010
Modified Jul 2, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jul 2, 2010
Modified Jul 2, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
It looks like these sinister bedbugs won't rest until every tween in America is deprived of access to tarted-up, pseudo-Californian ensembles. After bedbugs forced the closure of the Hollister flagship store in SoHo on Wednesday, the pestilence has spread to the South Street Seaport, where Abercrombie & Fitch, which owns Hollister, has been forced to close its doors. Where will teenage tourists from the suburbs shop to look like teenagers from the suburbs now?!
According to an Abercrombie & Fitch spokesperson, the store was closed to "deal with a similar problem" as Hollister's, i.e. the parasite that dare not speak its name. But don't worry, kids, the company has turned to Mayor Bloomberg for guidance. In a letter to Bloomberg, Abercrombie CEO Michael S. Jeffries asked for “leadership and guidance” on how best to address the problem, the Wall Street Journal reports. We're not trying to upstage the mayor, but it's pretty simple; they just need to wash all their clothes in extremely hot water (120°F minimum). And move.
"We caught it very early in the stages of detection," an anonymous source at Abercrombie & Fitch tells the Daily News. "We are investigating whether this was a selling-floor issue or a back-room issue. We are continuing testing." The company promises that the Hollister location will open Saturday at 10 a.m., but the damage has already been done! Brooklyn teen Stanley Carlton showed up at Hollister yesterday with his mom, only to find it closed. His mother was pissed, because she bought him some T-shirts there recently. "You made me waste my money," she told her son. "We are going to Old Navy." Nooooooooo, Mom! That's even worse than bedbugs!
Below, a photo taken outside the Hollister store by tipster Adam Bazadona, who writes, "Ever since Hollister's bedbug infestation, their quality of models has really taken a turn for the worse":
Outside Hollister's closed SoHo location, courtesy Adam Bazadona
Tagged
abercrombie & fitch
bedbugs
hollister
soho
south street seaport
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot by ICE in NYC still has bullet lodged in neck, attorneys say
Oscar Belgal, a 28-year-old immigrant from the Dominican Republic, was in solitary confinement at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Sunset Park on Monday.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Oct 12, 2026 at 11:37 a.m. ET
NY measles spread prompts 'disaster' emergency. It didn't have to be this way, health commissioner says.
The state health commissioner says the disease outbreak is wholly preventable.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
News
NY measles spread prompts 'disaster' emergency. It didn't have to be this way, health commissioner says.
The state health commissioner says the disease outbreak is wholly preventable.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
NYC wants to move deliveries onto the waterways. It's starting with a 55-year-old boat.
By
Liam Quigley
Inside the luxury Greenpoint high-rise powered by a rumbling generator for over a month
By
David Brand
Mayor Mamdani orders review of NYPD use of force policies
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .