Shares in American Eagle jumped as much as 4% Tuesday after it revealed iconic homemaker Martha Stewart as the newest face of the brand following its controversial campaign starring Sydney Sweeney.
Stewart, 84, wears head-to-toe denim – along with a dangly diamond necklace – in American Eagle’s new “Give Great Jeans Campaign” ahead of the busy holiday shopping season.
The domestic diva posed on a quirky set decorated in blue fabric — complete with a denim turkey displayed on the kitchen counter.
“It’s Martha Stewart’s way of saying, ‘I’m gonna throw a middle finger to aging and what you all think of who I am. I can do pretty much anything and still be relevant,’” Hitha Herzog, chief retail analyst at H Squared Research and part-time faculty at Parsons, told The Post.
Herzog added that Stewart’s “irreverence resonates with this young crowd.”
While known for her advice on hosting extravagant house parties, Stewart is also a “spokesperson chameleon” – promoting everything from her own line of CBD gummies to “19 Crimes” wine with Snoop Dogg — Herzog noted.
The new promotions come after American Eagle came under criticism for its “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” campaign earlier this year. Some commenters on social media ripped the play on words, which used “jeans” instead of “genes” to talk about the blond-haired, blue-eyed starlet.
Still, American Eagle said the Sweeney collaboration sold out in a week, driving record traffic and unprecedented new sign-ups.
“You can’t run from fear,” American Eagle CEO Jay Schottenstein told the Journal in October. “We stand behind what we did.”
“This is what I think they learned: They can be bold in campaigns, cause controversy and still have a stock price that is rising. The brand is still extremely relevant,” Herzog told The Post.
“Some may want to say it was backlash, but backlash infers it hurt the company, but having Sydney Sweeney as the face of the campaign did nothing but help the company,” she added.
Stewart has had her own share of scandals, including five months behind bars over an insider trading scheme in 2004 and her attempt to trademark a Native American name.
“Since Stewart is another blue-eyed blonde, the choice may also allow AE to avoid appearing like they’re caving to residual pressure while still embracing a different form of diversity, namely age,” Susan Scafidi, founder and director of Fashion Law Institute at Fordham Law School, told The Post.
Analysts said the partnership not only caters to young shoppers, who admire Stewart’s humor, but to older generations, too.
“Sydney Sweeney reached their demographic. With Martha Stewart they are reminding an older generation that American Eagle is there for her, too,” Aliza Licht, branding expert and author of “On Brand,” told The Post.
“She participates in culture in a cool way,” Licht said. “Though she’s older, she represents this be yourself, unapologetic icon. Fashion is about confidence.”
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