In September, the National Retail Federation announced that Abercrombie & Fitch Co. CEO Fran Horowitz would receive the 2026 Visionary Award at the 11th annual NRF Foundation Honors in New York City. This week, Fran accepted the honor alongside the friends, family, and colleagues whose support helped make this recognition possible.
Much of Fran’s recognition stems from the transformation of Abercrombie & Fitch under her leadership. She joined A&F Co. in 2014 as Hollister Brand President, was promoted to Chief Merchandising Officer in 2015, and became CEO in 2017. Before joining Abercrombie, Fran held various executive roles at Bloomingdale’s, Ann Taylor Loft and Express.
During her time at A&F Co., Fran prioritized rebuilding the brands from the ground up and returning focus to the customer. Over the past several years, those efforts have delivered meaningful results, including driving the company toward $5 billion in sales for the first time in its history.
While accepting the award at the NRF Foundation Honors, Fran spoke about how her passion for retail and the consumer began early in her life and continued to grow throughout her career. She also credited much of the company’s success to becoming a purpose-led organization. By defining the impact the company wanted to have on customers, associates and communities, the leadership team reimagined core values, strengthened leadership standards and aligned the organization around a shared vision.
We are here for you on the journey to being and becoming who you are.
As Fran shared, “Our purpose has guided us each step of the way. It has helped us build a special associate culture we are incredibly proud of, enabled us to truly listen to our customers and put them at the center of everything we do, and allowed us to support our communities through our key impact partnerships.”
By striving to be a place of belonging rather than simply fitting in, A&F Co. continues to keep its customers at the heart of everything it does.
Congratulations to Fran on receiving the 2026 NRF Foundation Visionary Award. A well-deserved honor and recognition!
