Levi Strauss Sticking with Gun Control Push Whether Customers Agree or Not

GURPS

INGSOC
PREMO Member
The Free Enterprise Project’s David Almasi approached Levi’s executives with polling data which showed that many customers tended to shop elsewhere following the company’s adoption of gun control. Yet the executives were unmoved. The Free Enterprise Project reported that “leaders of the clothing manufacturer stood their ground, telling shareholders they would continue to risk profit and the company’s future by pursuing what they refer to as a ‘values-driven’ business model.”

Almasi spoke to Breitbart News’ about Levi Strauss’ gun control position, saying:

Levi’s is all-in with the social justice warriors. In addition to anti-gun activism, they are also lending corporate support for environmental causes and various matters associated with leftism. Levi’s will continue its anti-gun activism and support for anti-gun causes even after the Free Enterprise Project gave them polling data showing it hurts their reputation and can drive customers elsewhere. Taking on this unnecessary risk is an affront to investors of any political alignment. Levi’s owes it to its investors, employees and business partners to remain politically neutral to protect the brand.
Almasi noted that Levi’s is “putting politics ahead of pants.”

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/...-control-push-whether-customers-agree-or-not/
 

BOP

Well-Known Member
Altruism is never a motive - especially wrt for-profit entities. We may not know exactly what the incentive is, but there is always one; follow the money.
 

Yooper

Up. Identified. Lase. Fire. On the way.
Private company? Yup. Do what they want? Sure.

Irony level, re: Levi's? SR-72 altitude.

--- End of line (MCP)
 

Yooper

Up. Identified. Lase. Fire. On the way.
Yep ...

Camping World took a huge hit for their political stance
Oh yeah, forgot about Camping World. As with DSG haven't spent a dime at Camping World (or Gander) since (which, in all three cases, was a substantial - for me - amount).

--- End of line (MCP)
 

GURPS

INGSOC
PREMO Member
the ironic thing is. news stories about Camping World and their flag [size] somewhere pops up in my Facebook feed from time to time

apparently the CEO is in disagreement over the size of the American Flag displayed at one of the locations

I roll my eyes and keep swiping .... ' whatever dude '
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
I can't believe too many progbots wear Levis - that's more of a traditional market. Maybe they just want to go bankrupt.
 

transporter

Well-Known Member
Any of you bother to look up Levi's "gun control" pursuits?

Here go read what the President and CEO of Levi's wrote in Forbes in 2018: https://fortune.com/2018/09/04/levi-strauss-gun-violence-parkland/

Here is how it starts:
In November 2016, I wrote an open letter requesting that gun owners not bring firearms into our stores, offices, or facilities, even in states where it’s permitted by law. This was following an incident in one of our stores in which a customer accidentally shot and injured himself while trying on a pair of jeans. While that was bad, it could have been worse: The bullet could have killed him, another customer, or one of our employees.

Here is how all you "Patriots" responded:

In the days after I published that letter, I received threats to our stores, our business, and even on my life. It was unsettling. But these personal attacks pale in comparison to the threats that activists and survivors from Parkland, Sandy Hook, and daily incidents of gun violence face every time they speak up on this issue.

You can go read the rest...you won't of course.
 

Yooper

Up. Identified. Lase. Fire. On the way.
You can go read the rest...you won't of course.
Since I have read the article (back in September 2018, in fact), I find it more than a bit disingenuous on your part that this paragraph (below) wasn't included in your reply (above):
Second, I’m proud to announce that Levi Strauss & Co. is partnering with Everytown for Gun Safety and executives including Michael Bloomberg to form Everytown Business Leaders for Gun Safety, a coalition of business leaders who believe, as we do, that business has a critical role to play in and a moral obligation to do something about the gun violence epidemic in this country. I encourage every CEO and business leader reading this to consider the impact we could make if we stood together alongside the broad coalition of concerned parents, youth, elders, veterans, and community and faith leaders who are committed to shaping a safer path forward.

Mr. Bergh is certainly free to do what he wants; it's a private company. But what he wants - by virtue of these partnerships - is full-on gun control. So please stop trying to reframe what he actually said as something entirely different by omitting portions of his statement in order to mislead the people you are trying to insult bully persuade.

--- End of line (MCP)
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
Time and Time Again ... companies virtual signal to people NOT purchasing their products

I don't really understand that, unless they're getting paid by some other source. Why would you go out of your way to offend your customer base in order to kiss the ass of people who will never be your customer? Especially when you could simply stay out of it and tend to business?
 

BOP

Well-Known Member
the ironic thing is. news stories about Camping World and their flag [size] somewhere pops up in my Facebook feed from time to time

apparently the CEO is in disagreement over the size of the American Flag displayed at one of the locations

I roll my eyes and keep swiping .... ' whatever dude '
I report stuff like that as spam.
 

Yooper

Up. Identified. Lase. Fire. On the way.
Levi’s is a publicly traded company.
Huh.

Was going to check before I posted to be sure, but when we last had a thread in this forum about Levi Strauss I thought I remembered one of my betters (here on the forum) being quite insistent it was a family-owned, private company and it didn't have to answer to anyone but The Family. And who am I to argue with one of my betters? Guess I should have checked (just to be sure).

Thanks for the correction. I guess, though, the overarching point still stands; he has been able to get this past his BoD and the shareholders don't seem to be complaining.... Or are they?

--- End of line (MCP)
 

TPD

the poor dad
Huh.

Was going to check before I posted to be sure, but when we last had a thread in this forum about Levi Strauss I thought I remembered one of my betters (here on the forum) being quite insistent it was a family-owned, private company and it didn't have to answer to anyone but The Family. And who am I to argue with one of my betters? Guess I should have checked (just to be sure).

Thanks for the correction. I guess, though, the overarching point still stands; he has been able to get this past his BoD and the shareholders don't seem to be complaining.... Or are they?

--- End of line (MCP)

They are not doing so great. Went public in March at about $22. Trading below $19 now. Goldman Sachs just downgraded them. Haven’t read enough to know what the BoD is saying though. Jim Kramer was talking about them this past week - actually wearing a pair of Levi’s on his show - but I tuned in too late to hear what he had to say.
 

Bird Dog

Bird Dog
PREMO Member
They are not doing so great. Went public in March at about $22. Trading below $19 now. Goldman Sachs just downgraded them. Haven’t read enough to know what the BoD is saying though. Jim Kramer was talking about them this past week - actually wearing a pair of Levi’s on his show - but I tuned in too late to hear what he had to say.
 
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SamSpade

Well-Known Member
Dear lord, does everything have to be political?

I get why those IN politics have to tread on ridiculous, egg-shell laden road of optics and political correcteness. It's why politics is overflowing with people exceptional at phoniness and superficiality. You really can't succeed unless you can say meaningless and trite things bereft of anything remotely "offensive".

But dammit, if I have a company that sells widgets, it doesn't have to have a political position. It shouldn't.
Personally, I think when companies DO adopt a political stance, it's less to appease an offended liberal (because when do conservatives do that?) but more as a means of getting attention. If I have a company that say, hangs drywall, there is no reason for it to have a political opinion on anything.
 
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