Despite Abercrombie remaining a huge global teen retailer, utilizing a huge direct-to-consumer business, and generating gross margins exceeding anything rivals like American Eagle Outfitters and Aeropostale can cobble together, returns -- both absolute and relative -- lag its peers and the market generally; it is closing down a third of its stores; has had to shutter two expensive failures in Ruehl and Gilly Hicks; and over the past six years has saddled investors with a half billion dollars worth of asset impairments and operating losses.