Interim Financial Statements	3 Months Ended
May 01, 2021
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Interim Financial Statements	1. Interim Financial Statements The accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (the “Company, “we”, and “our”) at May 1, 2021 and May 2, 2020 and for the 13 week periods ended May 1, 2021 and May 2, 2020 have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. Certain notes and other information have been condensed or omitted from the interim Consolidated Financial Statements presented in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Therefore, these Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 30, 2021 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 11, 2021 (the “Fiscal 2020 Form 10-K”). In the opinion of the Company’s management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments and those described in the footnotes that follow) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. The existence of subsequent events has been evaluated through the filing date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. The Company is a leading global specialty retailer, operates under the American Eagle^® (“AE or American Eagle”) and Aerie^®(“Aerie”) brands The Aerie brand includes OFFLINE^TM by Aerie, a new sub-brand offering a complete collection of active wear and accessories built for REAL movement and REAL comfort launched in Fiscal 2020 (as defined below). We operate and license over 1,300 retail stores worldwide and are online at www.ae.com and www.aerie.com in the U.S. and internationally. We also operate Todd Snyder New York, a premium menswear brand, and Unsubscribed (a new brand with a focus on consciously-made, slow fashion launched in Fiscal 2020). We offer a broad assortment of high quality, on-trend apparel, accessories, and personal care products at affordable prices for men and women under the AE brand, and intimates, apparel, active wear, and swim collections under the Aerie brand. We sell directly to consumers through our retail channel, which includes our stores and concession-based shop-within-shops. We operate stores in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Hong Kong. We also have license agreements with third parties to operate American Eagle and Aerie stores throughout Asia, Europe, India, Latin America, and the Middle East. Founded in 1977, the Company is a leading multi-brand specialty retailer that operates more than 1,000 retail stores in the U.S. and internationally, online at www.ae.com and www.aerie.com, and www.toddsnyder.com (which e-commerce operations we refer to as “AEO Direct”) and more than 200 international store locations managed by third-party operators. Historically, our operations have been seasonal, with a large portion of total net revenue and operating income occurring in the third and fourth fiscal quarters, reflecting increased demand during the back-to-school and year-end holiday selling seasons, respectively. Our quarterly results of operations also may fluctuate based upon such factors as the timing of certain holiday seasons, the number and timing of new store openings, the acceptability of seasonal merchandise offerings, the timing and level of markdowns, store closings and remodels, competitive factors, weather and general economic and political conditions. During Fiscal 2020, historic seasonal trends were impacted by consumer behavior due to the novel coronavirus global pandemic (“COVID-19”). COVID-19 Pandemic Impacts related to the COVID-19 pandemic have been significantly negative for the retail industry, our Company, our customers, and our associates. We have experienced significant disruptions to our business due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related suggested and mandated social distancing and shelter-in-place orders, which initially resulted in the temporary closure of all of our stores and furlough of our associates. During Fiscal 2021 and Fiscal 2020, while stores were impacted by negative mall traffic, we focused on our omni-channel capabilities. As of the 13 weeks ended May 1, 2021, the vast majority of our stores had re-opened, although we continue to see residual impacts on foot traffic and in-store revenues. The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business are discussed in further detail within these notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements and within Item 2 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, of which these notes form a part.

Interim Financial Statements

3 Months Ended

May 01, 2021

1. Interim Financial Statements

The accompanying Consolidated Financial Statements of American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (the “Company, “we”, and “our”) at May 1, 2021 and May 2, 2020 and for the 13 week periods ended May 1, 2021 and May 2, 2020 have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. Certain notes and other information have been condensed or omitted from the interim Consolidated Financial Statements presented in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Therefore, these Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 30, 2021 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on March 11, 2021 (the “Fiscal 2020 Form 10-K”). In the opinion of the Company’s management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments and those described in the footnotes that follow) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. The existence of subsequent events has been evaluated through the filing date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

The Company is a leading global specialty retailer, operates under the American Eagle^® (“AE or American Eagle”) and Aerie^®(“Aerie”) brands The Aerie brand includes OFFLINE^TM by Aerie, a new sub-brand offering a complete collection of active wear and accessories built for REAL movement and REAL comfort launched in Fiscal 2020 (as defined below). We operate and license over 1,300 retail stores worldwide and are online at www.ae.com and www.aerie.com in the U.S. and internationally.

We also operate Todd Snyder New York, a premium menswear brand, and Unsubscribed (a new brand with a focus on consciously-made, slow fashion launched in Fiscal 2020).

We offer a broad assortment of high quality, on-trend apparel, accessories, and personal care products at affordable prices for men and women under the AE brand, and intimates, apparel, active wear, and swim collections under the Aerie brand. We sell directly to consumers through our retail channel, which includes our stores and concession-based shop-within-shops. We operate stores in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Hong Kong. We also have license agreements with third parties to operate American Eagle and Aerie stores throughout Asia, Europe, India, Latin America, and the Middle East.

Founded in 1977, the Company is a leading multi-brand specialty retailer that operates more than 1,000 retail stores in the U.S. and internationally, online at www.ae.com and www.aerie.com, and www.toddsnyder.com (which e-commerce operations we refer to as “AEO Direct”) and more than 200 international store locations managed by third-party operators.

Historically, our operations have been seasonal, with a large portion of total net revenue and operating income occurring in the third and fourth fiscal quarters, reflecting increased demand during the back-to-school and year-end holiday selling seasons, respectively. Our quarterly results of operations also may fluctuate based upon such factors as the timing of certain holiday seasons, the number and timing of new store openings, the acceptability of seasonal merchandise offerings, the timing and level of markdowns, store closings and remodels, competitive factors, weather and general economic and political conditions. During Fiscal 2020, historic seasonal trends were impacted by consumer behavior due to the novel coronavirus global pandemic (“COVID-19”).

COVID-19 Pandemic

Impacts related to the COVID-19 pandemic have been significantly negative for the retail industry, our Company, our customers, and our associates. We have experienced significant disruptions to our business due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related suggested and mandated social distancing and shelter-in-place orders, which initially resulted in the temporary closure of all of our stores and furlough of our associates. During Fiscal 2021 and Fiscal 2020, while stores were impacted by negative mall traffic, we focused on our omni-channel capabilities. As of the 13 weeks ended May 1, 2021, the vast majority of our stores had re-opened, although we continue to see residual impacts on foot traffic and in-store revenues.

The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business are discussed in further detail within these notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements and within Item 2 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, of which these notes form a part.