B. Kuppenheimer & Co., or simply Kuppenheimer, was a men's clothing manufacturing and retail operation based in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and later

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

History

Kohn, Clayburgh & Einstein

In 1852, Bernard Kuppenheimer, who immigrated to America in 1850, founded a retail clothing store in

Terre Haute, Indiana Terre Haute ( ) is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 58,389 and Terre Haute metropolitan area, its metropolitan area had a populati ...

. In 1863, Julius Kohn, Martin Clayburgh, and Morris Einstein founded Kohn, Clayburgh & Einstein at 27 Lake Street in Chicago. Only two years later, in 1865, Kohn retired and Bernard Kuppenheimer, who relocated to Chicago leaving the Terre Haute store under the supervision of his brother John, and David Lindauer became members. Clayburgh, Einstein, Kuppenheimer, and Lindauer continued to operate the company without changing the name. They operated out of the Lake Street location until the

Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...

of 1871, when their building was burnt to the ground and they suffered losses totaling $200,000 (). After rebuilding, they resumed business and in July 1872, moved to the corner of Randolph Street and Wabash Avenue where they remained until the fall of 1876.

B. Kuppenheimer & Co.

In 1876, the business was dissolved and Kuppenheimer formed B. Kuppenheimer & Co. The new company was composed of him, his son Jonas Kuppenheimer, and Samuel Nathan. The remaining members of the Kohn, Claybugh & Einstein reorganized as Einstein, Longini & Co. B. Kuppenheimer & Co. started in business on Wabash Avenue and stayed there until 1880. In January 1880, Kuppenheimer & Co. moved to Madison Street and Louis B. Kuppenheimer, the second son of Bernard Kuppenheimer, was admitted as a partner. As of 1884, Kuppenheimer & Co had annual sales of nearly $1,000,000 (). In 1903, Kuppenheimer died and was buried at Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum in Chicago. In 1906, the company operated "The House of Kuppenheimer" branches in Boston and New York, with sales in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

handled by Isidor Grosner of 1013 Pennsylvania Ave., NW. During the

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Kuppenheimer manufactured the uniforms for the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

. By 1910, the company employed close to 2,000 men and women at shops in and around Chicago.Encyclopedia of Chicago, Dictionary of Leading Chicago Businesses (1820-2000) Entries: Kuppenheimer (B.) & Co. (accessed Sep 1, 2008)
/ref> In 1912, Louis became vice-president of the company. In 1920, Albert Kuppenheimer retired from the company. He died in California in 1931 at the age of 64 although his residence in Chicago was the Drake Hotel. Later in 1920, Louis Kuppenheimer became president of B. Kuppenheimer & Co. In 1921, Jonas Kuppenheimer, who had been serving as president of "The House of Kuppenheimer," died. In 1926, Louis Kuppenheimer retired as president of the company. In 1936, Louis, the last living son of founder Bernard Kuppenheimer, died. In 1959, Lester E. Frankenstein succeeded Bertram J. Cahn to become president of the company. Frankenstein was previously the vice-president.

Sale and closure

In March 1963, the firm was purchased by Louis Roth & Co., Inc. of

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

for $3 million (). The firm continued as a leading manufacturer of men's clothing until 1982, when it was purchased by

Hart Schaffner & Marx Hart Schaffner Marx is an American manufacturer of ready-to-wear menswear owned by New York City–based Authentic Brands Group. With origins dating to a family business in 1872 Chicago and incorporated in 1911 as "Hart Schaffner & Marx", the com ...

(later known as

Hartmarx Hart Schaffner Marx is an American manufacturer of ready-to-wear menswear owned by New York City–based Authentic Brands Group. With origins dating to a family business in 1872 Chicago and incorporated in 1911 as "Hart Schaffner & Marx", the com ...

), a Chicago-based apparel-maker and wholesaler. By the mid-1990s, after the headquarters moved to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, sales were lagging, many of its stores were closing, and it entered into bankruptcy."Men's Wearhouse to liquidate remaining Kuppenheimer stores," ''Atlanta Business Chronicle,'' March 4, 1997
In 1995, Hartmarx sold Kuppenheimer to Kupp Acquisition Corp. for $14 million () in cash ($12 million upfront and an additional $2 million over the next four years) and a $2.5 million

promissory note A promissory note, sometimes referred to as a note payable, is a legal instrument (more particularly, a financing instrument and a debt instrument), in which one party (the ''maker'' or ''issuer'') promises in writing to pay a determinate sum of ...

secured by one of Kuppenheimer's manufacturing facilities. Kupp was formed by an investment group led by Gene Kosack, former president and chief executive of NBO Stores Inc., a clothing retailer. In 1997, The

Men's Wearhouse Tailored Brands, Inc. is an American retail holding company for various men's apparel stores, including the Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank brands. The company is headquartered in Houston, Texas, with additional corporate offices in Dublin ...

purchased Kuppenheimer Manufacturing Co. from Kupp Acquisition Corp. At that time, Kuppenheimer consisted of 43 men's clothing stores, mostly in the Chicago,

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

and Atlanta areas and the manufacturing facilities. The sale included the rights to Kuppenheimer's trademark and customer list. Men's Wearhouse closed the remaining Kuppenheimer stores and folded the business into its own by liquidating the remaining assets.

In popular culture

*In the 1960s, Kuppenheimer was the supplier of

Rod Serling Rodman Edward Serling (December 25, 1924 – June 28, 1975) was an American screenwriter and television producer best known for his live television dramas of the 1950s and his Anthology series, anthology television series ''The Twilight Zone (1 ...

's wardrobe on his television series, ''The Twilight Zone''. *Kuppenheimer is known for commissioning American illustrator

J.C. Leyendecker Joseph Christian Leyendecker (March 23, 1874 – July 25, 1951) was one of the most prominent and financially successful freelance commercial artists in the United States. He was active between 1895 and 1951 producing drawings and paintings for ...

to create hundreds of paintings to be used in their advertisements. *In the Netflix show Jupiter's Legacy that premiered in 2021 in Season 1 Episode 2, Sheldon Sampson brings a Kuppenheimer suit to dress his father at the father's funeral.

Gallery

File:Kuppenheimer 1920 Country Genleman.jpg, Ad from

Country Gentleman ''The Country Gentleman'' (1852–1955) was an American agricultural magazine founded in 1852 in Albany, New York, by Luther Tucker.Frank Luther Mott (1938A History of American Magazines 1850–1865"The Country Gentleman", page 432, Harvard Univ ...

in 1920 File:The Saturday evening post (1920) (14803709573).jpg, Ad from

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

in 1920 File:The spring book of B. Kuppenheimer and Co. - illustrating a new century of clothing-radically different from the old-and incidentally depicting the more striking chances in men's wear during the past (14761255611).jpg, Ad from 1900 File:The spring book of B. Kuppenheimer and Co. - illustrating a new century of clothing-radically different from the old-and incidentally depicting the more striking chances in men's wear during the past (14764117852).jpg, Ad from 1900 File:B. Kuppenheimer suit.jpg, Ad from 1904 File:Kuppenheimer Suit (rear view).jpg, Ad from 1904 File:Men's clothing, by B. Kuppenheimer (1904).jpg, Ad from 1904 File:Man in suit with misprinted hat.jpg, Ad from 1904 File:Man in suit with properly-printed hat.jpg, Ad from 1904 File:Tempered clothing-an investment in good appearance (1921) (14579215968).jpg, Manufacturing facility in 1921

References

{{reflist, 2 Defunct retail companies of the United States Clothing retailers of the United States Defunct companies based in Chicago Companies based in Atlanta Retail companies established in 1876 1876 establishments in Illinois Manufacturing companies established in 1876 Retail companies disestablished in 1997