G-III Apparel Group
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G-III Apparel Group is an American clothing company that designs, manufactures, markets, and sells women's and men's apparel with a global portfolio of licensed, owned, and private label brands, including
DKNY DKNY is a New York City–based American fashion house for men and women, founded in 1984 by Donna Karan. The company specializes in a wide range of fashion products, including clothing, footwear, accessories and fragrances. A major misconcepti ...
,
Donna Karan Donna Karan ( ; born Donna Ivy Faske), also known as DK, is an American fashion designer and the creator of the Donna Karan New York and DKNY clothing labels. Early life and education Karan was born to mother Helen "Queenie" Faske (née Rabinow ...
,
Karl Lagerfeld Karl Otto Lagerfeld also called Kaiser Karl (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, photographer, and creative director. Lagerfeld began his career in fashion in the 1950s, working for several top fashion hous ...
,
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
,
Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( ; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger (company), Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's P ...
, Vilebrequin, Nautica, Halston, G.H. Bass, Levi's,
Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, Competition, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional/provincial/state, national, continental and world champi ...
,
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
,
National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
,
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
, and
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
.


History


Early history

The company was founded in New York's Garment District in 1956 by Aron Goldfarb, a Polish-born Holocaust survivor. In 1972 Goldfarb's son, Morris, joined the company, which was then known as G&N Sportswear and specialized in leather outwear. Morris immediately helped the company diversify and expand its sourcing. In 1974 the company was reorganized as G-III Leather Fashions, Inc. In 1981, G-III launched its Siena Leather division, which offered more fashionable women's leather apparel. In 1986 the company was generating revenues of $20 million, and by 1988 G-III was one of the largest importers and wholesalers of leather clothing in the United States. In 1988 G-III partnered with football player Carl Banks and reached a licensing deal with the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
to design and manufacture leather team jackets.


Public offering and expansion (1989-2004)

In 1989 G-III's revenues were nearly $100 million and the company operated a branch office in Asia. That same year, G-III became a publicly traded company, listed as G-III Apparel Group, Ltd. In 1993, G-III extended its licensing deal with the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
. Over the next several years, G-III reached similar deals with
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
,
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
,
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
,
National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
, and major colleges. In 1995 G-III reached a licensing agreement with Kenneth Cole to produce and market outerwear. This agreement was followed by similar licensing arrangements with other brands. In 2002 Morris Goldfarb's son, Jeffrey Goldfarb, joined the company.


Acquisitions and further growth (2005-present)

G-III completed a series of acquisitions and licensing deals in the mid-2000s that added prominent brands to the company's portfolio while expanding production capabilities. In 2005 G-III acquired two privately-held outerwear businesses, Marvin Richards and Winlit, that held licenses for apparel produced under different brand names, including
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
and
Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( ; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger (company), Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's P ...
. The company then began to diversify its offerings beyond outerwear and into new apparel categories like women's dresses, sportswear, and performance wear. In 2007, the company acquired the Jessica Howard and Eliza J brands. In 2008, G-III acquired assets from retail outlet chain Wilsons Leather. These assets included 116 outlet stores, online retail operations, and a distribution center, and the deal marked the company's first large-scale venture into retail. That same year, G-III acquired the company Andrew Marc. Further acquisitions in the 2010s and 2020s increased G-III’s portfolio of owned brands and allowed the company to expand globally while increasing its direct-to-consumer distribution channels. In 2012 G-III acquired the luxury swimwear brand Vilebrequin, which became the first international owned brand in G-III's portfolio. The following year it acquired footwear brand G.H. Bass. In 2015, G-III entered into a joint venture with another luxury brand,
Karl Lagerfeld Karl Otto Lagerfeld also called Kaiser Karl (; 10 September 1933 – 19 February 2019) was a German fashion designer, photographer, and creative director. Lagerfeld began his career in fashion in the 1950s, working for several top fashion hous ...
, to create and launch the Karl Lagerfeld Paris label in North America. The company acquired Donna Karan International, the parent company of Donna Karan and
DKNY DKNY is a New York City–based American fashion house for men and women, founded in 1984 by Donna Karan. The company specializes in a wide range of fashion products, including clothing, footwear, accessories and fragrances. A major misconcepti ...
, in 2016. G-III acquired French fashion brand Sonia Rykiel in 2021. In 2022, G-III acquired the remaining stake in Karl Lagerfeld. In 2023, the company announced licensing deals to design, manufacture, and distribute Nautica and Halston.


Operations

The company designs, sources, manufactures, markets, and sells women's and men's clothing, outerwear, hats, jewelry, and other accessories under licensed, owned, and private label brands. The company also licenses its owned brands for other products and partnerships. G-III is headquartered in New York and has international offices in Canada, China, Italy, Paris, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. G-III distributes its products through freestanding stores and shops along with international digital channels. The company also sources and manufactures products with global partners. Morris Goldfarb is the chief executive officer of G-III.


Brands

G-III owns and licenses more than 30 global fashion brands, and maintains licensing agreements with major U.S. sports leagues and more than 150 U.S. colleges and universities. Some of the company's brand ownership and licensing relationships are summarized below:


Welfare concerns

Some of G-III's factories, producing brands such as Andrew Marc and Ivanka Trump, have been accused of flouting serious animal or human welfare principles. An audit by the Fair Labor Association of a G-III contracted Chinese factory in October 2016, found excessive overtime which violated Chinese law, low wages, and workspace safety concerns. A 2017 report by
the Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
on a contracted factory in Indonesia found extremely low wages and unpaid overtime.


See also

* Andrew Marc#Dog fur controversy


References


External links

* {{authority control Clothing companies based in New York City Publicly traded companies based in New York City Companies listed on the Nasdaq