Perry Ellis is an American designer fashion clothing brand owned by

Perry Ellis International Perry Ellis International is an American clothing, fashion, cosmetics and beauty company that includes a portfolio of brands distributed through multiple channels worldwide. The company focuses primarily on sportswear and casual clothing for nic ...

founded by eponymous American designer

Perry Ellis Perry Edwin Ellis (March 3, 1940 – May 30, 1986) was an American fashion designer who founded his eponymous sportswear house in the mid-1970s. Ellis' influence on the fashion industry has been called "a huge turning point" because he in ...

. In June 2003, Perry Ellis merged with Salant Corporation, manufacturer of the brand's clothes, for about $80 million. The combined company offers about 25 brands.

History

Perry Ellis, with his

parent company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the Security (finance), securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own Share ...

The Vera Companies, founded his own

fashion house Fashion design is the art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction, and natural beauty to clothing and its accessories. It is influenced by diverse cultures and different trends and has varied over time and place. "A fashion design ...

, Perry Ellis International, in 1978. He opened his showroom on

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

's Seventh Avenue. As

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

and head designer he started the Perry Ellis Menswear Collection. Perry Ellis won eight

Coty Award The Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards (awarded 1943–1984) were created in 1942 by the cosmetics and perfume company Coty to promote and celebrate American fashion, and encourage design during the Second World War. In 1985, the Coty Awards we ...

s between 1979 and 1984 (the last year that they were given) and a

Council of Fashion Designers of America The Council of Fashion Designers of America, Inc. (CFDA), founded in 1962 by publicist Eleanor Lambert, and headquartered in Manhattan, is a not-for-profit trade association comprising a membership of over 450 American fashion and accessor ...

(CFDA) Award in 1983. He served as President of the CFDA in 1984 Ellis' colleague, Richard Haines, attributed to him "classic with a twist." Perry Ellis said he was inspired "to design clothes that are more obtainable, more relaxed, but ultimately more stylish and witty." Marc Jacobs for Perry Ellis Fall 1990

In early 1986, Robert L. McDonald, a former film producer and friend of Ellis, succeeded Laughlin Barker, Ellis'

domestic partner A domestic partnership is an intimate relationship between people, usually couples, who cohabitation, live together and share a common domestic life but who are not marriage, married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partner ...

, who had died in January of that year as

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

. After Ellis' death in May 1986, McDonald announced that under the terms of Ellis'

will Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

he had full control of the company in

trust Trust often refers to: * Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality It may also refer to: Business and law * Trust (law), a legal relationship in which one person holds property for another's benefit * Trust (bu ...

for Ellis'

heirs Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Official ...

. "Perry wanted us to continue, of course", he said of the fashion house's future. McDonald led the company through setbacks and challenges. Recommended to McDonald by the fashion director of

Bloomingdale's Bloomingdale's Inc. is an American luxury department store chain founded in 1861 by Joseph Bloomingdale and Lyman Bloomingdale. It was acquired by Federated Department Stores in 1930, which purchased the Macy's department store chain in 1994, ...

Marc Jacobs Marc Jacobs (born April 9, 1963) is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for his own fashion label, Marc Jacobs, and formerly Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, which was produced for approximately 15 years, before it was d ...

, a Parsons graduate who started his own

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product. Labels are most often affixed to packaging and containers using an adhesive, or sewing when affix ...

in 1986 and became head designer of

Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier SAS, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton (designer), Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in 1997, designed for the

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

of Perry Ellis from 1988 to 1993. In 1986, Manhattan Industries, the

parent A parent is either the progenitor of a child or, in humans, it can refer to a caregiver or legal guardian, generally called an adoptive parent or step-parent. Parents who are progenitors are First-degree relative, first-degree relatives and have ...

of The Vera Companies (the owner of Perry Ellis), was sold to Salant, a

licensee A licensee can mean the holder of a license or, in U.S. tort law, is a person who is on the property of another, despite the fact that the property is not open to the general public, because the owner of the property has allowed the licensee to en ...

of Perry Ellis. From then, Perry Ellis was

acquired ''Acquired'' is a podcast by Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal about business history and strategy. As of 2024, the podcast has more than 600,000 monthly listeners. History Gilbert and Rosenthal worked together at Madrona Venture Group and ini ...

by Supreme Inc., a Miami-based textile concern owned by George Feldenkreis, in 1999. The company's shares rose from $1.625 to $16 in January following the acquisition. Supreme was then renamed

. In 1993 Supreme International went public and after acquiring the Perry Ellis brand in 1999 became Perry Ellis International (PEI) which he has since built into a multinational corporation with annual revenues of nearly $1 billion as of 2020s In 2003, in turn,

Salant. The corporation has since then

various other textile companies, such as

Original Penguin Original Penguin (also known simply as Penguin) is an American clothing line. With roots in the 1950s and 60s, the brand specializes in clothing, footwear, and eyewear. It is sold in North America, South America, Central America, Europe and Asi ...

and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

Ping Collection, among many others.

Brands

Salant acquired closely held Axis Clothing Corp. in 2002, a year before being acquired in 2003 by Perry Ellis. The Axis LA brand clothing company was based in

Culver City Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. It is mostly surrounded by Los Angeles, but also shares a border with the unincorporated area of Ladera Heights to the ea ...

. Axis sells men's sweaters, pants, jeans and shirts in U.S.

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

Awards and distinctions

* In Ellis' time, he earned eight Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards from the cosmetics and perfume company Coty, Inc. * He was presented with the

(CFDA) Fashion Award in 1981. * In 1986, the annual Perry Ellis Award—now known as the Swarovski Emerging Talent Award—was created to honor emerging fashion designers. The first designer to receive it in 1986 was David Cameron. Recent winners include

Zac Posen Zachary E. Posen (; born October 24, 1980) is an American fashion designer. Early life Zachary E. Posen was born and raised in a American Jews, Jewish family in New York City, residing in the SoHo neighborhood of lower Manhattan. He is the son ...

in 2004,

Derek Lam Derek Lam (born 1967) is an American fashion designer. In addition to designing his own line, Lam was Tod's creative director for ready-to-wear and accessories from 2005 until 2010. Early life and education Lam was born in San Francisco, Californ ...

in 2005, and Trovata in 2006. * In 1986, during the CFDA awards at New York's Lincoln Center a Special Tribute was awarded to Perry Ellis. * Perry Ellis is honored with a commemorative white bronze plaque embedded into the sidewalk on New York's Seventh "Fashion" Avenue in 2002.

On the red carpet

The Perry Ellis brand has made an impression on the

red carpet A red carpet is traditionally used to mark the route taken by heads of state on ceremonial and formal occasions, and has in recent decades been extended to use by Very Important Person, VIPs and celebrity, celebrities at formal events. History ...

and in Hollywood. Perry Ellis has paired with '' Vanity Fair'' to host parties for nominated television series. Perry Ellis and ''Vanity Fair'' have held toasts and pre-Emmy parties for nominees including ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

'' in 2007, ''

30 Rock ''30 Rock'' is an American satire, satirical sitcom television series created by Tina Fey that originally aired on NBC from October 11, 2006, to January 31, 2013. The series, based on Fey's experiences as head writer for ''Saturday Night Live' ...

'' in 2008, and ''

The Office ''The Office'' is the title of several mockumentary sitcoms based on a British series originally created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant as '' The Office'' in 2001. The original series also starred Gervais as manager and primary charac ...

'' in 2010 at the

Chateau Marmont The Chateau Marmont is a hotel located at 8221 Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. The hotel was designed by architects Arnold A. Weitzman and William Douglas Lee and completed in 1929. It was modeled loosely after the Château d'Ambois ...

in Los Angeles. In 2011, '' Parks and Recreation'' was toasted by Perry Ellis and ''Vanity Fair'' at the Eveleigh in West Hollywood. The brand has struck up a celebrity fan-base including

Joe Manganiello Joseph Michael Manganiello ( ; , ; born December 28, 1976) is an American actor. His professional film career began when he played Flash Thompson in Sam Raimi's ''Spider-Man''. His breakout role was as werewolf Alcide Herveaux in five seasons ...

of HBO's ''

True Blood ''True Blood'' is an American fantasy Horror fiction, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball (screenwriter), Alan Ball. It is based on ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels ...

''. In his interview with '' GQ'' backstage at the Perry Ellis Spring 2012 runway show Manganiello said, "I always told myself if 'I made it,' I'd look the part." B-list celebrities have repeatedly worn Perry Ellis ensembles on the red carpet. ''

Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...

Chris Colfer Christopher Paul Colfer (born May 27, 1990) is an American actor, singer, and author. He gained international recognition for his portrayal of Kurt Hummel on the television musical ''Glee'' (2009–2015). Colfer's portrayal of Kurt received crit ...

wore a Perry Ellis outfit to the Outfest Film Festival Awards in 2010.

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a 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 Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

star

Hank Baskett Henry Randall Baskett III (born September 4, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL) for the Minnesota Vikings, Philadelphia Eagles and Indianapolis Colts. A native o ...

, husband of

Kendra Wilkinson Kendra Leigh Wilkinson (formerly Baskett; born June 12, 1985) is an American television personality and real estate agent. She first gained recognition as one of Hugh Hefner's girlfriends and for her role on the E! reality television series ''Th ...

, has worn Perry Ellis at several events including the Espy Awards for

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

. Perry Ellis attire has also been seen on personalities like

E! Entertainment E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable television network. It is owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. The channel focuses primarily on pop culture, celebrity based reality shows and movies. ...

's Jason Kennedy.

Notes

External links

Perry Ellis - e-commerce site

Picture of Perry Ellis (early 1980s)

Picture of Perry Ellis' plaque on the Fashion Walk of Fame in New York

Sources

* ttp://prod-style.advancepubs.net/w/feat_story/060501/ 2001 W magazine article on Tyler Alexandra Gallagher Ellis, Perry Ellis' own daughter
Perry Ellis Fashion shoot at his high school, Woodrow Wilson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perry Ellis High fashion brands