American Apparel Men's Fashion Brand

Effortless basics and iconic fashion favorites for women, men and kids - shop t-shirts, hoodies, denim and more: that is the brand's own summary, and it defines the men's offer in one line. American Apparel Inc. is a North American clothing manufacturer, designer, distributor, marketer and former retailer based in Los Angeles, California. Founded by Canadian businessman Dov Charney in 1989. Five roles in that list - manufacturer, designer, distributor, marketer and former retailer - and the word former in front of retailer is the quiet headline, explained by the history that follows.

In January 2017, American Apparel laid off 2,400 Southern California workers and started the process of shutting down company factories and closing its 110 stores. However, the brand may live on: in January 2017, Gildan Activewear purchased American Apparel's intellectual property and other assets for $88 million in a bankruptcy auction after the company filed for bankruptcy a second time in November 2016. That is the sequence - second bankruptcy in November 2016, factory shutdowns and 110 store closures begun, and the $88 million Gildan purchase of the intellectual property in January 2017.

A Historical Profile: The Brand After the Stores

American Apparel's men's page is a historical profile: a brand that has closed keeps its profile as history, even though closed companies are removed from directory listings. The manufacturing and retail company described here - Los Angeles based, founded 1989 - ended as an operating retailer in the January 2017 shutdown, while the brand itself, as intellectual property, passed to Gildan Activewear for $88 million. A researcher should read the range descriptions here in that light: t-shirts, hoodies and denim are what the brand made its name on.

The same Gildan purchase appears in this letter's Anvil profile, which notes that in 2017 Gildan Activewear purchased American Apparel for $88 million at auction after buying Anvil in May 2012. Two A brands, one acquirer. No later revival claims or current storefronts are stated here; the brand's status is given in January 2017 terms.

Reading This American Apparel Record

The official American Apparel site is linked in this page's References, and the directory pointers - the Men's Fashion Brands index and its further pages, the Fashion Designer Directory, the popular brands section, and the shopping, retail, wholesale, buyers and news areas - are in the navigation and More to Explore list. In brief: a Los Angeles basics manufacturer founded by Dov Charney in 1989, known for effortless basics and iconic fashion favorites in t-shirts, hoodies and denim, closed as a retailer in January 2017 after a second bankruptcy, with its intellectual property bought by Gildan Activewear for $88 million.

For a shopper, the practical reading follows from that history: a garment sold under this name today descends from the intellectual property Gildan bought, not from the Los Angeles factories described above, which were shut down. Judge any American Apparel piece against the brand's own stated identity - effortless basics, iconic fashion favorites - and against the dates above, which record how the company ended and the name carried on.

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