Perry Ellis Careers

Perry Ellis International is a Miami-based apparel company that designs, distributes and licenses a portfolio of men's and women's lifestyle brands. Its roots lie in Supreme International, founded in Miami in 1967 by George Feldenkreis, which acquired the Perry Ellis name in 1999 and took it as the company name. Owned labels have included Perry Ellis itself, Original Penguin by Munsingwear, Cubavera, Laundry by Shelli Segal, Rafaella, Farah, Savane, Grand Slam and Jantzen, sold through department stores, specialty retailers, its own stores and online.

The company was public for twenty-five years before founder George Feldenkreis took it private in a $437 million transaction completed in October 2018, with his son Oscar Feldenkreis continuing to lead the business as chief executive. Private ownership did not change what the company does day to day: it remains a brand-management employer whose work divides between designing ranges in Miami and New York, licensing labels to partners, selling wholesale, and running stores, e-commerce and distribution. This guide explains those role families and the official route for applications. It deliberately avoids listing individual vacancies, which turn over quickly across so many labels and locations, and instead shows where a career at the company can actually be built.

Design, Merchandising and Product Development

Product teams build ranges label by label, because a Perry Ellis dress shirt, an Original Penguin knit and a Cubavera linen shirt answer to different customers, price points and seasons. Designers and assistant designers work to each brand's handwriting, while merchandisers shape line plans around what department store and online buyers will actually take. Technical designers and product developers then convert sketches into specifications, costings and fit standards that contract factories overseas can produce reliably at commercial volumes.

The portfolio rewards versatility. Staff move between tailored clothing, sportswear, golf apparel and swim across a career, and the Miami design base works to a calendar driven as much by wholesale sell-in dates and licensee needs as by fashion seasons. Candidates who do well here tend to pair a clear point of view on one category with commercial instincts about another brand's customer — range building for value, mid-market and better department store tiers happens under the same roof. Sample coordination, colour standards and repeat-order management fill much of an assistant's week, and fluency with costing sheets matters as early as the first design job.

Licensing, Wholesale and the Golf and Swim Business

Licensing is not a side line at Perry Ellis International; it is one of the company's three engines, alongside wholesale and direct sales. Licensing staff manage agreements in both directions — extending owned trademarks such as Perry Ellis and Original Penguin into categories the company does not make itself, and looking after inbound licences the company holds from others. Over the years those inbound arrangements have included Nike swimwear and golf apparel under the Callaway, PGA TOUR and Jack Nicklaus names, each with its own brand standards and approval routines.

Wholesale account teams sell the owned brands into department stores and specialty chains, presenting seasonal ranges, agreeing volumes and protecting presentation in stores they do not own. Golf and swim are genuine specialisations inside that work: golf apparel sells through pro shops and sporting retailers as well as clothing stores, and swim runs on a resort and early-spring calendar unlike anything else in the building. Experience in either category is a recognised route into the company's commercial teams. Licensing and wholesale staff also work closely with the legal team, because every season's sell-in depends on trademark rights, territory terms and delivery obligations being exactly right.

Retail, E-Commerce, Distribution and Corporate Roles

Direct-to-consumer operations cover Perry Ellis and Original Penguin stores and the brands' online shops. Store roles run from selling associates to store and district managers, while e-commerce teams handle site merchandising, digital marketing and the fulfilment promises that sit behind an online order. Because the store estate is modest next to the wholesale business, retail staff tend to work closely with the same brand teams who built the ranges they sell. Store experience is valued internally for that reason: associates who understand how a range was planned are often first in line for merchandising and buying support roles.

Distribution and logistics roles move product from overseas factories to retailers and the company's own channels, with South Carolina distribution operations long part of that picture. Corporate functions — finance, human resources, legal work around trademarks and licences, and information technology — are centred on the Miami headquarters, with New York a recurring base for design and sales activity. Trademark and licensing administration, unglamorous elsewhere, is core business here and a real career track. Seasonal peaks follow the wholesale calendar, with the heaviest operational load falling in the months when spring and autumn ranges ship out to retailers.

Applying to Perry Ellis International

Start with the company's own careers listings, signposted from the references section of this page, and filter by department and city before applying. Perry Ellis International hires brand by brand, so a strong application names its target — a label, a category or a channel — and backs the choice with relevant trading, design or licensing evidence. Expect commercial questions at interview whatever the role: how a range makes money, where it should be sold and at what price are the house's everyday concerns, and candidates who think that way stand out.