Chico's FAS History
Earlier company descriptions, brand line-ups, store counts and photographs from the history of Chico's FAS, kept for historical reference.
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The Company Description of Its Time
For the past several years, Chico's has helped millions of women look as great as they feel. Their chic prints, artisan jackets and wrinkle-free Travelers collection have built quite a following at their boutiques - but it is their combination of great style, one-of-a-kind details and warm, personal service that has captured the hearts of women nationwide. The design philosophy is customer-first and stated as method: every time they pick up a pencil to sketch a new design, they think about their customers - where she is going, what she is doing, what will flatter her body - and new designs arrive every week, each specifically created to fit a woman's body. This page describes the company's ranges in product and store terms.
White House Black Market, Soma and Boston Proper
White House Black Market operates fashion boutiques and outlet stores, publishes a catalog and conducts e-commerce. It began in 1985 as a single, tiny neighborhood boutique in Baltimore, Maryland, called The White House, offering collections in shades of white and ivory; expanding on that theme, the owners opened Black Market in 1995, and in 1997 combined the boutiques into one concept, and White House Black Market was born. Its clothing remains built on the honest simplicity of black and white. Soma Intimates opened 10 boutiques in 2004, dedicated to bras, panties, sleepwear and relaxation wear in a welcoming boutique environment - described here in product terms, as this directory keeps intimate apparel filings: by the end of 2007 over 65 stores were open nationwide, staffed by trained Fit Experts, with sizes from 32A to 42DDD and the exclusive, patented Vanishing Edge Collection of panties, camis and shapewear designed to disappear under clothes.
Boston Proper completes the portfolio record with a dated transaction: Chico's FAS, Inc. announced September 20, 2011 that it had successfully completed the acquisition of Boston Proper, a Boca Raton, Florida based direct-to-consumer retailer of distinctive women's apparel and accessories, sold exclusively through its catalog and website. The 2010 historical summary gives the group's scale as recorded: over 1,074 specialty stores in 48 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, under the Chico's (651 boutiques), White House Black Market (347 boutiques) and Soma Intimates (76 boutiques) names.
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