G-III Apparel Group History

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The Company Description of Its Time

G-III is a leading manufacturer and distributor of outerwear, dresses, sportswear, swimwear, women's suits, women's performance wear, footwear, luggage, women's handbags, small leather goods and cold weather accessories - under licensed brands, owned brands and private label brands. That three-way split is the company's whole method, and the filing itemises both sides of it. Its own labels include Vilebrequin for swimwear and resort wear, Andrew Marc and Marc New York for outerwear and performance wear, and further owned names such as Bass, G.H. Bass, G-III Sports by Carl Banks, Eliza J, Black Rivet and Jessica Howard. Its fashion licenses run from Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Karl Lagerfeld to Kenneth Cole, Cole Haan, Guess?, Jones New York, Jessica Simpson, Vince Camuto, Ivanka Trump, Ellen Tracy, Kensie, Levi's and Dockers.

From a 1956 Garment District Start to a Public Company

The history in the filing begins with an immigrant founder: G-III traces its roots to 1956, when Aron Goldfarb, a Holocaust survivor, immigrated to the United States and established his own outerwear company in the heart of New York City's Garment District. In 1972 his son Morris Goldfarb - the current Chief Executive Officer in the filing - joined, bringing an entrepreneurial spirit that propelled the company for more than forty years. G-III became one of the first companies to import outerwear from South Korea, building a Pacific Rim manufacturing connection the profile says remains intact. Siena Leather Limited, an aspirational luxury leather sportswear division for high-end department stores, launched in 1981, and in 1989 G-III became publicly traded.

The 1990s growth method was partnership: textile outerwear under Colebrook & Co., licensed NFL merchandise through a partnership with two-time Super Bowl champion linebacker Carl Banks, then branded outerwear licenses with names such as Kenneth Cole, Jones New York, Nine West and Cole Haan - a shift the filing credits with altering how outerwear was marketed and sold in U.S. department stores. Sports agreements widened to the NBA, MLB, NHL and the college programmes, laying the groundwork for the license matrix the company leads with today.

Acquisitions That Rebuilt the Company, 2005 to 2013

The filing's third act is a run of purchases. In July 2005 G-III acquired Marvin Richards and Winlit on the same day, consolidating two of its largest competitors; Marvin Richards brought Calvin Klein men's and women's outerwear licenses, Winlit brought Guess? outerwear, and Calvin Klein later expanded into women's suits, dresses, performance wear, sportswear, handbags, luggage and cold weather accessories, making G-III the brand's second largest licensee. Jessica Howard and Eliza J joined the dress portfolio in 2007, alongside an expanded Ellen Tracy agreement for women's suits and dresses, and by 2011 the company was shipping dresses under eleven named brands.

Andrew Marc was purchased in February 2008 - an aspirational luxury outerwear brand established in 1982 - and developed into a lifestyle brand for which G-III became a licensor itself. The Wilsons Leather retail chain followed in 2008, with over 135 stores in over 30 states. A Kensie sportswear agreement came in 2011; Vilebrequin, the swimwear and resort wear brand, was acquired in August 2012; and the most recent acquisition in the filing, in November 2013, was G.H. Bass, the heritage footwear brand founded in 1936 and known as the historical record creator of the penny loafer. The one content photograph from the historical record, showing Andrew Marc fashion in 2016, is carried by reference below.

Photos

Fashion Company Names by Letter: Apparel Company G

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