Hot Topic History
Earlier company descriptions, brand line-ups, store counts and photographs from the history of Hot Topic, kept for historical reference.
← Back to the current Hot Topic profile
The Company Description of Its Time
Hot Topic's filing is a founding-gap story told with unusual energy. It all started in 1988: a ton of teen retail accessory stores filled the malls, but there wasn't a cool music-inspired accessory store for both guys and girls - then came Hot Topic. As 1990 rolled around, adding apparel seemed like a no-brainer, because what better way than to add the ultimate music fan essential, the band tee. Customers, historical descriptions say, flipped when they could purchase Bauhaus, The Cure, TSOL and Depeche Mode rock t-shirts at Hot Topic. Within a year the store carried about 50 different band titles, along with rock-inspired clothing lines such as Lip Service and Serious.
Public in 1996 and Everything About the Music
The corporate milestone is dated precisely. In 1996, with about 60 teen retail stores, Hot Topic became a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ under the symbol HOTT. The cash from the public offering allowed expansion to the over 600 teen retail stores the filing counts as its present - a figure that belongs to the filing's own time and is kept with that framing. A store locator was the practical route offered to readers who wanted the location nearest them, which is a reminder that this profile was written for mall shoppers first and researchers second.
The closing passage is a manifesto, and it is quoted in spirit here because it defines the brand better than any category list. At Hot Topic, historical descriptions say, you will find a passion for music in everything they do, and customers share that same passion - it is in their stores, at their headquarters, in their distribution centers and in their products: It's Everything About the Music. The routes - Hot Topic financials, news and jobs pages on Apparel Search, plus the fashion blogs, fashion guide and fashion jobs pages - place that manifesto inside the directory's ordinary company system, which is how this section balances culture and commerce.
More to Explore on Apparel Search
References & Further Reading
Looking for More Fashion Companies?
This profile is one filing in the Apparel Search company names directory. Browse the full A-to-Z listing on the Fashion Company Names directory, or shop by category in the Apparel Search shopping directory.