Kellwood Company
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| Private | |
| Industry | Apparel |
| Founded | 1961 |
| Headquarters | New York, NY |
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Key people
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Joe Lombardi , CEO; Marc Babins, President, Western Region; Caren Belair Group President, Lifestyle & Juniors; Keith Grypp, General Counsel; Patricia Zabita, Vice President, Human Resources |
| Products | Apparel |
| Owner | Sun Capital Partners |
| Website | Kellwood.com |
Kellwood Company is an American apparel manufacturer. Founded in 1961, Kellwood's portfolio of Women's, Juniors and Girls apparel includes Rebecca Taylor, Parker, Devlin, Briggs NY, Democracy, Jax, Sangria, Jolt, Rewind and My Michelle, as well as licensed brand XOXO. Kellwood became an affiliated company of Sun Capital Partners, Inc. in February, 2008.
In 1961, fifteen independent suppliers of soft goods to Sears, Roebuck and Co. merged to form Kellwood Company. The largest of them being Ahoskie Manufacturing Co. owned and operated by George B. Smolen, a company once known as Smolen Manufacturing run by his father, Jacob Smolen. With its formation, the new company had 22 plants in 10 states and 7,000 employees. The original product lines included a wide variety of apparel, camping equipment and bedding.
Taking its name from two former Sears’ executives, Charles H. Kellstadt and Robert E. Wood, The first officers included Maurice Perlstein, president and treasurer; Fred W. Wenzel, vice president; Stanley M. Guthunz, vice president; Ovide de St. Aubin, Jr., vice president; and Howard Michaelson, Jr., secretary.
The 15 original companies were:
The company experienced its greatest success under the leadership of William John McKenna, who served as COO and later CEO from 1982 to 1996. For Kellwood Company, McKenna acquired Smart Shirts, Cape Cod-Cricket Lane, American Recreation Products Ltd., Crowntuft Manufacturing Corporation, Slumberjack Inc., D Corporation Inc., California Ivy, Inc., A.J. Brandon, Inc., Parsons Place Apparel (now Sag Harbor), E Z Sportswear (now Melrose), En Chant'e Inc. (now ENC), Goodman Knitting Company, Inc., Dotti and Sierra Designs, and launched a Kathie Lee Gifford clothing label. Also under McKenna's term, Kellwood's sales surpassed $1 billion.
In February 2008, Kellwood Company became an affiliated company of Sun Capital Partners, Inc. In January 2010, Kellwood Company acquird ISIS, an award-winning outdoor company focused on women's performance and casual apparel. In January 2011, Kellwood Company acquired Rebecca Taylor, a contemporary sportswear brand created by New Zealand-born fashion designer Rebecca Taylor and her business partner Elizabeth Bugdaycay. In July 2011, Kellwood announced its acquisition of Zobha, a high performance yoga and fitness apparel and accessories company.
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Wikipedia