Kangol
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| Subsidiary | |
| Industry | Textile |
| Founded | 1938 |
| Founder | Jacques Spreiregen |
| Headquarters |
Cleator, Cumbria, United Kingdom |
| Products | Headwear |
| Parent | Sports Direct |
| Website | www |
Kangol is a British clothing company famous for its headwear.
Founded in the 1920s, by Jewish Polish World War I veteran Jacques Spreiregen, Kangol (the K from knitting, the ANG from angora, and the OL from wool) produced hats for workers, golfers, and especially soldiers. In 1938, Spreiregen, who was working in London as an importer, opened a factory at Cleator, Cumbria, England which he ran with his nephew Joseph Meisner. A second factory was opened at nearby Frizington, and later, under the direction of Spreiregen's younger nephew Sylvain Meisner, a third factory, manufacturing motorcycle helmets and seat belts in Carlisle. They were the major beret suppliers to the armed forces during World War II, including famously Field Marshal Montgomery.
During and after the war, Kangol berets were the height of fashion. In the 1960s, designers Mary Quant and Pierre Cardin worked with the company, whose products graced the heads of the rich and famous, including the Beatles and Arnold Palmer, and later Diana, Princess of Wales. The company also supplied uniformed organizations such as the Scout Association.
The Kangaroo logo was adopted by Kangol in 1983 because Americans were always asking where "they could get the Kangaroo hat..." (http://www.bollmanhats.com/brands/kangol.html). No Kangol hat has ever actually been manufactured in Australia.
In the 1980s Kangol berets entered a new phase of fashion history with their adoption by members of the hip-hop community, such as Grandmaster Flash, Run-DMC, LL Cool J, Slick Rick, Kangol Kid of UTFO, and The Notorious B.I.G. The brand was popularized even more by the 1991 movie New Jack City. The release of more consciously stylish products in the 1990s such as the furgora (angora-wool mix) Spitfire, was helped by its presence upon the head of Samuel L. Jackson in 1997.Kevin Eubanks, bandleader for The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, sported a Kangol beret on an almost nightly basis. In 2009, Eminem wore the Cotton Twill Army Cap Kangol hat on his Beautiful video.
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Wikipedia