Calvin Klein Essays - Calvin Klein, Warnaco Group, Free Essays

Calvin Klein Essays - Calvin Klein, Warnaco Group, Free Essays In Back to the Future, Marty McFly goes by the name Calvin Klein after he is called that by his fifties mother because he is wearing CK underwear. On Family Guy, Klein is seen asking to use Stewie in one of his ads. When Peter feels unsure, Brian states "Peter, this is heterosexual fashion designer Calvin Klein," referencing the homosexual stereotype of male fashion designers. 1. Calvin Richard Klein born November 19, 1942, in The Bronx, New York Developed a passion for fashion and drawing at age of 14 2. EDUCATION Studied at Manhattans Fashion Institute of Technology, but never graduated Attanded the High school of Art and Design, gratuaded from it when he was 18 4. BUSINESS Launched his own clothing company with childhood friend Barry Schwartz With Kleins designs and Schwartzs financialbacking, a fashion empire was born Hes been designing sportswear since the 1970s The first Calvin Klein jeans were introduced in 1972 Started selling his own CK brand underwear when he was 40 5. PARFUMES Sinece the late 80s First: Obsession and Eternity 6. COSMETICS since the 1990s launched his own CK brand cosmetics and make-up at the age of 55 only sold in the best department stores such as Harrods, in London, and Bloomingdales in New York 7. Calvin Klein has been awarded Coty Award - 1973,1974,1975 Council of Fashion Designers of America Award - 1982,1983,1986 CDFA (Council for Fashion Designers of America) award - 1993 Americas Best Designer of 1993 Award Key Dates: 1968: The Calvin Klein brand is launched. 1973: Klein wins his first Coty American Fashion Critics Award. 1979: Calvin Klein controls one-fifth of the designer jeans market. 1982: Klein enters the underwear business. 1985: A new perfume called Obsession is launched with a $17 million advertising campaign. 1989: A Unilever Co. subsidiary purchases the Calvin Klein cosmetics/fragrance line. 1994: A unisex fragrance, cKone, is introduced; the companys underwear business is licensed to Warnaco Group Inc. 2000: Klein files suit against Warnaco Group and its CEO Linda Wachner. 2003: Calvin Klein is acquired by Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation. Quick Facts BORN IN The Bronx FATHER Flore Stern SIBLINGS Barry Klein, Alexis Klein SPOUSES Jayne Centre Klein, Kelly Rector CHILDREN Marci Klein EDUCATION Fashion Institute of Technology High School of Art and Design FOUNDER/CO-FOUNDER Calvin Klein NET WORTH $700 Million Following His graduation from the High School of Art and Design, Calvin Klein studied clothing design at Manhattans Fashion Institute of Technology. Inspired by the new and unaffected style of New Yorks city youngster, Klein was ready to start his own clothing company in 1968. With financial aid from a childhood friend Klein hired a dressmaker to make a some of his elegant womans coats and dresses. This merchandise was seen in a dirty showroom by a merchandise administrator from Bonwit Teller. The department store purchased $50,000 worth of apparel and displayed samples in eight windows, kicking of Kleins career. By 1970, Calvin Klein acquired a trademark for his infamous CK trade mark. Soon thereafter, Klein received the Coty Award, a prestigious design award, three continuous years in a row in 1973, 1974, and 1975. In addition, he added many product lines and categories and obtained models such as Brooke Shields and Mark Wahlberg. These models careers took off after their Calvin Kl ein debut because the brand has received much recognition over the years for its sleek, classic, and minimal look. By 2003 Phillips-Van Heusen purchased the company where Calvin Klein remained active within the company as a head designer. The company continues to offer a variety of products to a wide target market. The Calvin Klein brand, owned by Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, covers a wide variety of product classifications. Designer Calvin Klein made his debut at a small New York showroom with coats and dresses for women in 1968. Kleins first designs represented a city chic style of a young woman living and working in New York. These designs were noticed in the apparel industry, and a successful brand name was founded in that small showroom. The next product line from Calvin Klein was womens sportswear, which attracted the interests of popular fashion magazines Bazaar and Vogue. Klein has included sportswear for 5 women in his seasonal lines since the original line was launched . The trademark product of the Calvin Klein brand came out in 1970 and has been the most popular