Kate Spade & Company, initially known as Liz Claiborne Inc. (founded in 1976 in Manhattan), and then as Fifth & Pacific Companies, Inc. (from 2012 to 2014), is a fashion company that designs and markets a range of women's and men's apparel, accessories and fragrance products under the Kate Spade New York and Jack Spade labels. The company is owned by Tapestry, Inc.
Liz Claiborne Inc. was founded in 1976 by Liz Claiborne, Art Ortenberg, Leonard Boxer, and Jerome Chazen. In 1980, Nina McLemore founded Liz Claiborne Accessories.[2] Liz Claiborne Inc. went public in 1981 and made the Fortune 500 list in 1986, ten years after it was founded, with retail sales of $1.2 billion.[citation needed] After retiring in 1989, Claiborne died on June 26, 2007, at the age of 78 from complications from cancer.[3]Robert Abajian succeeded her as head of design for the company, remaining in that role until his retirement in 1994.[4]
On May 15, 2012, Liz Claiborne Inc. officially became Fifth & Pacific Companies, Inc. and shifted focus to three brands – Juicy Couture, Kate Spade New York, and Lucky Brand Jeans.[5] On October 7, 2013, Fifth & Pacific Companies announced that they would sell Juicy Couture to Authentic Brands Group for $195 million.[6] In December 2013, the company announced that it was selling Lucky Brand Jeans for $225 million to Leonard Green & Partners, leaving the Kate Spade businesses as the company's sole label.
On February 25, 2014, Fifth & Pacific Companies was renamed as Kate Spade & Company. Craig A. Leavitt succeeded William McComb as CEO, whose retirement marked the official end of the company's transformation from Liz Claiborne to Kate Spade.[7]
Founder Leonard Boxer retired in 1985, and in 1989, Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg also retired from active management. Jerome Chazen became the company's Chairman in 1989 and held that role until 1996, when Paul Charron, a former CPG Executive, became chairman and CEO and held that position until his retirement in 2006. During Charron's tenure, Liz Claiborne Inc. acquired Lucky Brand Jeans in 1999. In 2001, they acquired Mexx and in 2003, they bought another small fashion company, Juicy Couture. The company acquired Kate Spade New York in 2006. Under Paul Charron's leadership, the company sustained its greatest notoriety since the earliest days of Liz Claiborne and her iconic women's pant suits. Engaging in a series of well-timed strategic acquisitions, the portfolio amassed nearly 40 brands and achieved over $5B in global annual revenue, including an unprecedented streak of quarterly positive growth. Upon Charron's retirement in October, 2006, Liz Claiborne Inc. named William McComb, a Johnson & Johnson veteran, as the company's Chief Executive Officer.[8] That appointment was the beginning of a downward trend for the company, exacerbated by the 2008-2009 recession.
On October 8, 2009, JC Penney Co. (based out of Plano, Texas) announced that it would become the exclusive retailer for the Liz Claiborne brand. All Liz Claiborne merchandise would exit any additional department-store retailer, and the Liz Claiborne New York label (designed by Isaac Mizrahi) would move from department stores to QVC. The Liz&Co. and Concepts by Claiborne brands originally exclusively sold at JC Penney would be phased out, and the Liz Claiborne merchandise would begin appearing in JC Penney stores in August 2010.
In October 2011, the company completed the sale of its Dana Buchman brand to Kohl's. In November 2011, the company announced that it completed the transaction to sell domestic and international trademark rights of its Liz Claiborne family of brands and domestic trademark rights of its Monet brand to JC Penney. In 2013, Fifth & Pacific narrowed its focus to the Kate Spade brand by selling both Juicy Couture and Lucky Brand Jeans, returning to a mono-brand company.[9]
Leadership
Deborah Lloyd, formerly of Banana Republic and Burberry, joined Kate Spade New York in 2007 and leads the creative aspects of the brand as president and chief creative officer. In this role, she oversees all creative aspects, including product design, merchandising and creative services. She retired in 2018. Nichola Glass took over her role and just debuted her first collection with the brand.[10]
Craig A. Leavitt joined the company shortly thereafter and was the chief executive officer from February 2014 until August 2017, after the acquisition of the company by Coach (now named Tapestry). On March 23, 2018, Anna Bakst, former president of the accessories and footwear categories at Michael Kors, was appointed CEO of the company and reports directly to Victor Luis, Tapestry's CEO. Bakst served as CEO for less than two years before announcing she would leave at the end of 2019.[11]
Brands
The Kate Spade & Company portfolio of brands today includes Kate Spade New York and Jack Spade. The Adelington Design Group, a private-label jewelry design and development group, is also operated by the company.[12]
Penney OpCo LLC, doing business as JCPenney and often abbreviated JCP, is an American department store chain that operates 663 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Departments inside JCPenney stores include Men's, Women's, Boys', Girls', Baby, Bedding, Home, Fine Jewelry, Shoes, Lingerie, JCPenney Salon, JCPenney Beauty, as well as leased departments such as Seattle's Best Coffee, US Vision optical centers, and Lifetouch portrait studios.
Isaac Mizrahi is an American fashion designer, actor, singer, television presenter and chief designer of the Isaac Mizrahi brand for Xcel Brands. Based in New York City, he is best known for his eponymous fashion lines. Mizrahi was previously a judge on Project Runway All Stars. In 2022 he played Amos Hart in the long-running Broadway revival of Chicago.
Tapestry, Inc. is an American multinational luxury fashion holding company. It is based in New York City and is the parent company of three major brands: Coach New York, Kate Spade New York and Stuart Weitzman. Originally named Coach, Inc., the business changed its name to Tapestry on October 31, 2017.
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. (MSLO) is a diversified media and merchandising company founded by Martha Stewart and owned by Marquee Brands LLC since April 2019. It is organized into four business segments: publishing, Internet, broadcasting media platforms, and merchandising product lines. MSLO's business holdings include a variety of print publications, television and radio programming, and e-commerce websites.
Juicy Couture is an American casualwear and dress clothing brand based in Arleta, Los Angeles, California. Best known for their velour tracksuits which became a luxury staple in the 2000s, the company was founded by Pamela Skaist-Levy and Gela Nash-Taylor in 1997 and was later purchased by the Liz Claiborne fashion company in 2003. Juicy Couture has turned into a global seller with their velour tracksuits and other fashions that span clothing, denim, handbags, shoes, intimates, swimwear, fragrance, accessories, sunglasses, yoga and babywear.
Katherine Noel Valentine Brosnahan Spade was an American fashion designer and entrepreneur. She was the co-founder and co-owner of the designer brand Kate Spade New York.
Anne Elisabeth Jane Claiborne was an American fashion designer and businesswoman. Her success was built upon stylish yet affordable apparel for career women featuring colorfully tailored separates that could be mixed and matched. Claiborne is best known for co-founding Liz Claiborne Inc., which in 1986 became the first company founded by a woman to make the Fortune 500 list. Claiborne was the first woman to become chair and CEO of a Fortune 500 company.
Enyce ([NYC]) is an American hip hop fashion label owned by Sean Diddy Combs. The label was established in New York City in March 1996 by Evan Davis, Lando Felix and Tony Shellman. The co-founders had originally met while working for Seattle-based clothing brand International News. Liz Claiborne acquired the company in February 2004 for $114 million from Sports Brands International. In October 2008 Enyce was purchased by Sean Combs and the Sean John Enterprise for $20 million.
The Chazen Museum of Art is an art museum located at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in Madison, Wisconsin. The Chazen Museum of Art is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums.
Lucky Brand is an American denim company founded in Vernon, California in 1990 by Gene Montesano and Barry Perlman. Lucky also produces other apparel, including activewear, outerwear, T-shirts, and professional attire.
Southpole is an American wholesale clothing and fashion company, designer, distributor, licensor, and marketer based in Fort Lee, New Jersey, with operating headquarters in New York City. The company was founded in 1991 by two Korean American brothers, David Khym and Kenny Khym under their company name, Wicked Fashions Inc. The company's showroom is located on Fashion Avenue in Manhattan.
EDUN is a fashion brand founded by Ali Hewson and Bono in 2005 to promote trade in Africa by sourcing production throughout the continent. In 2009 EDUN became part of the LVMH group. In June 2018, LVMH sold their shares back to the founders.
Dame Angela Jean Ahrendts, is an American-British businesswoman who was previously the senior vice president of retail at Apple Inc. She was the CEO of Burberry from 2006 to 2014. She left Burberry to join Apple in 2014. She was ranked 25th in Forbes' 2015 list of the most powerful women in the world, 9th most powerful woman in the U.K. in the BBC Radio 4 Woman's Hour 100 Power List, and 29th in Fortune's 2014 list of the world's most powerful women in business. She was also a member of the UK's Prime Minister's business advisory council until it was disbanded in 2016.
Safilo Group S.p.A. is an Italian company that designs, produces, and distributes prescription frames, sunglasses, sports eyewear, ski goggles and helmets, and cycling helmets under its own five house brands and 32 licensed brands, including Smith Optics since 1996.
Jerome A. Chazen was an American businessman who was the founder and chairman of Chazen Capital Partners. He was also one of four and last surviving founders of Liz Claiborne.
Elizabeth Arden, Inc. is a major American cosmetics, skin care and fragrance company founded by Elizabeth Arden. As of September 7, 2016, the company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Revlon, Inc.
Kate Spade New York is an American luxury fashion house founded in January 1993 by Kate and Andy Spade. In 2017, the company was purchased by Tapestry, Inc., formerly known as Coach, Inc.
True Religion Brand Jeans is an American clothing company established in 2002 by Jeff Lubell and Kym Gold and is based in Vernon, California.
Coach New York, commonly known as Coach, is an American luxury fashion house specializing in leather handbags, luggage, and accessories, as well as ready-to-wear. Coach licenses its name and branding to Luxottica for eyewear and Paris-based Interparfums for fragrances. Stuart Vevers has been the executive creative director since June of 2013.
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1,242.72 million USD (2015) [1] 
17.09 million (2015)
