Apparel - Publications - Faculty & Research

Whitney Stevens

Having inherited his fathers labor problems, Whitney Stevens’ early years at his family’s company were dominated by struggles with textile unions. Though the family strongly opposed the organizations, Whitney was forced to acquiesce and allow for unionization of J. P.... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Barry Schwartz

Schwartz is the business half of Calvin Klein Inc.’s leadership, and without his industry savvy, Klein’s popular fashion designs could not have become so successful. Schwartz’s attentive management style allowed the company to purchase its long time manufacturer... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Roger Milliken

Deering, Milliken and Company was founded in 1865 and had primarily been a selling house for cloth producers in the south. When Roger Milliken inherited the business in 1947, he changed the focus of the company, buying numerous mills and consolidating them into one... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Hattie Carnegie

Carnegie was considered one of the most influential contributors to American fashion for over five decades. Her French-inspired designs became the toast of the high fashion world during the thirties and forties. Though she initially catered to a very wealthy clientele,... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

24 Jul 2015
News

Nike Korea has New CEO

Keywords: Apparel Manufacturing; Apparel Manufacturing

12 Feb 2016
News

Creating Common Ground in Communities of Conflict

catch up,” she says. Questioning the status quo has also inspired Mendhro to launch VIDA, a venture-based ecommerce platform based in San Francisco that connects designers across the globe with producers, to manufacture original apparel... View Details

Keywords: Jill Radsken

23 Feb 2021
Research & Ideas

COVID-19 Shines New Light on Working Conditions in Supply Chains

Tightly packed workers and other weak protections allowed COVID-19 to sweep through American slaughterhouses during the past year, infecting at least 45,000 employees and killing an estimated 240 people. To Harvard Business School Professor Michael Toffel, who has... View Details

Keywords: by Danielle Kost; Apparel & Accessories

Linda J. Wachner

Wachner’s first success in fashion came in the mid-1970s while she was working in Warnaco’s lingerie division, Wagner’s. Perceiving that it was their uncomfortable and unfeminine design that made women “burn their bras,” Wachner redesigned softer, free form bras that... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Diane S. M. von Furstenberg

Von Furstenberg emerged on the fashion scene with three simple black jersey-style silk dresses in 1970. In the denim craze of the seventies, the silk dresses stood out for their elegance and sophistication, and it was upon this basis that von Furstenberg built her... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Ralph Lauren

Lauren built a $1 billion+ fashion business, one of the greatest successes in the last half of the 20th century. He is one of the most influential contemporary designers, responsible for developing the American look and establishing New York City as a rival to Paris.... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

Anne Klein

Klein played a major role in re-inventing the fashion industry. She founded Junior Sophisticates, where the clothing had classic lines, and incorporated this look in Anne Klein and Company when it began in 1968. Klein’s unique style of interchangeable separates was... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

George F. Johnson

Johnson built a successful shoe company, but his most striking contributions to American capitalism were the progressive labor policies introduced at Endicott-Johnson. His company was the first in the shoe industry to introduce the 8-hour workday, 40-hour workweek, and... View Details

Keywords: Fabric & Apparel

25 Sep 2018
News

Esquel Group Looks to a Robotic Future

Keywords: international trade; robotics; manufacturing; supply chain; innovation; Apparel Manufacturing; Apparel Manufacturing

05 Aug 2015
News

What A Fashion Entrepreneur Learned When Her Startup Flamed Out Early

Keywords: failure; Apparel Manufacturing; Apparel Manufacturing

25 Mar 2014
First Look

First Look: March 25

and restore the company's fortunes? Purchase this case: http://hbr.org/product/Hennes---Mauritz--2000/an/713509-PDF-ENG Harvard Business School Case 713-512 Hennes & Mauritz, 2012 In 2012, Hennes & Maurtiz (H&M) was the second-largest specialty View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

28 Jul 2015
Working Paper Summaries

Technology Reemergence: Creating New Value for Old Technologies in Swiss Mechanical Watchmaking, 1970–2008

Keywords: by Ryan Raffaelli; Apparel & Accessories; Apparel & Accessories

01 Dec 2016
News

Alumni Leading Change

doubling down in China, where over half of its workers are based. Yang aspires to introduce new competitive strategies to the entire textile and apparel industry, and to be a leader in positive economic development in China. Esquel is... View Details

11 Dec 2023
Blog Post

Building Iconic Brands and Brighter Futures: Interview with Glossier CEO, Kyle Leahy

strategy in consumer brands, then moving from a corporate strategy role into a GM role, and athletic apparel into accessories and then beauty. Making small, connected steps along the way has allowed me to grow and evolve my career in both... View Details

Keywords: Consumer Products / Retail

17 Jul 2014
Panel Discussion

Monitoring the Monitors: How Social Factors Influence Supply Chain Auditors

By: Jodi L. Short and Michael W. Toffel

Citation

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November 2012
Case

New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)

By: H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop and Matthew Preble

Considers whether New Balance, one of the world's five largest manufacturers of athletic footwear, should respond to Adidas' planned acquisition of Reebok—a transaction that would join the second- and third-largest companies in the industry. Highlights the unique... View Details