Gant, stylized as GANT, is an American Swedish clothing brand, headquartered in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. The company was founded in 1949 by Bernard Gantmacher and was originally based in

New Haven New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

. Gant operates in 70 markets and its products are available at over 4 000 retailers and Gant-stores all over the world. "House of Gant" has three different collections: GANT, GANT Diamond G and GANT Rugger.

History

Bernard Gantmacher arrived in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1907, a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

immigrant from Myropil, Ukraine. Gantmacher was employed at a garment factory sewing shirt collars and met his future wife, Rebecca Rose, a button and buttonhole specialist who worked for the same company. After Gantmacher's return from military service during World War I, the couple married and founded the Par-Ex Shirt Company with business partner Morris Shapiro. The company made shirts for brands including

Brooks Brothers Brooks Brothers, founded in Manhattan, New York, in 1818, is the oldest apparel brand in continuous operation in America. Originally a family business, Brooks Brothers produces clothing for men, women and children, as well as home furnishings. B ...

J. Press J. Press is a traditional men's clothier founded in 1902 on Yale University's campus in New Haven, Connecticut by Jacobi Press. The brand also has stores in New York City and Washington, D.C. In 1974, the Press family sold the rights to license ...

and Manhattan. In 1927, the company was relocated to New Haven, Connecticut. In April 1949, the Gant label was launched. Following their father's death in 1955, Bernard's sons took over the company's operations. GANT dress shirts were known for their back-collar button, locker loop and box pleat. In the 1960s, Gant made the Yale co-op shirt exclusively for the store on the

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

campus. In 1968, the Gant brothers sold the company to Consolidated Foods but remained with the company. In 1971, the company launched its first

sportswear Sportswear or activewear is clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons. Typical sport-specific garments ...

line and in 1974 launched its Rugger brand. In 1979, Gant became a subsidiary of apparel manufacturer The Palm Beach Company and ceased operations in New Haven. In the early 1980s, Gant entered the international market when Pyramid Sportswear of

was given the right to design and market Gant outside the U.S. Initially, Pyramid only offered the Gant label in Sweden but quickly expanded internationally. In 1995,

Phillips-Van Heusen PVH Corp., formerly known as the Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, is an American clothing company which owns brands such as Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein, Warner's, Olga and True & Co. The company also licenses brands such as Kenneth Cole New Yo ...

acquired the Gant brand in the U.S. from bankrupt sportswear manufacturer, Crystal Brands, Inc. In 1997, Gant opened its first store in the United States. Phillips-Van Heusen sold its Gant operations in 1999 to Pyramid Sportswear of Sweden for $71 million. In the spring of 2006, Gant became a

public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...

and was listed on the

Stockholm Stock Exchange Nasdaq Stockholm, formerly known as the Stockholm Stock Exchange ( sv, Stockholmsbörsen), is a stock exchange located in Frihamnen, Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 1863, it has become the primary securities exchange of the Nordic countries. As o ...

's O-List until it was

delisted In corporate finance, a listing refers to the company's shares being on the list (or board) of stock that are officially traded on a stock exchange. Some stock exchanges allow shares of a foreign company to be listed and may allow dual listing, su ...

20 March 2008 upon being acquired by the Swiss retail group

Maus Frères Maus Frères SA (French for "Maus Brothers") is a Swiss holding company based in Geneva that owns the Lacoste brand, department stores and other businesses. It was founded in 1902 by wholesalers Ernest and Henri Maus and retailer Léon Nordmann.

. In November 2010, Gant returned to New Haven, where it opened a retail store. In 1995 the first Gant store opened in Europe in Amsterdam by owner Robert Staneke in the museumquarter. This location opened on the 25th of February 1995 and is currently the oldest Gant store in the world.

History

References

External links