Calvin Klein: a success story. The history of a brand with global recognition - Calvin Klein

Calvin Klein: the history of one brand

Calvin Klein is a name that has been making waves throughout the world for 40 years. The founder of the military and unisex styles, a singer of minimalism, simplicity and elegance, a supporter of practicality, quality and comfort, he became one of those who turned the fashion world upside down. His clothes are a means of self-expression, a lifestyle. Sexy, provocative, but at the same time strict and distinctly neat, she successfully remains a manifestation of bright individuality and an example good taste. The designer's idea is simple - it is not what matters, but how. It's all about the cut.

Kelvin was born in New York on November 19, 1942. Since childhood, he was fond of drawing, and later began to sew. His grandmother taught him sewing skills, and his mother invested in him amazing feeling style. Already at the age of 5, the boy firmly decided to become a designer. Immediately after leaving school, Kelvin entered the Higher School of Art, from which he graduated with honors, and two years later he was already a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology.

On the way to his dream of becoming a fashion designer, Calvin Klein spent all his free time from studying in the studio, cutting out other people's suits. After graduating from the institute, he worked for some time for various designers, and also painted portraits of passers-by on the street. It brought little money, but the experience gained was difficult to overestimate.

In 1968, it was time to create my own brand. Together with childhood friend Barry Schwartz, Calvin founded Calvin Klein, Ltd. While Barry dealt with all the marketing and business issues, the aspiring designer brought his ideas to life. Success came unexpectedly - Klein exhibited his collection of outerwear in the hotel, and on the floor above there was a fashionable store. One day, the director of the boutique pressed the wrong button in the elevator and got out on the floor where Kelvin was setting up an exhibition. The fashion designer’s style captivated the businessman so much that he immediately placed an order for 50 thousand dollars.

During the first years of his atelier's activity, Kelvin was engaged in men's outerwear, but in 1970 the designer burst into the world of women's fashion with ideas that were revolutionary for that time. Classical men's suit, completely adapted for women, sold out with a bang, and the women's peacoat he introduced not only became the hit of the season, but also determined the main directions of women's fashion for almost a whole decade. A new breakthrough was the collection of the world's first designer jeans. Inexpensive, everyday, even work clothes, passing through skillful hands masters, became business card fashionable, bold and sexy youth. In an effort to emphasize the seductiveness and beauty of the new cut, Calvin Klein released an advertisement featuring fifteen-year-old Brooke Shields. The girl smiled invitingly from the posters, which bore the inscription: “Do you know that there is nothing between me and my jeans?..” Due to the model’s age, the posters were considered obscene, a scandal erupted around the advertisement, and new collection sold out at incredible speed - then 40,000 pairs were sold in one week.

From that moment on, scandals became constant companions of the fashion designer's advertising campaigns, but no matter how provocative they may seem, the main principles in them remained the ideas of minimalism and independence - there is nothing simpler, sexier and freer than jeans that fit perfectly to the figure.

In the 80s, Calvin Klein began developing men's underwear. An innovator in everything, the designer was the first to use half-nude in advertising male body, emphasizing that it can also be a subject of admiration. “I design underwear to make people look sexy,” Klein responded to accusations that his models were too revealing.

Klein had a very fine sense of current trends and invariably found himself on the crest of a wave. In 1992, catching the mood of society, he again surprised the world by releasing a new youth collection. His laconic and eloquent advertisement, where the young model Kate Moss and rapper Marky Mark sat next to each other in the same clothes, very similar in figure and hairstyle, offered teenagers a new style"unisex". Both boys and girls liked the new trend, and the designer’s clothes were again at the peak of popularity.

At the end of the 90s, Kelvin made another sensation - his collection became the herald of another style - “military”. And again, overcoats, khaki skirts, and army shirts were eagerly purchased by fans.

The designer did not limit himself to clothing; he released various accessories. In addition, in addition to the outfits, there were perfume aromas. In 1985, the couturier burst into the captivating world of perfumery with Obsession, which has become a classic today. Women's and men's Obsession became the world's first paired fragrances. Then the Eternity line appeared - another bestseller. Next are the Escape scents. Perfume scents subtly highlight Klein's clothing style and are a constant success.

In 1994, Kelvin released the revolutionary CK One, a perfume that turned the industry upside down. The first unisex fragrance became one of the most popular and best-selling fragrances of all time. In the first 10 days alone, CK One brought in $5 million for the company. The new product was such a success that it was sold at a rate of 20 bottles per minute. CK One was addressed to the “generation of freedom” - young people who were bored with everyday life and preferred individuality, freedom of expression and choice to routine. SK One embodied new values. As the first unisex fragrance, it broke both the rules of society and the rules of the perfume industry. SK One became a kind of response to the changes that were taking place in society, a natural continuation of the revolution of the early nineties.

After the dizzying success of the fragrance, Kelvin founded the cK One perfume line. cK One Scene (2005) and cK One Electric (2006) were published. Since 2004, annually updated summer scents cK One Summer. And in 2011, the cK One fragrance line was replenished with the paired scent cK One Shock, which became another sensation. One Shock fragrances were created for the modern young generation, rebellious and free, who are difficult to surprise with anything, much less shock.

Kelvin's contribution to the development of world fashion and perfumery is difficult to overestimate. He won the Coty Award three times (1973, 1974, 1975), and four times received the national fashion award - the American Fashion Awards. And 6 famous Calvin Klein fragrances: Euphoria, Obsession, Escape, Eternity, Contradiction and CK One were awarded the “Perfume Oscar” FiFi International Fragrance Award.

Here's what Calvin Klein himself says about his brand: “...We stand for being modern, cutting-edge, sophisticated, clean, natural, consistent and often minimalist. We are a brand that can influence young people, and indeed people of any age.”

USA: New York K:Companies founded in 1968

Calvin Klein Inc- American fashion brand, founded in 1968 in New York by fashion designer Calvin Klein and his childhood friend Barry Schwartz. Produces jeans, underwear, unisex clothing and accessories. The parent company is PVH Corp, which has owned the brand since 2003.

Story

Company Calvin Klein Ltd was founded in 1968 by Calvin Klein and his childhood friend Barry Schwartz in New York City. At first the studio produced men's outerwear, then gradually moved on to designing clothes for women. In the 1970s, the classic men's suit was adapted for women's fashion. Introduced in 1970, the double-breasted short coat with wide lapels not only became a hit of the season, but also had an impact strong influence on fashion top women's clothing for almost a decade. In 1974, Klein created a collection of accessories and fur clothing.

In 1978, Klein became the world's first to catwalk and sell “designer jeans,” which allowed girls to show off the length of their legs and the slenderness of their thighs. In the early days of logomania, jeans featured a highly visible company logo on the back pocket.

Advertising campaigns

The company is known for its controversial, often scandalous advertising campaigns.

Perfumery

First scent from Calvin Klein was released in 1981. The brand has developed a number of fragrances that have both feminine and male options: "Eternity" ( Eternity, 1983), "Obsession" ( Obsession, 1985), “Outlet” (1986).

Sale of the company

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Notes

Excerpt describing Calvin Klein

“Is this really death? - thought Prince Andrei, looking with a completely new, envious gaze at the grass, at the wormwood and at the stream of smoke curling from the spinning black ball. “I can’t, I don’t want to die, I love life, I love this grass, earth, air...” He thought this and at the same time remembered that they were looking at him.
- Shame on you, Mr. Officer! - he told the adjutant. “What...” he didn’t finish. At the same time, an explosion was heard, the whistling of fragments as if of a broken frame, the stuffy smell of gunpowder - and Prince Andrei rushed to the side and, raising his hand up, fell on his chest.
Several officers ran up to him. WITH right side There was a large stain of blood spreading across the grass on his stomach.
The militiamen with stretchers were called and stopped behind the officers. Prince Andrei lay on his chest, with his face down on the grass, and breathed heavily, snoring.
- Well, come on now!
The men came up and took him by the shoulders and legs, but he moaned pitifully, and the men, after exchanging glances, let him go again.
- Take it, put it down, it’s all the same! – someone’s voice shouted. Another time they took him by the shoulders and put him on a stretcher.
- Oh my god! My God! What is this?.. Belly! This is the end! Oh my god! – voices were heard between the officers. “It buzzed just past my ear,” said the adjutant. The men, having adjusted the stretcher on their shoulders, hastily set off along the path they had trodden to the dressing station.
- Keep up... Eh!.. man! - the officer shouted, stopping the men walking unevenly and shaking the stretcher by their shoulders.
“Make adjustments, or something, Khvedor, Khvedor,” said the man in front.
“That’s it, it’s important,” the one behind him said joyfully, hitting him in the leg.
- Your Excellency? A? Prince? – Timokhin ran up and said in a trembling voice, looking into the stretcher.
Prince Andrei opened his eyes and looked from behind the stretcher, into which his head was deeply buried, at the one who was speaking, and again lowered his eyelids.
The militia brought Prince Andrei to the forest where the trucks were parked and where there was a dressing station. The dressing station consisted of three tents spread out with folded floors on the edge of a birch forest. There were wagons and horses in the birch forest. The horses in the ridges were eating oats, and sparrows flew to them and picked up the spilled grains. The crows, sensing blood, cawing impatiently, flew over the birch trees. Around the tents, with more than two acres of space, lay, sat, stood, bloody people in different clothes. Around the wounded, with sad and attentive faces, stood crowds of soldier porters, whom the officers in charge of order vainly drove away from this place. Without listening to the officers, the soldiers stood leaning on the stretcher and looked intently, as if trying to understand the difficult meaning of the spectacle, at what was happening in front of them. Loud, angry screams and pitiful groans were heard from the tents. Occasionally a paramedic would run out to fetch water and point out those who needed to be brought in. The wounded, waiting for their turn at the tent, wheezed, moaned, cried, screamed, cursed, and asked for vodka. Some were delirious. Prince Andrei, as a regimental commander, walking through the unbandaged wounded, was carried closer to one of the tents and stopped, awaiting orders. Prince Andrei opened his eyes and for a long time could not understand what was happening around him. The meadow, wormwood, arable land, the black spinning ball and his passionate outburst of love for life came back to him. Two steps away from him, speaking loudly and drawing everyone's attention to himself, stood, leaning on a branch and with his head tied, a tall, handsome, black-haired non-commissioned officer. He was wounded in the head and leg by bullets. A crowd of wounded and bearers gathered around him, eagerly listening to his speech.
“We just fucked him up, he abandoned everything, they took the king himself!” – the soldier shouted, his black, hot eyes shining and looking around him. - If only the Lezers had come that very time, he wouldn’t have had the title, my brother, so I’m telling you the truth...
Prince Andrei, like everyone around the narrator, looked at him with a brilliant gaze and felt a comforting feeling. “But doesn’t it matter now,” he thought. - What will happen there and what happened here? Why was I so sorry to part with my life? There was something in this life that I didn’t understand and don’t understand.”

One of the doctors, wearing a bloody apron and with bloody small hands, in one of which he is between the little finger and thumb(so as not to stain it) held a cigar and left the tent. This doctor raised his head and began to look around, but above the wounded. He obviously wanted to rest a little. After moving his head to the right and left for a while, he sighed and lowered his eyes.
“Well, now,” he said in response to the words of the paramedic, who pointed him to Prince Andrei, and ordered him to be carried into the tent.
There was a murmur from the crowd of waiting wounded.
“Apparently, the gentlemen will live alone in the next world,” said one.
Prince Andrei was carried in and laid on a newly cleaned table, from which the paramedic was rinsing something. Prince Andrei could not make out exactly what was in the tent. Piteous moans with different sides, the excruciating pain of his hip, stomach and back entertained him. Everything he saw around him merged for him into one general impression of a naked, bloody human body, which seemed to fill the entire low tent, just as a few weeks ago on this hot August day the same body filled the dirty pond along the Smolensk road. Yes, it was that same body, that same chair a canon [fodder for cannons], the sight of which even then, as if predicting what would happen now, aroused horror in him.

Fashion has always been a reliable tool of communication between the individual and society. She always reflected his status, role, personality, expressed his mood and worldview. This is exactly how Calvin Klein began; the history of the brand has forever left its mark on fragrances. Just like in the 90s, designers began to create a fashion haven for those who were different from the mainstream. Unisex fragrances began to take their place in the subconscious of more and more people.

Changing trends and Calvin Klein

The development of this trend was very quickly supported by the Calvin Klein brand, known for destroying stereotypes and any restrictions! The CK brand can safely be considered a leader in the perfume industry, at least for the number of products produced. CK has complete product lines for every personality and every occasion.

Calvin Klein concept

How did CK become a real concept? Very simply: empathy for the needs of fashion lovers and the ability to instantly respond to these goals. That is why they began to not only reflect, but also create trends. Trademark did not miss its chance during the rise of androgynous fashion, ignoring gender roles in families.

The truth is that there is no single (chemical) formula that can separate fragrances into masculine and feminine. In fact, the problem lies in cultural and social traditions, not in biological concepts. For decades we have been convinced that sweet, floral scents designed exclusively for women, and heavy, with the aroma of wood or leather - for men.

Therefore, one of the main reasons for the popularity of CK perfumes is their ability to create different scents for every personality. This is how the history of the Calvin Klein brand began. Skin and body chemistry play a major role in the presentation of a fragrance. This is why the same perfume cannot have the same scent on every person. The CK brand, despite this fact, has expanded its range of fragrances to such a number of variations that everyone can find exactly what will suit their character.

What the Calvin Klein brand preaches

Calvin Klein professes freedom, modern approach, consistent production and simple style. All this extends to their perfumes, which have become exemplary not only due to their unique aromatic compositions, but also due to the perfect design of the bottles, bright elegance, sophistication and

Features of the Calvin Klein bottle

Bottle - a bottle in the shape of a transparent cylinder made of durable glass with transparent base creates such conditions that the perfume itself can be seen inversely or from a profile.

Fragrance from Calvin Klein – CK One

CK One, while not the first unisex scent on the market, was truly that "for both" scent that became a hot trend in the 90s. The aroma was a symbol of youth and freedom of views. The uniqueness of the aroma lies in the versatility and variability of aromatic essences.

The fragrance opens with freshness and notes of citrus, the heart of the fragrance is formed by jasmine, iris, violet and nutmeg, and the base consists of natural tones of musk, cedar, moss and amber. The scents in a simple, minimalist bottle are unobtrusive, not too sweet or, as they say, “feminine”. Application of perfume is variable: with or without an atomizer.

New unisex perfume CK Be in 1996

In 1996, after a two-year pause at Calvin Klein, the brand's history continued. They created a unisex perfume with the aroma of the orient and wood CK Be, which is in harmonious contrast with CK One. The scent is more sensual and suitable for all individualists and adventurers. The stylish black bottle conceals tones of lavender, bergamot and mint with a heart of magnolia, peaches and freesia. The base is formed from a combination of resins, cedar, musk, vanilla, sandalwood and amber. CK Be are unobtrusive "weasels" for your surroundings, and therefore they are ideal for an evening out.

Fresh citrus and bergamot at CK All

At the beginning of 2017, CK All perfume was introduced to the market as the third in the series. This scent is bolder and juicier. After two decades, Calvin Klein has once again delighted us with a scent that reveals fresh citrus fruits, and now with a hint of bergamot. The base develops into a floral heart of freesia, rhubarb and lily, while the base tones are provided by vetiver, musk and amber. The aroma is pleasant and characterized by its versatility. Thus the CK trilogy ends with the exact slogan: “Be One. Be All. Just Be."

What did the new generation Y expect?

The new generation Y, known as Millenials, can be proud of the scent created especially for them - CK2. Millenials perfumes launched a second unisex wave with the support of celebrities such as Delevingne, Zayn Malik and Gigi Hadid. Gender neutrality sets the course today, and fashion is devoid of all rules. Lack of conformity, originality and freedom are the mottos of today's generation, to which Calvin Klein again instantly responds.

Citrus with wasabi from Calvin Klein

CK2 perfume was introduced in 2016. They celebrate the endless possibilities of modern connection between two people and an infinite number of views. This is an urban, woody-fresh scent that combines constant freshness and vibrant accords to keep up with the fast pace of the 21st century. The aroma opens with citrus and green tones of wasabi. Then you smell rose and iris, and the whole composition is completed by vetiver, incense and sandalwood.

Do you like Calvin Klein fragrances? Are you interested in the history of the brand? Which ones do you prefer? .

Location Key figures

Barry Schwartz
Calvin Klein

Industry Parent company Website

Calvin Klein Inc- Has two creators, Kelvin and Klein, since 2013. American design studio producing unisex clothing. The parent company is PVH Corp, which owns the brand.

Calvin Klein Jeans store

Story

Calvin Klein, Ltd. was founded in 1968 by Calvin Klein and his childhood friend Barry Schwartz in New York. At first the studio produced men's outerwear, then gradually moved on to designing clothes for women. In the 1970s, the classic men's suit was adapted for women's fashion. Introduced in 1970, the double-breasted short coat with wide lapels not only became the hit of the season, but also had a strong influence on women's outerwear fashion for almost a decade. In 1974, Klein created a collection of accessories and fur clothing.

Owners

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PVH Corp (Emanuel Chirico) Emanuel Chirico.

Jeans

In 1978, Klein became the world's first to catwalk and sell “designer jeans,” which allowed girls to show off the length of their legs and the slenderness of their thighs. In addition, the company logo was clearly visible on the back pocket of the jeans - then “logomania” was just beginning.

Lingerie

In 1982, Klein developed a collection of men's underwear. His advertisement featured a half-naked male body. 1992 is considered the date of birth of the popular youth style “unisex”. The advertisement used a half-naked couple in which the girl and the boy resembled each other in figure, hairstyle and clothing. In 1999, there was another controversial advertising campaign for underwear for children and teenagers, which used provocative, considered frivolous photographs of children. Advertising campaign was suspended, and the designer publicly apologized.

For clothing, Klein has developed a number of fragrances with male and female versions:

"Eternity" (1983)
"Obsession" (1985)
"Outlet" (1986).

He received Coty awards three times (1973, 1974, 1975). Four times he has received the national award of the United States in the field of fashion - American Fashion Awards.

In 2003, Klein sold his company

Calvin Klein in Russia

In 2001, a Calvin Klein boutique was opened in GUM, which soon closed, and new shop appeared already on March 27, 2003 in the Okhotny Ryad shopping center on Manezhnaya, becoming the 37th in the CK chain of stores.

Perfumes Calvin Klein

Calvin Klein is one of the best-selling brands in the field of luxury perfumes and cosmetics. The first Calvin Klein fragrance was released in 1981.

In 1986, Coty Corporation purchased the rights to produce perfumes under the Calvin Klein brand. Total in currently 61 Calvin Klein fragrances released.

The most successful fragrances:

CK One
CK Be
CK Euphoria
CK Obsession
CK Truth
CK Eternity

Notes

Links

Official website (English)
Life in Calvin Klein style (Russian)
Official website of the parent company PVH Corp (English)
Perfumery Calvin Klein (Russian)

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Companies founded in 1968
Manufacturers of clothing and footwear
Manufacturers of cosmetics and perfumes
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Calvin Klein Inc/Temp- company card name = Calvin Klein Inc logo = type = Fashion founded = 1968 location = USA key figures= Barry Schwartz, Calvin Klein industry = clothing, shoes, perfumes number of employees = website = )