Donald J. Trump Signature Collection
The Donald J. Trump Signature Collection is a line of clothing, watches, and ties that was named after Donald Trump and was introduced at Macy's stores in 2004. The clothes were manufactured by PVH and Marcraft Apparel through a licensing agreement with Trump. ALM, a New York firm that arranged the initial meeting between PVH and Trump in 2003, filed a lawsuit against him in 2011 after he halted payments to the company three years earlier; Trump won the lawsuit in 2013. Macy's discontinued sales of the line in June 2015, after Trump referred to some illegal aliens from Mexico as drug dealers, criminals, and rapists.
History[edit]
For nearly four years, Sheldon Brody, the owner and chairman of Marcraft Apparel (also known as Marcraft Clothes),[1][2] had wanted to sign a licensing agreement with businessman Donald Trump for a collection of Trump-branded suits.[2] Brody had been a longtime admirer of Trump's clothing, and became especially interested in a Trump clothing line after noticing "a thousand or more young people line up to audition for 'The Apprentice' in a suit and tie."[1] In 2003, Trump hired ALM International, a New York firm, to seek offers from clothing companies for a Trump fashion line. ALM arranged a meeting between Trump and PVH, which licensed the Trump name for dress shirts and neckwear.[3]
In mid-2004,[2] Brody met Trump through a friendship he had with Bo Dietl.[1] During the meeting, Trump believed that Marcraft's Trump-branded suits would sell at a price of $5,000 each; Trump said, "Then it was explained to me by Terry Lundgren that .001 percent of the population spends that much for a suit."[4] After Trump told Brody that supermarket customers had inquired about purchasing Trump Ice water that was only available at Trump's casinos, Brody told Trump, "I think if you can sell water, you can sell suits."[2] Brody said that Trump's brand would be targeted at aspiring business people between the ages of 19 and 35, stating, "The young people respect him."[1]
In August 2004, Trump announced plans for the Trump Signature Collection, a line of men's clothing that would include shirts, ties, business suits, sport coats, and slacks.[1][5][6] In September 2004, Brody expected revenue to total $60 million to $70 million within 18 months, with sales across the United States and around the world.[7] The collection went on sale at approximately 200 Macy's and Federated department stores later that year, with suits created by Marcraft retailing for $495.[4] PVH also produced clothing for the line at the time of its launch.[8] Other items in the collection included watches and cufflinks.[9] Trump appeared in Macy's commercials for the collection.[10]
In a 2005 Brand Keys survey conducted with 500 people, the Trump collection was named among the top five fashion brands available, out of 50 fashion companies from which to choose.[4] In April 2011, as Trump was considering a 2012 presidential campaign, he acknowledged that products in the Trump collection were manufactured in China, despite his criticism of China and other foreign countries for taking away jobs from the United States. Trump stated, "The answer is very simple: Because of the fact that China so manipulates their currency it makes it almost impossible for American companies to compete."[11] The collection's products were also manufactured in South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, and Mexico.[11]
ALM lawsuit[edit]
In July 2011, ALM filed a lawsuit against Trump, who, after nearly three years, had ended payments to the company in 2008. ALM, which had received over $300,000, alleged that Trump's discontinuation of payments was against their initial agreement. Trump, who felt that ALM had only a limited role in the deal between him and PVH, said "I have thousands of checks that I sign a week, and I don't look at very many of the checks; and eventually I did look, and when I saw them (ALM) I stopped paying them because I knew it was a mistake or somebody made a mistake."[3]
Trump's attorney, George H. Ross, moved to dismiss the lawsuit and said that ALM had been entitled to an amount of money that was significantly less than what it ultimately received. In a pre-trial deposition, Ross said that he told ALM that the amount of money it was entitled to would be discussed after the deal between Trump and PVH was finalized. Ross stated that he said "exactly the same thing" to Cathy Glosser, Trump's executive vice president of global licensing. However, Glosser said in a deposition that she was told by Ross that ALM "was entitled to payment and to see to it that they got paid."[3]
In January 2013, a judge ordered that the case go to trial, after Trump and ALM failed to settle the lawsuit.[12] The trial took place in April 2013. During the trial, Trump said that ALM's role in the PVH agreement was insubstantial, stating that Regis Philbin was the one who recommended PVH to him. Alan Garten, an attorney for Trump, said ALM was not legally entitled to any money.[12][13] The judge ruled in favor of Trump later that month because a valid contract between him and ALM was never created.[14]
Effects from Trump's presidential campaign[edit]
When Trump announced his candidacy for President of the United States in June 2015, he said about illegal aliens from Mexico: "They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. And some, I assume, are good people."[9] After Trump's controversial comment, a MoveOn.org petition was started and received over 700,000 signatures requesting Macy's to "Dump Trump" by discontinuing the sale of his collection.[15] On July 1, 2015, Macy's announced that it would end its business relationship with Trump and discontinue the Trump collection, stating, "We welcome all customers, and respect for the dignity of all people is a cornerstone of our culture."[10][9] Macy's remaining Trump collection products were placed on clearance.[16]
Trump accused Macy's of supporting illegal immigration to the United States, and said that he was the one who chose to terminate business dealings with Macy's "because of the pressure being put on them by outside sources." Trump also said, "While selling Trump ties and shirts at Macy's is a small business in terms of dollar volume, my principles are far more important and therefore much more valuable. I have never been happy about the fact that the ties and shirts are made in China, and should I start a new product line somewhere in the future, I would insist that they are made in America."[15] On Twitter, Trump called for opponents of illegal immigration to boycott Macy's.[17]
On July 7, 2015, PVH announced that it would end its licensing agreement with Trump as a result of Macy's decision. PVH's agreement had been scheduled to continue through 2018.[8] In response to PVH's decision, Trump said, "They were a direct relationship to Macy's. They've been very nice."[18] During the 2016 U.S. presidential election, news organizations further noted that Trump's collection was manufactured in foreign countries.[19][20] Trump stated that the collection's ties were made in China "because they have manipulated their currency to such a point that it's impossible for our companies to compete." CNN determined Trump's claim to be false.[20] As of May 2016, items from the Trump collection were still available online in limited quantities and at reduced prices, although the Trump campaign declined to comment on whether the collection was being discontinued.[20]
In November 2016, after Trump won the presidential election, Macy's CEO Terry Lundgren said he had no regrets about discontinuing the Trump collection. Lundgren said that regardless of Trump's controversial comment regarding Mexican immigrants, Macy's still would have discontinued the line because of Trump's entry into politics: "If Hillary Clinton had a line of women's suits or handbags I wouldn't carry those either. I just think we don't want to be a politically associated company, we sell to everybody at Macy's and have a broad and diverse customer base." Fortune reported that a purported boycott of Macy's by Trump's presidential supporters "conceivably took a toll" after Macy's experienced seven quarterly losses. Lundgren said that Trump's call for a boycott "certainly didn't help but it's hard to pinpoint if it had any impact."[17]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Trump: You're Hired!". Newsweek. August 15, 2004. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Healy, Orla (August 10, 2004). "Who's the New King of Bling? It's The Donald vs. The Diddy for the Ultimate Style Crown". New York Post. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 McCoy, Kevin (July 29, 2011). "Donald Trump faces lawsuits over business deals". USA Today. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Horyn, Cathy (November 24, 2005). "Is This the Most Trusted Man in Fashion?". The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Silverman, Stephen M. (August 9, 2004). "Donald Trump to Launch Clothing Line". People. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ "Donald Trump fashions in the works". United Press International. August 9, 2004. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Traub, James (September 12, 2004). "Trumpologies". The New York Times. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 O'Connor, Clare (July 7, 2015). "PVH Corp., Clothing Giant Behind Trump Menswear Brand, Dumps The Donald". Forbes. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Mitchell, Benjamin F.; Singer, Paul; Puente, Maria (July 1, 2015). "Macy's is the latest to cut ties with Donald Trump". USA Today. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Wahba, Phil (July 1, 2015). "Macy's just dumped Donald Trump merchandise". Fortune. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Siegel, Joel (April 28, 2011). "Donald Trump Blames China for Fact That Much of His Gear is 'Made in China'". ABC. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Clarke, Katherine (April 12, 2013). "Donald Trump Says Checks He Signed On Payments For His Clothing Line Were A Mistake". Business Insider. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Marsh, Julia (April 13, 2013). "Trump's hot under collar". New York Post. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Marsh, Julia (April 20, 2013). "Trump triumph in license suit". New York Post. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 Katz, Celeste (July 1, 2015). "Macy's pulls Trump-branded clothing after immigrant comments". New York Daily News. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Katz, Celeste (November 6, 2015). "Prices for Trump merchandise plunge as Macy's castoffs hit Web". The Boston Globe. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Wahba, Phil (November 10, 2016). "Macy's CEO Says Dumping Donald Trump's Line Was Still the Right Move". Fortune. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ O'Connor, Clare (July 7, 2015). "Donald Trump On Brand Exodus: 'They'll All Be Back'". Forbes. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ Sieczkowski, Cavan (July 2, 2015). "Internet Reminds Donald Trump His Signature Collection Is Made In Mexico". The Huffington Post. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 Griffin, Drew; Black, Nelli; Devine, Curt (May 26, 2016). "Donald Trump sought cheap labor overseas for clothing lines". CNN. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
External links[edit]
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