Hugo Boss

Early on, it was recognized that while the Hugo Boss brands starts with fashion, the job was to translate the brand’s fashion equity into fragrance.

HUGO perfume

The founder, Hugo Ferdinand Boss (1885-1948), opened his first factory in 1924.  At the beginning he had approximately 20-30 employees.

The factory located in a town called Metzingen in the state of Baden-Wurttemberg, south of Stuttgart.

After the World-Economy-Crisis in 1929 Hugo Boss couldn’t avoid insolvency anymore but was able to recover thanks to the production of military uniforms for the NSADP.

During World War II the company made uniforms for the German SS, storm troopers and Hitler Youth.

After World War II the whole production was improved and the company sold the first tuxedos.

In 1960 they started the lean production of tuxedos which was a milestone for the company and its evolution. It was in 1977, the brand Boss was created and registered.

Hugo Boss, a fine clothier, created its image of exclusivity and high quality in large past through effective use of sponsorship.

In early 1970s, Hugo Boss sponsored Porsche in Formula One races to capitalize on Porsche’s strong exclusive image and international presence.

In 1984, the license was issued and the first Boss branded fragrance appeared. By 1985, the company was floated on the stock exchange and is now listed on the MDAX list of companies.
Hugo Boss

Christian Dior

Christian Dior (1905-1957) began his career in design in 1935 as an illustrator and assistant.

House of Christian Dior was founded in 1946 by Christian Dior with huge financial backing of France’s greatest textile industrialist, Marcel Boussac. First collection was launched in the spring of 1947.

The company’s many well-known brand names include Louis Vuitton, Givenchy, and Christian Dior.

Christian Dior shocked the public with the extravagant designs of New look in 1947.
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With the New look, Christian Dior fashion’s superpower, the ‘saviour’ of post-Occupation Paris couture and Christian Dior couture house evolved into a highly lucrative business with licenses and hit perfumes.

In 1948, Christian Dior was the first designer to create licensing agreements, something that is ubiquitous today.

Dior exploded the couture’s elitist customer base by opening boutiques in New York and London and selling branded accessories through licensing agreements with American manufacturers.
Christian Dior 

History of Chanel

Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel (1883-1971) was a woman of singular character, intelligence and imagination.

These attributes enabled her to survive a childhood of deprivation and neglect and to re-invent herself to become one of the most influential women of her century.

At age twenty, she was apprenticed to a tailor and also worked as a dance singer at night.

In 1910, a well to do lover set her up in a millinery business. Three years later, Chanel opened her first boutique, in Deauville, France.

Beginning 1914, Chanel designed a line of clothing – usually in black, gray and beige - that eventually included short skirt and tailored suits.

In 1921, she pioneered the practiced of designers extending their name into accessories with the development of the world’s most iconic perfume Channel No. 5.

She worked with chemist Ernest Beaux refuge from Russia, who created a rich floral scent combined sharp synthetic aldehydes with expensive natural oils such as jasmine.

In 1932, Chanel introduced a diamond jewelry collection, sponsored by the International Diamond Guild.

Gabrielle Chanel died at age eighty-eight on a January Sunday evening while working on a new collection.

After her death the company flourished with continued commitment to its perfume line. Chanel No. 5 was reestablished as the exclusive fragrance for the fashion savvy.

The House of Chanel has continued with a succession of designers directing it. Karl Lagerfeld took over designing the couture line in 1983 and the ready to wear collections the next year.

Lagerfeld has continued to exploit the Chanel look to the present day, sometimes paying homage to her classic styles and at other times parodying them mercilessly.
History of Chanel