VF Corporation

Last updated
VF Corporation
FormerlyVanity Fair Mills
Company type Public
Industry
FoundedOctober 1899;124 years ago (1899-10) (as Reading Glove and Mitten Manufacturing Company) in Reading, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Founder John Barbey
Headquarters Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Key people
 Bracken Darrell (CEO)
Products Footwear & apparel
RevenueDecrease2.svg US$10.45 billion (2024) [1]
Decrease2.svg US$−34 million (2024) [1]
Decrease2.svg US$−969 million (2024) [1]
Total assets Decrease2.svg US$11.61 billion (2024) [1]
Total equity Decrease2.svg US$1.658 billion (2024) [1]
OwnerBarbey family trusts (16.58%) [2]
Number of employees
30,000 (2024) [1]
Subsidiaries Altra Running
Dickies
Eastpak
JanSport
Icebreaker
Kipling
Napapijri
The North Face
SmartWool
Supreme
Timberland
Vans
Website vfc.com

VF Corporation (formerly Vanity Fair Mills until 1969) is an American global apparel and footwear company founded in 1899 by John Barbey and headquartered in Denver, Colorado. [3] The company's 13 brands are organized into three categories: Outdoor, Active and Work. [4] In 2015, the company controlled 55% of the U.S. backpack market with the JanSport, Eastpak, Timberland, and The North Face brands. [5]

Contents

History

In October 1899, John Barbey and a group of investors established the company as Reading Glove and Mitten Manufacturing Company (or simply The Reading Glove) in Reading, Pennsylvania. [6] [7] Incorporated on December 4 later that year, they began with $11,000 in a 320-square-foot (30 m2) factory that was leased for $60/month.[ citation needed ]

Expanding into silk lingerie in 1913, The Reading Glove was renamed Schuylkill Silk Manufacturing, branding its lingerie line as Vanity Fair. Soon thereafter, the company name changed in turn to Vanity Fair Mills, eventually going public in 1951. [6]

In 1969, the H.D. Lee Company (now Lee) was acquired, accompanied by Vanity Fair Mills changing to VF Corporation. By 1982 VF posted profits of $15.5 million on sales of $184 million. [7] Acquiring Blue Bell Inc. for US$762 million in 1986, VF added Wrangler, JanSport, Rustler, Jantzen, and Red Kap to its portfolio, effectively doubling its size and making it the largest publicly-held clothing company. VF would also become one of the two largest jeans makers in the world, making up 25% of the market. [6]

In 1998, VF moved its headquarters from Wyomissing, Pennsylvania to Greensboro, North Carolina to be closer to more of its operations. [8] Also in the 1990s, VF would acquire the Bulwark Apparel brand. [6]

In the early 2000s, VF's acquisitions included The North Face and Eastpak in 2000; [9] and Kipling, [10] Napapijri, and Vans in 2004. The company sold its 'Vanity Fair Intimates' lingerie business to Fruit of the Loom for US$350 million in cash on 23 January 2007. [11] Later that month, VF acquired Eagle Creek. Also in 2007, VF acquired Majestic Athletic on February 28, followed by a $885-million purchase of 7 for all Mankind and Lucy Activewear on July 26. [12]

Eric C. Wiseman became President, CEO, and Chairman in 2008, [13] the same year that VF would acquire Mo Industries Holdings, parent company of sportswear brands Splendid and Ella Moss. [14]

In 2011, VF Corporation announced its intention to purchase Timberland for $2.2 billion, [15] a deal that would close in September that year. [16] On 21 December 2012, VF Imagewear was awarded a multimillion-dollar contract to provide uniforms and insignia for U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. [17] In February 2013, Imagewear was awarded a $50 million contract to manufacture uniforms for Transportation Security Administration officers. [18]

Effective 1 January 2017 Steve Rendle took over CEO and President responsibilities. [19] In 2017, VF acquired Williamson-Dickie’s brands, including Dickies, Workrite, Kodiak, Terra, and Walls. [6] The next year, VF would acquire Icebreaker, complementing its Smartwool brand, as both feature Merino wool in its clothing and accessories. [6] In 2020, VF acquired streetwear brand Supreme for US$2.1 billion. [20] [21]

In 2021, VF announced a definitive agreement to sell a portion of its occupational Work segment to a subsidiary of Redwood Capital Investments, LLC. [22] On June 28, 2021, the sale was finalized, and the 11 divested brands became part of a new standalone company, Workwear Outfitters. [23]

In September 2021, it was announced that the former president of emerging brands of VF Corporation Travis Campbell will acquire the Eagle Creek brand. The sale includes all Eagle Creek assets and liabilities. It does not include any Eagle Creek or VF associates. [24]

Spinoff

In August 2018, it was announced that VF would be splitting into two separate companies. The jeans and outlet stores would be spun off as Kontoor Brands. VF kept the sports apparel and footwear businesses, and moved its corporate headquarters (and around 800 employees) to Denver, Colorado. An 11-story office building at 1551 Wewatta Street near Denver Union Station would become VF's new corporate headquarters. [25] All brands which until 2018 had maintained separate divisional headquarters (e.g., Jansport) were also consolidated into VF's new Denver headquarters at that point in time.

Kontoor Brands Inc. became a separate company with the stock symbol KTB in May 2019. Kontoor includes Lee, Wrangler, Rock & Republic and VF Outlets. The company had 17,000 employees, [26] 600 at the headquarters, [27] at 400 North Elm Street in Greensboro, and merchandising, design, product development and innovation at Revolution Mill. [28] A support center is located on South Elm-Eugene Street. Lee moved to Elm Street from Merriam, Kansas. CEO Scott Baxter said the name Kontoor referred to the "contour" of the body, but the original spelling could not be used. [27]

Brands

Current brands

Workwear

Outdoor and action sports

Date of acquisition or merger in parentheses.

Eastpak wallet Eastpak.JPG
Eastpak wallet

Divested brands

VF Outlet, Inc.

Vanity Fair Outlet, Michigan City, Indiana. VF Outlet Store.jpg
Vanity Fair Outlet,
Michigan City, Indiana.

In 1970, it was the suggestion of M.O. Lee, then President of VF Corporation, that established the VF Outlet business. Surplus products from VF sources including Berkshire International and Vanity Fair were sold to the public from a 5,000 square foot factory store, with only a drop cloth separating it from the company's manufacturing facility. [33] In doing so, VF Corporation created a brand-new retail industry, the outlet mall. The first VF Outlet factory store opened in Reading, Pennsylvania. The outlet mall, located in Vanity Fair's old manufacturing mills, was dubbed the official "Outlet Capital of the World." [34] The corporate name was changed from VF Outlet Village to VF Outlet Center in 2008. Today, the VF Outlet Center is owned and operated by VF Outlet, Inc. with over 1,000,000 square feet of retail space and more than 20 stores. [35] The VF Outlet location in Reading, Pennsylvania closed on December 24, 2020. [36]

VF Outlet stores offer everyday apparel including brand name jeans, intimate apparel, activewear, swimwear, and more for women, men and children. The company currently operates 79 stores in 31 states nationwide. [37]

In October 2013, VF Outlet launched their e-commerce store. [38]

The VF Outlet business moved to Kontoor Brands Inc, established as a separate company in May 2019. [26]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "VF Corporation FY 2024 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". US Securities and Exchange Commission. May 23, 2024.
  2. ↑ 2021 Proxy Statement
  3. ↑ "VF on the Forbes Global 2000 List". Forbes . Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "VF Corp (VFC) Company Profile". Reuters . Archived from the original on 26 April 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  5. ↑ Tabuchi, Hiroko (2 September 2015). "Backpack Makers Rethink a Student Staple". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Company History".
  7. 1 2 "Time and Time Again: The Women, the Union and the Vanity Factory". 1996.
  8. ↑ "VF Corp. Changes Its Underware The $5.5-billion-a-year maker of jeans and lingerie is sewing together its operations with an array of packaged software. - December 7, 1998". archive.fortune.com.
  9. 1 2 "VF Completes Eastpak Acquisition." just-style. 2000 May 31.
  10. 1 2 VF Services, Inc. 2004 June 15. "Acquires Kipling Brand; Lifestyle Brand of Bags and Accessories Offers Excellent Potential for Growth."
  11. ↑ "VF Corp. Has The Midas Touch". Forbes . Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  12. ↑ "Apparel Maker Buying 2 Companies". The New York Times. Associated Press. 2007-07-26. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2020-02-04.
  13. ↑ "Eric Wiseman, Chairman, President, CEO, VF". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  14. ↑ "VF Completes Acquisition of Mo Industries, Owner of Splendid and Ella Moss Contemporary Sportswear Brands". 12 March 2009.
  15. ↑ Holmes, Elizabeth (2011-06-14). "Sale Gives Timberland Leg Up". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2020-02-04.
  16. ↑ "VF Completes Acquisition of The Timberland Company". VF Corporation.
  17. ↑ "Imagewear CBP Contract" . Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  18. ↑ "Imagewear TSA uniform contract" . Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  19. ↑ "Executive Leadership Team".
  20. 1 2 VF Corporation. 2020 November 9. "VF Corporation Announces Definitive Agreement To Acquire Iconic, Global Streetwear Leader Supreme®." VF Corp.
  21. ↑ "VF to Buy Supreme for $2.1 Billion to Boost Apparel Brands". Bloomberg.com. 2020-11-09. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
  22. ↑ "VF Corporation Enters Into Definitive Agreement to Sell the Occupational Portion of Its Work Segment" (Press release). VF Corporation. April 28, 2021. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  23. ↑ "VF Corporation Completes the Sale of the Occupational Portion of Its Work Segment" (Press release). VF Corporation. June 28, 2021. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  24. 1 2 "Exclusive: Travis Campbell acquires Eagle Creek". outsidebusinessjournal.com. 2021-09-08. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  25. ↑ "VF Corporation, parent company of outdoor brands The North Face, Smartwool, will relocate headquarters, 800 workers to Denver". August 13, 2018.
  26. 1 2 Craver, Richard (25 May 2019). "Kontoor begins independent life with focus on jeans innovation, attracting new customers". Winston-Salem Journal . Retrieved 26 May 2019.
  27. 1 2 Wilson, Carl (May 23, 2019). "The shape of things: Jeans company Kontoor promises to 'develop deep roots' in Greensboro". Greensboro News and Record . Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  28. ↑ Craver, Richard (December 6, 2018). "VF chooses Kontoor Brands as name for Jeanswear spinoff". Winston-Salem Journal . Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  29. ↑ "VF Corp buys Dickies for $820 million".
  30. ↑ VF Corporation. 2018 June 1. "VF Corporation Completes Acquisition of Altra®." VF Corp.
  31. ↑ "Horace Small". www.vfimagewear.com. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  32. ↑ "VF Imagewear Relaunches Horace Small Brand of Law Enforcement Apparel". 16 September 2010. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  33. ↑ "About VF Outlet". VFOutlet.com. Archived from the original on 13 April 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  34. ↑ "Reading Officially 'Outlet Capital Of The World'". 1 September 1991. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  35. ↑ "Store Listings & Center Map". VFOutletCenter.com. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  36. ↑ Rader, Tom (December 24, 2020). "VF Outlet in Berks closes its doors". Allentown, PA: WFMZ-TV. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  37. ↑ "VF Outlet Store Locator". Archived from the original on 18 April 2015. Retrieved 17 June 2015.
  38. ↑ "VF Outlet - Discount Clothing for Women, Men, Kids & Baby" . Retrieved 17 June 2015.
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