Kenneth Cole Productions
Encyclopedia
Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. is an American fashion house
founded in 1982 by Kenneth Cole
. He originally named the company Kenneth Cole Incorporated in September 1982 and planned to showcase his new line of shoes during market week at the Hilton New York
Hotel. Finding that he could not afford to purchase a hotel room or showroom to exhibit his line, he borrowed a truck and asked the mayor’s office for permission to park two blocks away from the Hilton Hotel in front of a fancy shoe building. Upon learning that permits were only granted to utility companies and production companies shooting full-length motion pictures, Cole changed the name of the company to Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. and applied for a permit to shoot a full-length motion picture entitled “The Birth of a Shoe Company”.
With Kenneth Cole Productions painted on the side of the truck, they opened for business on December 2, 1982, in front of 1370 Avenue of the Americas. They had a fully furnished forty-foot trailer, klieg light
s, a director, a rolling camera, models as actresses, and two NYPD policemen as doormen. A velvet rope allowed a limited number of people into the trailers and in two and a half days they sold forty thousand pairs of shoes. The company remains Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. to this day to honor this unusual beginning.
In 1985, Kenneth Cole opened his first store on Columbus Avenue in Manhattan, followed shortly thereafter by another store on Union Street in San Francisco. Kenneth Cole retail and Company Stores can now be found worldwide in countries such as Mexico
, Canada
, Venezuela
, Colombia
, Israel
, United Arab Emirates
, United Kingdom
, Philippines
, Japan
, South Korea
, Taiwan
, Thailand
, Singapore
, Australia
and South Africa
.
'a shoe fetish in 1986 with the line, “Imelda Marcos bought 2,700 pairs of shoes. She could've at least had the courtesy to buy a pair of ours.” In 1994, the company ran its first partisan political ad for the New York state gubernatorial race featuring George Pataki
and Mario Cuomo
, Cole's father-in-law. The ad was an image of a muddy boot with the words: “Next time you hear George Pataki speak, might we suggest the appropriate footwear.” George Pataki did end up becoming governor and Cole received some backlash for his decision to run the ad.
Not all of their ads are as overtly political, but most have a humorous tint to them, often incorporating word plays or puns. Some of his better-known lines include: “What you stand for is more important than what you stand in,” “Are you putting us on?” and “Today is not a dress rehearsal.” Popular topics in his advertising include HIV/AIDS, homelessness, gun control, abortion, the environment and same-sex marriage.
The current advertising campaign uses the tagline “We need more than a surface mentality. The writing is on the wall.”
).
His involvement with amfAR began in 1985 when he organized a public service campaign that was photographed by Annie Leibovitz
and featuring high-profile models such as Christie Brinkley
, Paulina Porizkova and Andie MacDowell. The tagline was, “For the future of our children. Support the American Foundation for AIDS Research. We do.” At the time, AIDS was still a relatively unknown and misunderstood disease. Cole managed to procure nearly 3 million dollars worth of donated exposure and press. In 1987, he was invited to join amfAR’s board.
In 2005, Cole spearheaded the “We All Have AIDS” awareness campaign with advertisements photographed by Mark Seliger and featuring such luminaries as Nelson Mandela
, Tom Hanks
, Will Smith
, Elton John
, Sharon Stone
, Richard Gere
, Elizabeth Taylor
, Alicia Keys
, Desmond Tutu
, Natasha Richardson
, Eric McCormack
, Ashley Judd
, Whoopi Goldberg
, Harry Belafonte
, Greg Louganis
and Rosie O’Donnell. He also has annual World AIDS Day
promotions in his retail stores.
In August 2006, it was announced that Kenneth Cole Productions would stop selling fur in all of their garments for the Fall 2007 Fashion Season.
Cole is also very active with HELP USA (his wife Maria Cuomo Cole is currently Chair of the Board), a non-profit organization that is the nation’s largest provider of housing, jobs and services for the homeless. Recently, he partnered with rock star Jon Bon Jovi
to create a line of jackets, t-shirts and fragrance under the Kenneth Cole New York label. The proceeds from the sale of these items supported HELP USA.
Other charity campaigns include establishing relief funds for victims of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina
respectively through the sale of t-shirts, giving discounts at his retail stores for donating shoes or clothes to the homeless and hosting numerous charity shopping nights at retail stores throughout the nation.
unanimously affirmed a trial court judgment requiring the company to pay an additional hour of pay for each day that a store manager had been forced to work a nine hour shift without a break.
Fashion House
Fashion House is an American telenovela that aired at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT Monday through Saturday on MyNetworkTV stations. The series premiered on September 5, 2006 and concluded on December 5, 2006...
founded in 1982 by Kenneth Cole
Kenneth Cole (designer)
Kenneth Cole is an American clothing designer. Born in Brooklyn, New York, his father, Charles Cole, owned the El Greco shoe manufacturing company. Before learning the family business and starting his own company in 1982, Cole studied law at Emory University.- Birth of a shoe company :Kenneth Cole...
. He originally named the company Kenneth Cole Incorporated in September 1982 and planned to showcase his new line of shoes during market week at the Hilton New York
Hilton New York
The Hilton New York is the largest hotel in New York City and world's 101st tallest hotel.The 44-story building located on the northwest edge of Rockefeller Center at Sixth Avenue and 53rd Street has hosted every President since John F. Kennedy as well as the Beatles during their 1964 visit to the...
Hotel. Finding that he could not afford to purchase a hotel room or showroom to exhibit his line, he borrowed a truck and asked the mayor’s office for permission to park two blocks away from the Hilton Hotel in front of a fancy shoe building. Upon learning that permits were only granted to utility companies and production companies shooting full-length motion pictures, Cole changed the name of the company to Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. and applied for a permit to shoot a full-length motion picture entitled “The Birth of a Shoe Company”.
With Kenneth Cole Productions painted on the side of the truck, they opened for business on December 2, 1982, in front of 1370 Avenue of the Americas. They had a fully furnished forty-foot trailer, klieg light
Klieg light
A Klieg light is an intense carbon arc lamp especially used in filmmaking. It is named after inventor John H. Kliegl and his brother Anton Tiberius Kliegl. Modern Klieg lights use a tungsten-halogen filament...
s, a director, a rolling camera, models as actresses, and two NYPD policemen as doormen. A velvet rope allowed a limited number of people into the trailers and in two and a half days they sold forty thousand pairs of shoes. The company remains Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. to this day to honor this unusual beginning.
In 1985, Kenneth Cole opened his first store on Columbus Avenue in Manhattan, followed shortly thereafter by another store on Union Street in San Francisco. Kenneth Cole retail and Company Stores can now be found worldwide in countries such as Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
.
Lines
Kenneth Cole currently operates 5 separate clothing and accessories lines with different price points and 1 shoes-only line:- Kenneth Cole New York ($100 to $795)
- The original and most expensive line consists of fashion and accessories for men and women, watches and fragrances.
- Gentle Souls ($80 to $300)
- Comfort shoes for women only.
- Kenneth Cole Reaction ($35 to $250)
- Introduced in 1996 as a more casual, less expensive component to Kenneth Cole New York.
- The secondary line for more affordable products consists of fashion and accessories for men and women.
- Kenneth Cole Unlisted ($25 to $80)
- The tertiary and cheapest line consists of handbags and clothing for men and women.
- Tribeca ($50 to $70)
Advertising
Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. is well known for its socially conscious and often controversial advertising. Campaigns often incorporate topical issues, such as addressing Imelda MarcosImelda Marcos
Imelda R. Marcos is a Filipino politician and widow of 10th Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. Upon the ascension of her husband to political power, she held various positions to the government until 1986...
'a shoe fetish in 1986 with the line, “Imelda Marcos bought 2,700 pairs of shoes. She could've at least had the courtesy to buy a pair of ours.” In 1994, the company ran its first partisan political ad for the New York state gubernatorial race featuring George Pataki
George Pataki
George Elmer Pataki is an American politician who was the 53rd Governor of New York. A member of the Republican Party, Pataki served three consecutive four-year terms from January 1, 1995 until December 31, 2006.- Early life :...
and Mario Cuomo
Mario Cuomo
Mario Matthew Cuomo served as the 52nd Governor of New York from 1983 to 1994, and is the father of Andrew Cuomo, the current governor of New York.-Early life:...
, Cole's father-in-law. The ad was an image of a muddy boot with the words: “Next time you hear George Pataki speak, might we suggest the appropriate footwear.” George Pataki did end up becoming governor and Cole received some backlash for his decision to run the ad.
Not all of their ads are as overtly political, but most have a humorous tint to them, often incorporating word plays or puns. Some of his better-known lines include: “What you stand for is more important than what you stand in,” “Are you putting us on?” and “Today is not a dress rehearsal.” Popular topics in his advertising include HIV/AIDS, homelessness, gun control, abortion, the environment and same-sex marriage.
The current advertising campaign uses the tagline “We need more than a surface mentality. The writing is on the wall.”
Charity and social causes
Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. is active in charities and often uses advertising, publicity and other corporate initiatives to support charitable causes. Cole’s advocacy for AIDS awareness and research has made the fashion house a legend in philanthropic circles. He is a longtime board member and current Chairman of the Board for The Foundation for AIDS Research (amfARAmfAR
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound AIDS-related public policy.-History:...
).
His involvement with amfAR began in 1985 when he organized a public service campaign that was photographed by Annie Leibovitz
Annie Leibovitz
Anna-Lou "Annie" Leibovitz is an American portrait photographer.-Early life and education:Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Leibovitz is the third of six children. She is a third-generation American whose great-grandparents were Jewish immigrants, from Central and Eastern Europe. Her father's...
and featuring high-profile models such as Christie Brinkley
Christie Brinkley
Christie Brinkley is an American model and actress best known for her three consecutive appearances on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in the late 1970s and early 1980s, for her long-running contract with CoverGirl, the longest ever of any model in history, and for her marriage...
, Paulina Porizkova and Andie MacDowell. The tagline was, “For the future of our children. Support the American Foundation for AIDS Research. We do.” At the time, AIDS was still a relatively unknown and misunderstood disease. Cole managed to procure nearly 3 million dollars worth of donated exposure and press. In 1987, he was invited to join amfAR’s board.
In 2005, Cole spearheaded the “We All Have AIDS” awareness campaign with advertisements photographed by Mark Seliger and featuring such luminaries as Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
, Tom Hanks
Tom Hanks
Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
, Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
, Sharon Stone
Sharon Stone
Sharon Vonne Stone is an American actress, film producer, and former fashion model. She achieved international recognition for her role in the erotic thriller Basic Instinct...
, Richard Gere
Richard Gere
Richard Tiffany Gere is an American actor. He began acting in the 1970s, playing a supporting role in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, and a starring role in Days of Heaven. He came to prominence in 1980 for his role in the film American Gigolo, which established him as a leading man and a sex symbol...
, Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
, Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
, Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu
Desmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid...
, Natasha Richardson
Natasha Richardson
Natasha Jane Richardson was an English actress of stage and screen. A member of the Redgrave family, she was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaughter of Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson...
, Eric McCormack
Eric McCormack
Eric James McCormack is a Canadian American actor, musician, writer and producer. Born in Toronto, he began his acting career performing in school plays at Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute High School...
, Ashley Judd
Ashley Judd
Ashley Judd is an American television and film actress, who has played lead roles in films including Ruby in Paradise, Kiss the Girls, Double Jeopardy, Where the Heart Is and High Crimes...
, Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
, Harry Belafonte
Harry Belafonte
Harold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
, Greg Louganis
Greg Louganis
Gregory "Greg" Efthimios Louganis is an American Olympic diver and author.He received the James E. Sullivan Award from the Amateur Athletic Union in 1984 as the most outstanding amateur athlete in the United States....
and Rosie O’Donnell. He also has annual World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day
World AIDS Day, observed December 1 every year, is dedicated to raising awareness of the AIDS pandemic caused by the spread of HIV infection. Government and health officials observe the day, often with speeches or forums on the AIDS topics. Since 1995, the President of the United States has made an...
promotions in his retail stores.
In August 2006, it was announced that Kenneth Cole Productions would stop selling fur in all of their garments for the Fall 2007 Fashion Season.
Cole is also very active with HELP USA (his wife Maria Cuomo Cole is currently Chair of the Board), a non-profit organization that is the nation’s largest provider of housing, jobs and services for the homeless. Recently, he partnered with rock star Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...
to create a line of jackets, t-shirts and fragrance under the Kenneth Cole New York label. The proceeds from the sale of these items supported HELP USA.
Other charity campaigns include establishing relief funds for victims of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
respectively through the sale of t-shirts, giving discounts at his retail stores for donating shoes or clothes to the homeless and hosting numerous charity shopping nights at retail stores throughout the nation.
Financial performance
Since 2008, Kenneth Cole Productions has been on a sustained revenue slide, which has led analysts from a variety of brokerage houses to cut their ratings on the stock. Kenneth Cole Productions returned to profitability in Q309; however, estimates for the coming year remain weak.Criticism
Kenneth Cole Productions has occasionally experienced difficulty adequately staffing its stores in order to properly rotate employees through mandatory rest and meal breaks. For example, on April 16, 2007, the Supreme Court of CaliforniaSupreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest state court in California. It is headquartered in San Francisco and regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Its decisions are binding on all other California state courts.-Composition:...
unanimously affirmed a trial court judgment requiring the company to pay an additional hour of pay for each day that a store manager had been forced to work a nine hour shift without a break.