New Era Cap Company
Encyclopedia
The New Era Cap Company (or just New Era), located in Buffalo
, New York
, is a headwear manufacturer. It was founded in 1920 by German immigrant Ehrhardt Koch
. New Era is the exclusive manufacturer and marketer of the official on-field cap worn by every Major League Baseball
team and their minor league
affiliates, as well as select teams in the KBO
and NPB, and maintains agreements with other licensed entities including NHL
, NBA
and over 200 colleges and universities in the United States. New Era will also become the official on-field cap provider for the National Football League in April 2012.
. In 1922, the company name was changed to New Era Cap Company. In 1932, the company designed its first version of a baseball cap. In 1934 the company started producing its first professional baseball team's caps: The Cleveland Indians
home and road caps. This was in the years before exclusive licensing, so New Era was competing with other cap-producing companies at the time. Their main competitors were Wilson
, Spalding
, Rawlings
, McAuliffe (later KM Pro, then Roman Pro)
, and a number of other companies. New Era also manufactured caps for some of those companies under private label
ing. By the 1940s, New Era was producing caps for many professional baseball teams. In the late 40s New Era unveiled their adjustable cap. However the company still mainly manufactured fitted hats.
In 1954 the fitted hat was redesigned and named the 59Fifty
, a.k.a. the 'Brooklyn Style' cap. Cloth sweatbands were also introduced at this time (leather sweatbands would be slowly phased out until the end of the 1980s). By the year 1965, New Era was supplying caps for ten Major League Baseball teams. In 1969, New Era supplied the crew of Apollo 11
Splashdown Recovery Operation with unique custom hats. New Era did the same for all later recovery missions. New Era had grown more by 1974, and now supplied 20 out of 24 Major League teams with caps. By the early 1980s, New Era not only supplied caps for 23 Major League Baseball teams, but for college sports, local, AAA and International baseball, tennis, golf, and custom orders. But in 1986 a huge step was taken. New Era (along with competitor Sports Specialties, Inc.
) was granted co-exclusive licensing and unveiled the "Diamond Collection", which they supplied to MLB teams and were sold to the general public. Wearing "What the Pros Wear" became a major trend. New Era was granted exclusive licensing for MLB caps after the 1993 season, beating out their main (and final) competitor, Sports Specialties. Now all of baseball was supplied with New Era caps for their games. In 2006, New Era, having outgrown their facility in Derby, moved to a new larger headquarters in Buffalo.
s, but the company also contracts with independent retailers who wish to carry their products. The company's first flagship store opened in May 2006 in New York City's SoHo
district. In November 2006, a second flagship store opened in the company's hometown of Buffalo
, New York
. A third store followed opening in London
in spring 2007. In August 2007, the company's Toronto
store, on Queen Street West, and Atlanta store, on the corner of Cone and Luckie, opened. New Era also has opened two more European Flagship stores, one in Berlin and another in Birmingham, and another in Tokyo.
The new visors are also larger than the previous iteration and cause the cap to sit differently on the wearer's head. Additionally, the tension caused by the new visor's increased width has altered the sizing (which, numerically, has remained unchanged) and overall appearance of what was once a classic standard.
is a style of cap made by the New Era Cap Company. They are often referred to as "Fitted Hats" by the general public. They have become increasingly fashionable in urban centers and within the hip hop, emo, hardcore, and skater cultures. Many insist on leaving the gold sticker on the top of the hat bill so their "peeps" know it is a real 59Fifty hat. They come in various sizes that range from 6 5/8 to 8 . The average price is usually around thirty-five dollars. The caps are available for every Major
and Minor League Baseball
team in an assortment of colors, as well as NHL
, AHL
, NBA
and NCAA fitted hats. The cap is also available with assorted city names and Marvel Comics
and DC Comics
character designs. 59Fifty caps have also been released in association with other brand names along with many other 59Fifty collections based on Muhammad Ali
and other athletes, celebrities. Hats have also been released for charitable causes such as the 2010 release of the skate for cancer 59Fifty hat in which 100% of the proceeds help open the Dream Love Cure Centre.
and included a gray under-visor and white sweatband (green under-visor and leather sweatbands were more common in the 1980s and before). In 2007, New Era changed the design of their on-field 59Fifty hats significantly. The hats are now made of 100% "performance polyester". Replacing the gray under-visor is a new black colored under-visor, which was made to help reduce glare. The sweatbands have been changed from white to black, in order to make sweat stains less evident. The visors are also said to have become sturdier and do not bend as easily as the older style.
In 1992, the MLB New Era 59Fifty caps featured an MLB logo on caps for the first time. At first they were on the side of the cap, but then were quickly moved to the back. The New York Yankees
were among the last teams in 1993 to wear the 59Fifty caps with the green under-visor. They didn't switch to the gray under-visor until 1994, whereas most teams switched to the gray under-visor during the late 1980s.
suburb of Derby
to its new, renovated home in the former Federal Reserve Building in downtown Buffalo.
and in 2007/2008 with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, is a headwear manufacturer. It was founded in 1920 by German immigrant Ehrhardt Koch
Ehrhardt Koch
Ehrhardt Koch was a German American businessman and founder of the New Era Cap Company.Koch was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States with his parents in the late 19th century in the East side of Buffalo, New York....
. New Era is the exclusive manufacturer and marketer of the official on-field cap worn by every Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
team and their minor league
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
affiliates, as well as select teams in the KBO
Korea Baseball Organization
The Korea Baseball Organization is the governing body for the professional leagues of baseball in South Korea. KBO should not be confused with the Korea Professional Baseball League. KBO was founded in 1981 and has been governing two leagues, Korea Professional Baseball and Futures League since...
and NPB, and maintains agreements with other licensed entities including NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
, NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
and over 200 colleges and universities in the United States. New Era will also become the official on-field cap provider for the National Football League in April 2012.
History
In 1920, Ehrhardt Koch founded his own hat company, E. Koch Cap Co. His company started with 14 employees and was located on the third floor of 1830 Geneese Street on the corner of Bailey in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
. In 1922, the company name was changed to New Era Cap Company. In 1932, the company designed its first version of a baseball cap. In 1934 the company started producing its first professional baseball team's caps: The Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
home and road caps. This was in the years before exclusive licensing, so New Era was competing with other cap-producing companies at the time. Their main competitors were Wilson
Wilson Sporting Goods
The Wilson Sporting Goods Company is a sports equipment manufacturer based in Chicago, Illinois, and currently is a foreign subsidiary of the Finnish company Amer Sports....
, Spalding
Spalding (sports equipment)
Spalding is a sporting goods company founded by Albert Spalding in Chicago, Illinois, in 1876 and now headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The company specializes in the production of balls for many sports, but is most-known for its basketballs...
, Rawlings
Rawlings (company)
Rawlings is a sports equipment manufacturing company in the United States. It was founded in 1887. The parent company is Jarden, Inc. Rawlings specializes in baseball equipment, but also manufactures softball, basketball, training equipment and American footballs...
, McAuliffe (later KM Pro, then Roman Pro)
Apparel 2000
Apparel 2000 LLC, located in Hingham, MA is an embroidery company based out of Hingham, MA, USA. It was not formerly known as The Roman Art Embroidery Co...
, and a number of other companies. New Era also manufactured caps for some of those companies under private label
Private label
Private label products or services are typically those manufactured or provided by one company for offer under another company's brand. Private label goods and services are available in a wide range of industries from food to cosmetics to web hosting...
ing. By the 1940s, New Era was producing caps for many professional baseball teams. In the late 40s New Era unveiled their adjustable cap. However the company still mainly manufactured fitted hats.
In 1954 the fitted hat was redesigned and named the 59Fifty
59Fifty
59Fifty is a brand of hats made by the New Era Cap Company based in Buffalo, New York. They are often referred to as "Fitted Hats". They have become increasingly fashionable in urban centers and within the hip-hop, emo, hardcore, and skater cultures. They come in various sizes that range from...
, a.k.a. the 'Brooklyn Style' cap. Cloth sweatbands were also introduced at this time (leather sweatbands would be slowly phased out until the end of the 1980s). By the year 1965, New Era was supplying caps for ten Major League Baseball teams. In 1969, New Era supplied the crew of Apollo 11
Apollo 11
In early 1969, Bill Anders accepted a job with the National Space Council effective in August 1969 and announced his retirement as an astronaut. At that point Ken Mattingly was moved from the support crew into parallel training with Anders as backup Command Module Pilot in case Apollo 11 was...
Splashdown Recovery Operation with unique custom hats. New Era did the same for all later recovery missions. New Era had grown more by 1974, and now supplied 20 out of 24 Major League teams with caps. By the early 1980s, New Era not only supplied caps for 23 Major League Baseball teams, but for college sports, local, AAA and International baseball, tennis, golf, and custom orders. But in 1986 a huge step was taken. New Era (along with competitor Sports Specialties, Inc.
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
) was granted co-exclusive licensing and unveiled the "Diamond Collection", which they supplied to MLB teams and were sold to the general public. Wearing "What the Pros Wear" became a major trend. New Era was granted exclusive licensing for MLB caps after the 1993 season, beating out their main (and final) competitor, Sports Specialties. Now all of baseball was supplied with New Era caps for their games. In 2006, New Era, having outgrown their facility in Derby, moved to a new larger headquarters in Buffalo.
Distribution
New Era caps are sold at large retail chainChain store
Chain stores are retail outlets that share a brand and central management, and usually have standardized business methods and practices. These characteristics also apply to chain restaurants and some service-oriented chain businesses. In retail, dining and many service categories, chain businesses...
s, but the company also contracts with independent retailers who wish to carry their products. The company's first flagship store opened in May 2006 in New York City's SoHo
SoHo
SoHo is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City, notable for being the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, and also, more recently, for the wide variety of stores and shops ranging from trendy boutiques to outlets of upscale national and international chain stores...
district. In November 2006, a second flagship store opened in the company's hometown of Buffalo
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. A third store followed opening in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in spring 2007. In August 2007, the company's Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
store, on Queen Street West, and Atlanta store, on the corner of Cone and Luckie, opened. New Era also has opened two more European Flagship stores, one in Berlin and another in Birmingham, and another in Tokyo.
Products
In March 2007, New Era changed the on-field cap in American baseball. Instead of the 100% wool caps players were used to, the company introduced caps made of 100% Performance Polyester. These alterations marked the first major change to the classic baseball hat in over twenty years. The new caps also include a black under-visor (to help reduce glare) as opposed to the old gray colored under-visors, as well as a black sweatband instead of the old white sweatbands.The new visors are also larger than the previous iteration and cause the cap to sit differently on the wearer's head. Additionally, the tension caused by the new visor's increased width has altered the sizing (which, numerically, has remained unchanged) and overall appearance of what was once a classic standard.
59Fifty
59Fifty59Fifty
59Fifty is a brand of hats made by the New Era Cap Company based in Buffalo, New York. They are often referred to as "Fitted Hats". They have become increasingly fashionable in urban centers and within the hip-hop, emo, hardcore, and skater cultures. They come in various sizes that range from...
is a style of cap made by the New Era Cap Company. They are often referred to as "Fitted Hats" by the general public. They have become increasingly fashionable in urban centers and within the hip hop, emo, hardcore, and skater cultures. Many insist on leaving the gold sticker on the top of the hat bill so their "peeps" know it is a real 59Fifty hat. They come in various sizes that range from 6 5/8 to 8 . The average price is usually around thirty-five dollars. The caps are available for every Major
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
and Minor League Baseball
Minor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
team in an assortment of colors, as well as NHL
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
, AHL
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
, NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
and NCAA fitted hats. The cap is also available with assorted city names and Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
and DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
character designs. 59Fifty caps have also been released in association with other brand names along with many other 59Fifty collections based on Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is an American former professional boxer, philanthropist and social activist...
and other athletes, celebrities. Hats have also been released for charitable causes such as the 2010 release of the skate for cancer 59Fifty hat in which 100% of the proceeds help open the Dream Love Cure Centre.
59Fifty and Major League Baseball
The 59fifty is the official on-field cap for every major and minor league baseball team. In recent years, the 59Fifty caps were made of 100% woolWool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
and included a gray under-visor and white sweatband (green under-visor and leather sweatbands were more common in the 1980s and before). In 2007, New Era changed the design of their on-field 59Fifty hats significantly. The hats are now made of 100% "performance polyester". Replacing the gray under-visor is a new black colored under-visor, which was made to help reduce glare. The sweatbands have been changed from white to black, in order to make sweat stains less evident. The visors are also said to have become sturdier and do not bend as easily as the older style.
In 1992, the MLB New Era 59Fifty caps featured an MLB logo on caps for the first time. At first they were on the side of the cap, but then were quickly moved to the back. The New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
were among the last teams in 1993 to wear the 59Fifty caps with the green under-visor. They didn't switch to the gray under-visor until 1994, whereas most teams switched to the gray under-visor during the late 1980s.
Cap styles
Along with the 59Fifty, New Era produces styles like the 49Forty, 39Thirty, 29Twenty, EK, Capture the Flag, and also designs women's and kids' caps.- The 49Forty is fitted, has a lower profile than the 59Fifty, and has a more casual, collegiate look.
- The 39Thirty is a stretch fit cap, and is used by MLB as the batting practice cap.
- The 29Twenty is an adjustable, unstructured cap.
- The 9FIFTY Snapback is a high crown, structured cap with a snap enclosure on the rear.
- The EK line consists of designed premium hats and caps. The line speaks to the roots of the company's product origins.
- Capture the Flag headwear is designed by celebrities and sold exclusively through boutiques in select cities around the world and only produces 288 of each cap designed.
Company move
On November 21, 2006, New Era moved its headquarters from the BuffaloBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
suburb of Derby
Derby, New York
Derby, New York is a hamlet in Erie County, New York, USA. It is the Postal Address for much of the Town of Evans, within which Derby is fully contained. The Derby zip code is 14047. Derby is also home to the North Evans fire District which includes Highland Hose Volunteer Fire Company and the...
to its new, renovated home in the former Federal Reserve Building in downtown Buffalo.
Labor history
New Era has had two labor situations in its 88-year history. In 2001, with the Communications Workers of AmericaCommunications Workers of America
Communications Workers of America is the largest communications and media labor union in the United States representing about 550,000 members in both the private and public sectors. The union has 27 locals in Canada via CWA-SCA Canada representing about 8,000 members...
and in 2007/2008 with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.