Jump to content

American Apparel

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Mrcomeara (talk | contribs) at 01:40, 18 June 2009 (→Woody Allen Lawsuit: spelling corrections). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

American Apparel, Inc.
Company typePublic (AMEX: APP)
IndustryGarments manufacturer
FoundedLos Angeles, California
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California
Key people
Dov Charney, President and CEO
Marty Bailey, President of Manufacturing
Manou Vaezi,Purchasing Director
Adrian Kowalewski, CFO
Glenn Weinman, General Counsel
Nicolle Gabbay, Head of Retail Operations
Patricia Honda, Customer Service Manager[1]
ProductsClothing
RevenueUS$387 million (net sales, 2007)[2]
Number of employees
10,000 (2008)[3]
Websitewww.americanapparel.net

American Apparel (AMEX: APP) is the largest clothing manufacturer in the United States.[4] It is a vertically-integrated clothing manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer that also performs its own design, advertising, and marketing. It is best-known for making basic cotton knitwear such as t-shirts and underwear, but in recent years has expanded to include tank tops, vintage clothing, dresses, pants, denim and accessories for men, women, children, babies and dogs. The company is known for a number of progressive policies including promoting immigrant rights and labor policies the company dubs "sweatshop free."[5]

Company formation and growth

Shopper at a Los Angeles store

In 1997, company founder and CEO Dov Charney, who had run several related clothing enterprises, moved his manufacturing to Los Angeles and began to sub-contract sewing with Sam Lim who, at the time, had a shop with 50 workers under the Interstate 10 freeway in Los Angeles. Months later the two became partners.[6] In 2000 American Apparel moved into its current factory in downtown Los Angeles. The company also operates a dye house and knitting facility located in Los Angeles.[7]

After its success as a wholesale brand, the company moved into the retail market. The company was ranked 308th in Inc.'s 2005 list of the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States, with a 440% three-year growth and revenues in 2005 of over US$ 211 million.[8]

In late 2006 American Apparel announced a reverse merger, in which Endeavor Acquisition Corp., a special-purpose acquisition company founded in July 2005, bought the company for $360 million.[9][10] The merger closed in December 2007, at which point American Apparel became a publicly traded company.[11] As a result, Charney became the President and Chief Executive Officer of the publicly traded company known as American Apparel, Inc. He remained the majority shareholder, and PR reps have told the media that all employees of American Apparel were given 500 shares of stock in the new company -- though as of April 2009 the stock has yet to be distributed as agreed.[12][13]

It is also one of the few companies exporting 'Made in the USA' goods and in 2007 sold about $125 million dollars of domestically manufactured clothing outside of America.[14]

Production

American Apparel's headquarters and factory in Los Angeles

Whereas most other companies selling clothing in the United States base production elsewhere, American Apparel bases its manufacturing in an 800,000-square-foot (74,000 m2) factory in downtown Los Angeles, California. The company also owns and operates its own fabric dye house, garment dye house, and knitting facility, all based in Los Angeles.[15][16] American Apparel has decided not to outsource its labor, paying factory workers an average of over $12 dollars an hour.[5] Garment workers for similar American companies in China, earn approximately 40 cents per hour.[17] It claims to have the 'highest earning apparel workers in the world'.[18]

The company uses "team manufacturing" which pools the strongest workers towards priority orders.[19] Each team functions autonomously and determines its own daily production schedule, giving them control over their own hourly wages.[20]After its implementation, garment production tripled and required a less than 20% staff increase.[19] The factory claims to have the capacity to produce 1 million shirts per week[21] and manufacture 275,000 pieces a day[14].[22] According to The New York Times it is the largest single garment factory in the United States and employs over 4,000 people across two buildings.[23][24]

A banner on top of the downtown factory states "American Apparel is an Industrial Revolution."[25] As of December 2008, banners on top of the factories state "Legalize LA" and "Immigration Reform Now!"

Vertical integration

American Apparel is a vertically-integrated company.[26] The integration extends to 185 retail storefronts, all of which are owned by the company.[27] By integrating all aspects of production and avoiding outsourcing, the company achieves a fast turn-around time from design concept to finished product.[7] On Charlie Rose, founder Dov Charney discussed the process of developing new merchandise in their unique retail system, saying that it took just a "couple of weeks" for a bathing suit to go from idea to the retail floor. He claimed that a garment could be designed on Monday and be sold in London the following week.[28][29]

Retail

Retail storefront

The company's expansion into retail was the fastest retail roll out in American history.[30] In 2003 American Apparel opened company stores in Los Angeles, Montreal, and New York to nearly $80 million dollars in sales[31] As of 2008 the company has more than 200 stores worldwide and continues rapid retail growth, with new stores in the United States, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Netherlands, Switzerland, China, Germany, Canada, France, Sweden, Mexico, United Kingdom, Brazil and Australia. Stores are planned or under development for Belgium, Iceland, Ireland, Spain, [23], China[32], and Hawaii.[33]

American Apparel retail stores are marketed and designed individually rather than homogeneously.[34] Store designs are sparse and typically cost between $100,000 and $400,000 to develop.[34] The company tends to reject midtown, high rent locations and generally avoids in-mall stores.[34] The stores are often hubs for urban renewal since the company looks for low-rent but high traffic locations like Houston, Little Tokyo, New Orleans, college towns and most recently across from the Apollo Theater on 125th in Harlem.[35][34] In some stores, the decor features Penthouse covers from 1970s and 1980s - a style that has been controversial.[36] When scouting for locations, it considers urban areas that can be revitalized.[37] After opening on Southwest Stark Street in Portland, Oregon American Apparel was joined by a vintage clothing store, sushi restaurant, shoe shop and modern-styled hotel.[37] In some cases, the company sublets parts of retail locations to other businesses of the same demographic, bringing additional retailers to previously unoccupied space.[37] The bulk of American Apparel retail venues are in New York City and California.[38][34]

AmericanApparelStore.com[39] is the company's e-commerce sales hub.[40] It carries an online inventory of roughly 250,000 SKUs and receives 1.5 million visitors per month.[41] Online sales grew from $13.3 million in 2006 to $29.3 million in 2007.[41] The company site runs on the Yahoo Stores platform and is included in the Internet Retailer 500 Index.[41][42]

In late 2007, American Apparel opened a retail location for vintage clothing called California Select in Echo Park, a district of Los Angeles [43] Shortly afterward, the company began selling vintage clothing through an eBay store of the same name.[7][44] In 2008, the company was named "Retailer of the Year", following Calvin Klein and Oscar de la Renta.[45][46]

Wholesale

American Apparel began by selling high-quality t-shirts to screen-printers and boutiques in 1990 underneath the American HEAVY label.[47] Although it has made its transition into a primarily retail brand, the company is still one of the largest wholesalers in the country. American Apparel shirts are used as band merchandise and concert t-shirts for the bands Wilco, Death Cab for Cutie, Metric, and Flogging Molly as well as websites like Busted Tees and the I Can Has Cheezburger? store.[48] All shirts sold on Shirt.Woot are printed on American Apparel tees.[49] People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the animal rights advocacy group, prints its merchandise on American Apparel clothes because they are made domestically and animal-free.[50]

Branding and advertising

American Apparel designs, creates and prints its own advertisements.[51][52] The company is known for its provocative and controversial advertising campaigns, which is largely the inspiration of the company CEO Dov Charney. According to Adage, American Apparel's advertising 'telegraphs the brand' from person to person[53] Their print campaigns are widely considered to be some of the best in the industry[54] The sexually charged advertising has been criticized, but has also been lauded for honesty and lack of airbrushing.[55][56] American Apparel images often display subjects with their blemishes, imperfections and asymmetrical features highlighted and attached with brief, personal descriptions.[23] Many of models in American Apparel's sexual advertising are recruited by Charney and his colleagues on the street, or company stores; others are selected after sending their photos directly to the company website.[23]

For a time, Charney promoted a branding strategy that spotlighted his treatment of workers as a selling point for the company's merchandise, promoting American Apparel's goods as "sweatshop free."[26] In 2008, the company took out a series of political ads featuring the corporate logo that called current immigration laws an "apartheid system."[57] In regards to the company's image overseas, advisor Harry Parnass stated that the brand is about aspiration and that they are "selling the American dream."[58]He dismissed competitors who do the same but refuse to manufacture in America.[59]

The company has also used adult actresses in some of its ads including Lauren Phoenix, Charlotte Stokely, Sasha Grey[60] and Faye Reagan.[61][62] In the 1990s, Karl Lagerfeld used pornstar Moana Pozzi in a runway show to similar controversy.[63]

In 2005 the company was named "Marketer of the Year" at the first-ever LA Fashion Awards.[64] Women's Wear Daily published a survey in April 2007 from Outlaw Consulting, a creative research firm tracking the habits of 21-to 27-year olds, which ranked American Apparel as the 8th most trusted brand, ahead of such clothing brands as H&M and Levi's.[65] In January 2008 the Intelligence Group, a trend and market research firm, listed American Apparel as their number two Top Trendsetting Brand, behind only Nike.[66] In 2008, The Guardian named American Apparel "Label of the Year".[67]

American Apparel also briefly experimented with advertising in Second Life with a virtual store on the an island named Lerappa but shuttered the operation in the fourth quarter of 2007[68][69]

In 2007, American Apparel put up two billboards, one in New York and one in Los Angeles, featuring an image of Woody Allen's character from the movie Annie Hall and Yiddish text, for a period of one week.[70] According to Charney, the billboards were a satire and allegory alluding to both the scene in the movie and the similar controversy experienced by both individuals.[70] Allen strongly objected to this use of his image and sued the company for $10 million dollars..[71]

Although the company said as early as May 2008 that the billboards were meant "strictly as social parody"[71], there was much debate over whether American Apparel's lawyers would unfairly use Allen's personal life, namely his affair with Soon-Yi Previn as their defense at the trial.[72] Charney claimed that these rumors were outright false and that his speech was firmly protected by the First Amendment.[73] In May of 2009, the case was settled by the insurance company for $5 million dollars.[70]

Legalize LA and Legalize Gay

Main article: Legalize LA

In addition to participating in a variety of immigration protests, the company launched an advertising and advocacy campaign called "Legalize LA"[74]. The campaign featured advertisements in national papers like The New York Times as well as billboards, t-shirts, bus ads and posters.[57] The company also maintains a Legalize LA portion of their website that features news articles relating to immigration reform, the brand and information on the history of the issue.[75]

After the passing of Prop 8 (which makes same sex marriage illegal in the state) in California in November 2008, American Apparel launched the Legalize Gay campaign.[76] It is similar to the Legalize LA campaign, and shirts with "Legalize Gay" and "Repeal Prop 8" printed on them in the same style as the shirts of Legalize LA can now be purchased.

Corporate culture and employment

The production system of American Apparel centralizes most of its employees in a single location. By not outsourcing, Charney believes that he knows his workers better and that it ties them directly to the brand.[77] A banner on top of the downtown factory states "American Apparel is an Industrial Revolution." [78]

Charney has stated that American Apparel hires its creatives by their sense of culture and fashion, not their resume.[79] Conversely, the company has also been accused of focusing on personal style and outward appearance in its hiring practices for retail positions.[80] American Apparel has been subject to several sexual harassment lawsuits, three were dismissed or settled while another remanded to arbitration[81][82] A fifth was recently filed, premiering on the front page of TMZ.com.[83] In an attempt to resolve one of the cases in which the plaintiff confessed that she had not been subjected to sexual harassment, American Apparel was reprimanded in an opinion by the Second Appellate District for then attempting to issue a press release about the case mentioning an arbitration hearing that had, in fact, never taken place. [84][85] The company and others have publicly accused a lawyer representing a majority of the suits against American Apparel of extortion and of "shaking the company down."[86][87]

According to Charney, the unconventional corporate culture at American Apparel is responsible for the company's creativity and rapid growth.[88] He's stated that the company is open about sexuality and its culture because "young people like honesty."[89]

Labor

File:Legalizelaaa.jpg
Legalize LA banner displayed at company headquarters

As of 2008 the company employs over 10,000 people and operates over 200 retail locations in 18 countries.[14][90] The company pays its manufacturing employees an average of US$12 per hour[5]. According to the San Francisco Chronicle the average factory worker at the company makes $80-120 per day, or roughly $500 per week compared to the $30-40 made daily at most other Los Angeles-based garment factories.[91] Employees also receive benefits such as paid time off, health care, company-subsidized lunches, bus passes, free English as an additional language classes, on-site masseurs, free bicycles and on-site bike mechanics, free parking in addition to the proper lighting and ventilation.[92]. Every floor of the factory includes free telephones where workers can take and receive long distance phone calls.[93] The company's employees in foreign countries do not receive the same hourly wages as their Los Angeles counterparts.[32] However, employees in China will earn US Federal minimum wage.[32] After going public, the company offered employees as much as $40 million in stock shares.[33] The plan grants employees roughly 1 share of stock for every workday they'd spent at the company.[94] Approximately 4,000 of the company's employees are eligible for the program.[94] The waiting list for employment at American Apparel has over 2,000 names on it.[95]

The company's employees are not unionized. In 2003, the UNITE launched a union drive at the factory.[96][97] American Apparel countered that the union was "trying to politically force American Apparel into embracing it, regardless of worker interest."[98] In a letter to The Nation, Charney claimed that workers organized a grassroots protest of the union demonstration itself and used it as evidence of the union's unpopularity.[98] The organization reported American Apparel to the National Labor Relations Board for interference with the drive.[99] However, American Apparel was not charged as a result of the claims.[100] Additionally, the nonprofit Garment Worker Center, which usually supports UNITE, did not sanction or back their efforts against American Apparel.[101]As part of the settlement, the company posted a document stating that it would not interfere with worker's rights to unionize.[102]

New York Times reporter Rob Walker wrote about the controversy in his book Buying In and revealed that since the unionization drive, the company Sweat X which was held up as the example for what American Apparel should be, had since gone out of business. He quotes Charney saying more explicitly that "[Sweat X]... fucking failed."[103]

Support for immigration reform

As early as 2001, American Apparel has been a vocal advocate for reform of U.S. immigration laws.[104] On May 1, 2002 American Apparel shut down its factory to allow the company's workers, many of whom are immigrants, to participate in a pro-immigration rally in downtown Los Angeles. Dov Charney, a Canadian immigrant, also marched alongside the workers.[105] American Apparel participates annually in the May 1st Immigration March and Rally in downtown Los Angeles. In 2008, they added a route from their factory that eventually connected with other supporters near the city hall.[106] The company's politics were eventually spun off into the Legalize LA advertising campaign.

Environmental policies

File:Aasolar.jpg
Solar panels on the roof of American Apparel's downtown factory

The company promotes environmentally friendly practices and is known for its innovations in sustainability due to vertical integration.[107][108]

American Apparel maintains a bicycle lending program for its employees[109] and according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals it is a vegan-friendly clothing company.[110] As of 2007 the company planned to increase its use of organic cotton within the next four years from over 20% to 80%. American Apparel also sells a line of shirts under the "Sustainable" label that are 100% USDA organic cotton.[111][112] In 2008, American Apparel received publicity for purchasing over 30,000 pounds of organic cotton known as B.A.S.I.C cotton.[113]

American Apparel installed a 146 kilowatt solar electric system on its factory roof, designed to reduce power costs by at least 20%.[114] These panels power as much as 30% of the factory.[115]The company also recycles its fabric scraps.[116] Much of the company's underwear line is made from these recycled fabric scraps that would have otherwise been wasted.[115] According to estimates, it saves about 30,000 pounds of cotton per week.[115][117] However, the company has been criticized for leaving its store doors open with the air conditioner running.[118]

Woody Allen Lawsuit

In 2009 American Apparel paid $5 million to filmmaker Woody Allen to settle a lawsuit, brought after billboards in New York and Los Angeles that showed Mr. Allen dressed as a Hasidic Jew, a scene from "Annie Hall." Mr. Allen claimed the photo on the billboards was used without his permission. In a statement, Mr. Allen said: "American Apparel calculatingly took my name, my likeness, and image and used them publicly to promote their business. ... I hope this very large settlement will discourage American Apparel and others from doing this type of thing to myself and others in the future."[119]. During the lawsuit, Allen accused the clothing company of trying to harass and intimidate him with a "scorched earth" approach to defending itself against the $10 million lawsuit. Allen's lawyers said the company was seeking to "tarnish Mr. Allen's reputation a second time" and called it a "despicable effort to intimidate" him. American Apparel lawyer Stuart Slotnick said the company's belief was that "after the various sex scandals that Woody Allen has been associated with, corporate America's desire to have Woody Allen endorse their product is not what he may believe it is." Allen testified at a December 2008 deposition that he considered the company's advertising to be "sleazy" and "infantile."[120]

Philanthropy

In 2005, the company hosted a bikini car wash benefit with the American Red Cross to raise money for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.[121][122] Two employees of the company packaged and delivered 80,000 shirts to the relief effort.[123] As an underwriter of Farm Aid, American Apparel donates the blank shirts that the organization prints and sells as merchandise.[124][125]

References

  1. ^ "Company Information". American Apparel. Retrieved 2008-03-18.
  2. ^ "American Apparel Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2007 Financial Results". Business Wire (American Apparel press release). March 17. Retrieved 2008-03-18. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ LA Mayor Villaraigosa praises LA-based clothing manufacturer American Apparel PublicRadio.org 9/2008
  4. ^ Dov Charney. American Apparel - Don Charney Interview (YouTube). CBS News. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)@3:50
  5. ^ a b c New York Post - T-Shirts, As Far As the Eye Can See - Maxine Shen - March 24, 2004
  6. ^ Apparel News -Angeleno Style - Alison A. Niedler - August 2000
  7. ^ a b "Segment of Modern Marvels: Cotton". The History Channel via AmericanApparel.net. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  8. ^ "Inc. No. 308:American Apparel". inc.com. 2006-08-01. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. ^ "American Apparel's unusual flotation is typical of Dov Charney, its founder". The Economist via AmericanApparel.net. 2007-01-04. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  10. ^ Andrew Ross Sorkin and Michael Barbaro (2006-12-19). "Provocative Retail Chain Is Acquired". New York Times. Retrieved 2008-03-12.
  11. ^ American Stock Exchange Announces Closing of Endeavor Acquisition and American Apparel Merger[1]
  12. ^ Endeavour Acquisitions Corp. SEC Proxy Statement Schedule 14A, June 5, 2007
  13. ^ Kang, Stephanie (2006-12-19). "American Apparel Seeks Growth Through An Unusual Deal". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  14. ^ a b c "An Interview With American Apparel Founder Dov Charney". Market Watch. September 9, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-21.
  15. ^ Press Release: American Apparel Purchases Assets from U.S. Dyeing & Finishing, Inc. accessed 6/22/08
  16. ^ True colors: some dyeing operations thrive, others fail - Los Angeles Business Journal - October 10, 2005[2]
  17. ^ "Good Luck Competing Against Chinese Labor Costs Mfg. Job Growth In China Is Headed Up, Not Down; 109 Million Mfg. Workers In China Dwarfs Number In U.S." Manufacturing and Technology News. 2006-05-02. Retrieved 2008-04-28. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. ^ Mayor Villaraigosa visits American Apparel as company announces employment milestones PublicRadio.org KPCC 9/2008
  19. ^ a b Falsh, Derek (2007-02-01). "Keep Your Fashion in Great Shape". The Pitt News. Retrieved 2008-04-28. "His team manufacturing..."
  20. ^ American Apparel BenCorman.com June 2008. "More important than the pay is the functional organization. Instead of having an assembly line system where people are disconnected from each other, people are organized into groups and the group decides how many articles of clothing they're going to make that hour. Since everyone is paid a base of $8 an hour and then a bonus for hitting certain production goals, the group decides how hard to work and how much to make in a day.
  21. ^ AMERICAN APPAREL, INC - APP Current report filing (8-K) "Capacity to produce over 1 million T-shirts per week with significant potential to expand."
  22. ^ Dov Charney. American Apparel - Don Charney Interview (YouTube). CBS News. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)@3:28
  23. ^ a b c d Jamie Wolf (2006-04-23). "And You Thought Abercrombie & Fitch Was Pushing It?". New York Times Magazine. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ inside american apparel: 4,000 downtown employees and counting Angelenic.com June 2008
  25. ^ Flickr "American Apparel is an Industrial Revolution". June 19th, 2008
  26. ^ a b Greenberg, David (2004-05-31). "Sew what? American Apparel founder Dov Charney wants to de-emphasize the fact he doesn't use sweatshop labor; he's just trying to sell a better T-shirt - People". Los Angeles Business Journal. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
  27. ^ Dov Charney. Charlie Rose (YouTube). PBS. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)
  28. ^ Dov Charney. Charlie Rose (YouTube). PBS. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help) 32:40
  29. ^ Joellen, Perry (2004-05-17). "Made in American: Some Consumers- and firms - prefer homemade goods". US News and World Report. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help) "I can cut on Monday, sew Tuesday through Thursday, and ship on Friday."
  30. ^ Dov Charney. American Apparel - Don Charney Interview (YouTube). CBS News. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)"fastest retail roll out in American history"
  31. ^ DNR - All the Way to the Blank - Lee Bailey - March 22, 2004
  32. ^ a b c Harmon, Andrew (2008-03-17). "American Apparel Expands To China". DNR. Retrieved 2008-04-07. "[Wages] will not be the same as the L.A. workers, but we will make sure that every worker in China receives at least a U.S. federal minimum wage per hour worked,” Charney said."
  33. ^ a b Wu, Nina. "American Apparel opening store in Waikiki". Star Bulletin. Retrieved 2008-04-01.
  34. ^ a b c d e Hirschfeld, Bob (2006-12-19). "American Apparel Rides Marketing, Site-Selection to Success". Retail Traffic Mag.
  35. ^ American Apparel Mapped Curbed LA
  36. ^ Walker book pg 224"
  37. ^ a b c Eskenazi, Stuart (2005-10-22). [www.portlandtenspeed.com/pdfs/The%20Seattle%20Times.pdf "Hot Retailer..."] (PDF). The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2008-04-28. {{cite news}}: Check |url= value (help) "In a few instances..."
  38. ^ Map of American Apparel stores in Manhattan Racked.com
  39. ^ [3]
  40. ^ www.americanapparelstore.com
  41. ^ a b c "AmericanApparel.net dresses for more success". Internet Retailer. 2008-05-14. Retrieved 2008-05-28.
  42. ^ [4] Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide] 2008.
  43. ^ "On Our Radar: American Apparel Does Vintage". Fabsugarl. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
  44. ^ American Apparel Launches California Select Fashionindie.com May 30th, 2008
  45. ^ "Dov Charney of American Apparel Named Retailer of the Year". PR News Wire. 2008-05-12. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
  46. ^ Fashionista: Dov Charney, Winner "Dov Charney was just named Retailer of the Year for his work as the Creative Director and entrepreneur behind American Apparel. The award's previously gone to Calvin Klein and Oscar de la Renta.
  47. ^ Charney, Dov. "My Name is Dov Charney". DovCharney.com. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
  48. ^ Danton, Eric (April 29, 2005). "A Quiet Company Makes Big Bang on T-Shirt Market". CTnow. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  49. ^ What is Shirt Woot "Woot Tees are 100% cotton blank shirts made by American Apparel in Los Angeles, California."
  50. ^ Wanna Know What PETA Said? Going Green For Life Blog. June 2008
  51. ^ Palmeri, Christopher (2005-06-27). "Living on the Edge at American Apparel". Businessweek. Retrieved 2008-03-22. "Charney takes many of the photos himself, often using company employees as models as well as people he finds on the street."
  52. ^ American Apparel BenCorman.com June 2008. See Photograph "All advertisements are done in house as well."
  53. ^ Spector, Matt (2008-07-18). "'Gossip Girl' and Others Branding Sex in Ads". ABC News. Retrieved 2008-07-25. Advertising Age magazine editor-at large Matthew Creamer said Charney's team develops consistent ads that "telegraph the brand."
  54. ^ Daily Update: Top Of the Charts
  55. ^ Stossel, John (2005-12-02). "Sexy Sweats Without the Sweatshop". ABC News. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  56. ^ Morford, Mark (2005-06-24). "Porn Stars in My Underwear". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-03-21.
  57. ^ a b Story, Louise (2008-01-18). "Politics Wrapped in a Clothing Ad". ABC New. Retrieved 2008-03-25.
  58. ^ CNBC's Made in China American Apparel in China Jul. 21 2008
  59. ^ [http://www.americanapparel.net/presscenter/dailyupdate/dailyUp.asp?d=0&t=1165 American Dream] AmericanApparel.net Daily Update "Without compromise, we sell that idea and Parnass calls out companies that sell the American lifestyle but still don't manufacture at home."
  60. ^ Sarah Estrella (December 30, 2008). "Sasha Grey and American Apparel: Selling socks the sexy way". The Examiner. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
  61. ^ Credited as "Jillian". "American Apparel - Photo collections". American Apparel. Retrieved 2009-04-26..
  62. ^ "American Apparel ad: Yup, that's a porn star". Blast Magazine Newsroom. August 1, 2008. Retrieved 2009-04-26.
  63. ^ MORRISS, BERNADINE (October 7, 1993). "Review/Fashion; Mere Meets More in Milan". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
  64. ^ Grace Cerrone - lasplash.com - LA Fashion Awards - 2005 [5]
  65. ^ Kevin Ransom (2007-04-20). "Reign Of The Plain: Survey Finds Gen Ys Prefer Brand Simple". MediaPost. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  66. ^ "Cassandra Report" (PDF). Intelligence Group. 2008-01. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  67. ^ Vernon, Polly (30 November 2008). "American Apparel Label of the Year". The Guardian. Retrieved 2009-02-12.
  68. ^ "American Apparel Breaks New Ground". Linden Research, Inc. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
  69. ^ "Sorry, We're Closed". American Apparel Inc. 2007-02-27. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
  70. ^ a b c Charney, Dov (May 18th, 2009). "Statement from Dov Charney, founder and CEO of American Apparel". The Guardian. Retrieved May 22, 2009. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  71. ^ a b Harmon, Andrew (2008-04-02). "American Apparel Defends Woody Allen Billboard". DNR. Retrieved 2008-04-21.
  72. ^ Dave Itzkoff (2009-04-16). "Woody Allen vs. American Apparel". New York Times.
  73. ^ A Statement from Dov Charney Daily Update, AmericanApparel.net May 2009
  74. ^ The May Day Marches - Claire Hoffman - The Los Angeles Times - 2006-05-02 "The iconoclastic chief executive of American Apparel Inc. not only gave 3,300 of his employees the day off, but he also supplied them with T-shirts emblazoned with a pro-immigration message," "By noon, Charney had left the factory and joined his workers and their families, who had arranged to march together on Broadway," "American Apparel, with about 130 stores around the world, has a history of supporting May Day marches: In past years, employees were given half the day off and bused to protests.
  75. ^ Legalize LA subpage
  76. ^ [http://legalizegay.com LegalizeGay.com
  77. ^ Carmichael, Evan. "Dov Charney Quotes". EvanCarmichael.com. Retrieved 2008-03-28. "You know the face of your worker... engineers and designers and finance people and knitters and dyers and chemists can come together in one location and say, ‘How can we do this better?’ You can produce products more efficiently than they can be made on an outsource basis."
  78. ^ Dov Charney. American Apparel - Don Charney Interview (YouTube). CBS News. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help)@8:13
  79. ^ Dov Charney. Charlie Rose (YouTube). PBS. {{cite AV media}}: External link in |medium= (help); Unknown parameter |year2= ignored (help) 32:00
  80. ^ Jamie Huff (2006). "Sweatshop Free but Still Exploitative:Sexual Harassment at American Apparel" (pdf). Chrestomathy: Annual Review of Undergraduate Research, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, School of Languages, Cultures, and World Affairs, College of Charleston. 5: 153–67. {{cite journal}}: line feed character in |journal= at position 80 (help)
  81. ^ Hall, Caral (2008-01-17). "Lawsuit has fashion mogul in spotlight". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2008-03-28. "The case is the fourth against him alleging sexual harassment. One was dismissed. Two others were combined and settled. He has denied the charges in all of them."
  82. ^ Brennan, Margaret (2008-03-06). "American Apparel's Dov Charney: An Update". CNBC. Retrieved 2008-03-28.
  83. ^ TMZ: My Boss is a Jerk Off
  84. ^ Stein, Sadie (2008-10-31). "Tangled Webs: Dov Charney's Court Case is Totally Complicated". Jezebel. Retrieved 2008-11-04. In response, Ms. Nelson's lawyer, Mr. Fink, devised a settlement agreement whereby his client would agree to certain stipulations amounting to a confession that her charges of sexual harassment were bogus, and that she had never been subject to any harassment or a hostile work environment.
  85. ^ Slater, Dan (2008-11-04). "The Story Behind American Apparel's Sham Arbitration". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2008-11-05. The court went on to say that 'the proposed press release is materially misleading — among other things, no real arbitration of a dispute occurred and [the] plaintiff received $1.3 million in compensation.'
  86. ^ NAKED SHAKEDOWN: DOV CHARNEY IS THE VICTIM! HollywoodInterrupted.com Dec. 2008
  87. ^ Chaudhuri, Saabira (Dec 2nd, 2008). "American Apparel Aims to Bring Down "Celebrity Ambulance Chasing" Lawyer". Fast Company. Retrieved 2008-03-28. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  88. ^ Carmichael, Evan. "Lesson #3: Conventions Are Not For The Creative Entrepreneur". EvanCarmichael.com. Retrieved 2008-03-28. “We plan to continue to behave in a contrarian matter,” Charney says. “This creative environment is what got us to this point. We certainly aren’t going to stop doing it now after we created a highly profitable company.”
  89. ^ Walker book pg 225 "It wasn't mere imagery; it was honesty. 'Young people like honesty', he said."
  90. ^ "American Apparel to report Q4 2007 financial results". Fibre 2 Fashion. 2008-03-17. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
  91. ^ Strasburg, Jenny (2004-07-04). "Made in the U.S.A". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2008-03-27. "At American Apparel, he says that he works 7:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. most days, with a lunch break, and makes anywhere from $80 to $120 per day... rarely earned more than $30 or $40 a day at other factories.... Its sewing-machine operators commonly make more than $500 a week...."
  92. ^ Linda Baker (2004-02-11). "Made in the U.S. of A.?". Salon.com. Retrieved 2007-11-25. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  93. ^ inside american apparel: 4,000 downtown employees and counting Angelenic.com June 2008 "perhaps most touchingly, free long-distance phone service on every floor of the building."
  94. ^ a b "American Apparel Announces Further Details of $39 Million Employee Stock Grant". Business Week. 2008-01-03. Retrieved 2008-04-07. "This equates to roughly one share of stock for each workday."
  95. ^ Bell, Michele (August 2004). "Dov Charney: Rebel With A Cause". The Counnselor. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)"There's a waiting list 2,000 names strong to work at American Apparel."
  96. ^ Apparel News - Influential in 2002 - December 2002
  97. ^ Ari Paul (2005-08-04). "Wolf in Sheeps Clothing". In These Times. Retrieved 2007-12-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  98. ^ a b Charney, Dov. "Letters: American Apparel & United". The Nation. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
  99. ^ Stephen Wishart. Behindthelabel.org (January 2005) The Truth Behind American Apparel: Sweatshop free or Union buster?
  100. ^ Ari Paul (2005-08-04). "Wolf in Sheeps Clothing". In These Times. Retrieved 2008-04-05. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  101. ^ Walker pg 219 "Indeed, the San Francisco Chronicle pointed out that the nonprofit Garment Worker Center... did not...."
  102. ^ Ari Paul (2005-08-04). "Wolf in Sheeps Clothing". In These Times. Retrieved 2008-04-05. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) "As part of a no-contest settlement, the company voluntarily posted a notice informing workers that it would not interfere with their rights to organize."
  103. ^ Walker, Rob Buying In: The Secret Dialog Between What We Buy and Who We Are Random House. New York 2008 pg 219
  104. ^ Louise Story - The New York Times - January 18, 2008[6]
  105. ^ May 1,March for Workers Rights - 05_2002
  106. ^ American Apparel Homepage: Legalize LA
  107. ^ PSFK - Piers Fawkes - October 4, 2007 "Why Build Sustainability Into Your Business?".
  108. ^ AA is Apparel Magazine's Sustainability All-Star Daily Update March 2009
  109. ^ "American Apparel bicycle program provides healthy benefits to employees and environment". Wearables Business. 2004-04-04. Retrieved 2008-03-24.
  110. ^ Animal-Friendly Fashion Retailer, Cosmetics Maker Capture Youth Vote on peta2.com, PETA, November 30, 2006 {{citation}}: Unknown parameter |url http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id= ignored (help)
  111. ^ American Apparel Organics: Sustainable Edition, retrieved 2008-03-24
  112. ^ Sustainable Edition Organic Fine Jersey Short Sleeve T-Shirt, retrieved 2008-03-24
  113. ^ American Apparel Makes Big Cleaner Cotton Purchase, retrieved 2008-04-28 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |unused_data= (help); Text "publisher: Environmental Leader" ignored (help)
  114. ^ RenewableEnergyaccess.com (January 27, 2006).Downtown L.A. Clothing Company Goes Solar
  115. ^ a b c Margolis, Sharon, It’s OK to Like American Apparel, retrieved 2008-07-24 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |unused_data= (help); Text "publisher: Greenstockd" ignored (help)
  116. ^ Josh Sims, "Organic Consumers Association" (July 6, 2006). Look Good, Save the Earth
  117. ^ American Apparel takes environmental stand by recycling over 1 million pounds of cotton cuttings per year, retrieved 2002-08-13 {{citation}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |unused_data= (help); Text "publisher: Financial Times (via American Apparel Press Center)" ignored (help)
  118. ^ Eco Complaints at 'Good' Stores PSFK.com Access Date: July 2008
  119. ^ http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124265734071730621.html
  120. ^ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/04/16/woody-allen-american-appa_n_187815.html
  121. ^ Hall, Steve, Bikini Car Wash Raises Money For Katrina, retrieved 2008-03-36 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  122. ^ WireImage: Pictures from American Apparel Carwash
  123. ^ "Delivering the Good -- News". Los Angeles Garment and Citizen. 2005-10-12. Retrieved 2008-03-26.
  124. ^ Farm Aid: Merchandise Description
  125. ^ Grossberg  , Josh (2006-08-31). "Farm Aid Gets Polka On". E! News. Retrieved 2008-03-26. {{cite news}}: line feed character in |last= at position 10 (help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
Wikiquote has quotations related to American Apparel.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=American_Apparel&oldid=297074308"