|
Fruit of the Loom is an American company which manufactures clothing, particularly underwear. The company's world headquarters are based in Bowling Green, Kentucky. One manufacturing facility still remains in Jamestown, Kentucky, and several other facilities are located across the Southeastern United States, from Louisiana to the Carolinas. Other facilities exist in Canada, El Salvador, Honduras, Europe and North Africa. Until the late 1990s, much of the manufacturing was done in the United States. 3 Honduras sweatshop controversy Fruit of the Loom's main business focus is on branded products for consumers ranging from children to senior citizens. The company is one of the largest manufacturers and marketers of men's and boys' underwear, women's and girls' underwear, printable T-shirts and fleece for the activewear industry, casualwear, women's jeanswear and childrenswear. The company sells its products to all major discount chains and mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs and screenprinters. The company also sells to many department, specialty, drug and variety stores, national chains, supermarkets and sports specialty stores. Fruit of the Loom offers an unconditional guarantee on all the products it sells. The brand has significant market share for basic apparel. The familiar logo with the apple, purple grapes, green grapes, currants and leaves is a widely recognizable trademark. The company is a vertically integrated manufacturer. The company also controls another long-known underwear brand, B.V.D. (Bradley, Voorhees, and Day). Other brands also manufactured and sold by the company are Funpals/FunGals, Screen Stars and Underoos. Brands once owned or marketed by Fruit of the Loom include Gitano, Munsingwear, Salem Sportswear, and Pro Player, which once had the naming rights to what is now LandShark Stadium (originally Joe Robbie Stadium) in Miami, Florida from 1996 to 2005, despite bankruptcy by the parent company in 1999. Hanes and Jockey are the main competitors to Fruit of the Loom. The familiar Fruit Of the Loom Guys consist of an apple, green grapes, purple grapes, and leaves that tend to change color often. They perform several songs and appear in all Fruit of the Loom commercials. The role of "Apple" is played by Rad Daly and the "Leaf" was played by Academy Award-winning actor F. Murray Abraham. Fruit of the Loom headquarters building in Bowling Green, Kentucky. The Fruit of the Loom brand dates back to 1851 in Rhode Island when Robert Knight, a textile mill owner, visited his friend, Rufus Skeel. Mr. Skeel owned a small shop in Providence, Rhode Island that sold cloth from Mr. Knight's mill. Mr. Skeel's daughter painted images of apples and applied them to the bolts of cloth. The ones with the apple emblems proved most popular. Mr. Knight thought the labels would be the perfect symbol for his trade name, Fruit of the Loom. In 1871, just one year after the first trademark laws were passed by Congress, Mr. Knight received patent number 418 for the brand, Fruit of the Loom. Much of its athletic outerwear was sold under the "Pro Player" label, a now defunct division. The company was part of Northwest Industries, Inc., until NWI was purchased by William F. Farley in 1985 and renamed Farley Industries, Inc. Farley served as President, CEO, and majority shareholder for 15 years. Fruit of the Loom's sales revenue rose from approximately $500 million at the time of NWI's purchase to roughly $2.5 billion nearly 15 years later. Debt financing, once seen as brilliant, proved difficult to manage even as sales revenue quintupled. The Fruit of the Loom Guys, popular advertising characters from the 1980s. Fruit of the Loom filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1999 shortly after posting a net loss of $576.2 million. Its 66 million shares of outstanding common stock dropped in value from about $44 per share in early 1997 to just more than $1 by the spring of 2000. Reasons for the bankruptcy are varied. A large debt load which was assumed in the 1980s, a common practice at the time, did not help. William F. Farley, the company's former chairman, chief executive officer, and chief operating officer was forced out prior to bankruptcy in late 1999, after having piloted the company into massive debt and unproductive business ventures, including structuring the company into an off-shore entity in the Cayman Islands to avoid taxes. The company was bought from bankruptcy by Berkshire Hathaway Corporation, controlled by legendary investor Warren Buffett, who wanted the valuable brand. He agreed in January 2002 to purchase the company for approximately $835 million in cash. The deal was concluded on April 29, 2002. A condition of the purchase required that former Chief Operating Officer and the then interim CEO, John Holland, remain available to be the CEO for the company. The company purchased Russell Corporation, effectively taking the former competitor private in a deal that was completed August 1, 2006. The company announced the purchase of VF Corporation's intimate apparel company named Vanity Fair Intimates for $350 million in cash on January 23, 2007. Students protest outside Fruit of the Loom office in Telford over worker rights violations at the company's Honduras factories. Beginning in January 2009, Fruit of the Loom and its subsidiary, Russell Corporation, face a major boycott over worker rights violations at its factories in Honduras, where it is the largest private employer. The controversy has caused nearly 100 universities to terminate deals with Russell, leading to significant losses for Fruit of the Loom. "Michigan Is the Latest University to End a Licensing Deal With an Apparel Maker", New York Times, February 23, 2009 (retrieved July 30, 2009). Bonior, David (2009-02-13). "Schools Score Points by Standing Up for Workers", Huffington Post. Retrieved on July 30, 2009. Dreier, Peter (2009-06-14). "Human Rights Activists Protest NBA-Linked Sweatshops". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 30, 2009. "University of Florida cuts sportswear ties with Russell Athletic", St. Petersburg Times, June 5, 2009 (retrieved July 31, 2009). "Students Won Sweat It: Under fire for alleged union-busting, Russell Athletic is losing university contracts around the country", In These Times, April 20, 2009 (retrieved July 31, 2009). Related Textile History - Lippitt Mill Retrieved August 27, 2005. History of Chicago Retrieved September 13, 2005. Farley looks for Congressional help November 1, 1999. Berkshire Hathaway Announcement of Fruit of the Loom Acquisition April 30, 2002. Buffett's Berkshire to buy Russell April 17, 2006. Russell cuts 450 local jobs June 7, 2008. Fruit of the Loom underwear Oxford University calls to boycott Fruit of the Loom Warren Buffett (Chairman and CEO) Charlie Munger Howard Graham Buffett Susan Decker Bill Gates David Gottesman Charlotte Guyman Donald Keough Thomas S. Murphy Ronald Olson Walter Scott, Jr. Applied Underwriters Inc. Berkshire Hathaway Assurance Central States Indemnity Company GEICO General Re Kansas Bankers Surety Company Medical Protective National Indemnity Company United States Liability Insurance Group Wesco Financial Swiss Re Acme Brick Benjamin Moore & Co. Clayton Homes IMC Group (Iscar) Johns-Manville MiTek Precision Steel Warehouse, Inc. Shaw Industries CORT Business Services Jordan's Furniture Larson-Juhl Nebraska Furniture Mart RC Willey Home Furnishings Star Furniture Fruit of the Loom Russell Garanimals Fechheimer Brothers Acme Boots H.H. Brown Shoe Group Justin Brands BNSF Railway NetJets NetJets Europe FlightSafety International Forest River McLane Company XTRA Lease Dairy Queen Orange Julius The Pampered Chef See's Candies Ben Bridge Jeweler Blue Chip Stamps Borsheim's Fine Jewelry The Buffalo News Business Wire CTB International Kirby Company MidAmerican Energy Holdings Company Mouser Electronics World Book Encyclopedia May 1, 2010 and April 30, 2011 Annual Revenue: S$118.249 billion Employees: 233,000 Stock Symbol: NYSE:BRKA, NYSE:BRKB Web site: www.berkshirehathaway.com Bandeau Cupless bra Male bra Nursing bra Sports bra Training bra Underwire bra Wonderbra Babydoll Bustier Camisole Negligee Torsolette Bikini Boyshorts Control brief French knickers G-string Girdle Panties Tap pants Thong BodyBriefer Corsage Corset Corselet Nightshirt Playsuit Slip Teddy Garter Knee highs Pantyhose Stocking Chemise Basque Bustle Crinoline Farthingale Hoop skirt Liberty bodice Pannier Pantalettes Petticoat Pettipants Waist cincher Y Aerie Agent Provocateur Bali Berlei Bravissimo Bruno Banani Chantelle Frederick's of Hollywood Fruit of the Loom Gerbe Gilly Hicks Hanes HerRoom Intimissimi Intimo Lingerie Jockey Jolidon La Senza Maidenform No Nonsense Passport Panties Peach John Playtex Pretty Polly Trashy Lingerie Triumph International Ultimo Underalls Valisere Vassarette Victoria's Secret Wacoal Wolford Wonderbra Sleeveless shirt (A-shirt, muscle shirt, singlet, tank top, wifebeater) T-shirt Undershirt Bikini Boxer briefs Boxer shorts Briefs (slip, Y-fronts) Fundoshi G-string Jockstrap (athletic supporter) Compression shorts Thong Trunks Long underwear (long johns) Breechcloth Chausses Codpiece Doublet Garter Hose Loincloth Union suit 2(x)ist Abercrombie & Fitch American Eagle American Apparel Andrew Christian aussieBum Bonds BVD California Muscle Calvin Klein Diesel S.p.A. DKNY Dolce & Gabbana Fruit of the Loom Hanes Hugo Boss Jockey International Joe Boxer Mundo Unico Pringle Ruehl No.925 Saxx Apparel Under Armour Categories: Berkshire Hathaway Lingerie brands Underwear brands Bowling Green, Kentucky Companies based in KentuckyHidden categories: Articles needing additional references from May 2009 All articles needing additional references I am an expert from spraypaintaerosol.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Car Washing Liquid Manufacturer , Party Spray Manufacturer, Anti Rust Spray,and more.
Related Articles -
Car Washing Liquid Manufacturer, Party Spray Manufacturer,
| 
