The minimalistic, futuristic style pioneered by Calvin Klein has made the company a household name throughout the world. The American design company Calvin Klein established the label in 1968, and its name has become a byword for luxury and style thanks to its signature emphasis on simple silhouettes, classic details, and a forward-thinking sensibility.
In 1942, Calvin Klein was born to a middle-class Jewish household in the Bronx. He met his future business associate Barry Schwartz while both were students at New York City's Fashion Institute of Technology. In 1968, they co-founded Calvin Klein Ltd. to produce clothing for ladies.
After gaining success with his women's wear line in the 1960s, Calvin Klein branched out to men's wear, athletics, and accessories in the 1970s, becoming internationally renowned for his understated, modern designs that epitomized the spirit of American style. With the introduction of Calvin Klein Jeans in 1978, he helped to establish the designer jeans trend with commercials starring a teenage Brooke Shields who famously declared, "nothing comes between me and my Calvins."
Many designers throughout the years have cited Calvin Klein as an inspiration for the brand's distinctive minimalist elegance and clean silhouettes. The company continued to grow during the 1980s and 1990s, launching lines of perfumes, home items, and incredibly popular underwear.
Calvin Klein is known for pushing the envelope with its advertisements, which is one of the brand's distinguishing features. Many of the brand's advertisements use sexually suggestive or otherwise controversial images or content. Campaigns showing teenage Kate Moss in suggestive stances in 1995 and a broad collection of models including Kendall Jenner as well as Justin Bieber in provocative poses in 2016 are two such examples.
With the likes of Mark Wahlberg and Justin Timberlake appearing in its advertisements, Calvin Klein was also an early adopter of the practice of celebrity endorsements. Its advertisements have been increasingly progressive in recent years, with the company leveraging social media and casting models from all walks of life to reach a younger demographic.
Calvin Klein is noted for both its controversial advertising campaigns and its instantly recognizable emblem, which features the company name in large, blocky characters. This emblem is now ubiquitous in American culture, appearing on everything from T-shirts to perfume bottles.
In the present day, Calvin Klein is a worldwide icon, recognized in more than a hundred different nations. The minimalist design that has been the brand's hallmark can now be found across a wide range of products, from clothing for men and women to accessories, perfumes, and even home decor. In 2002, Phillips-Van Heusen (PVH) purchased the company, and since then, PVH has worked to broaden the product line and increase the company's visibility across the world.
Despite changing with the times, Calvin Klein has always stuck to its simple, chic style that has come to represent the brand and the essence of American fashion. The brand's emblem has become synonymous with opulence and refinement because of the company's cutting-edge advertising campaigns and provocative visuals.
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