Fingen Apparel
Fingen Apparel is an industrial holding company in Florence established by the brothers Marcello and Corrado Fratini. Their father Fiorenzo (who died in April 2001 at the age of 81) and their uncle Giulio created the first Italian jeans under the brand name Rifle in the 1950s.
The second generation of Fingen Apparel
By the second generation, the Confezioni Fratini firm split and two different stories began. The cousins Cristina and Sandro, the children of Giulio (who passed away in 1996) remain linked to Rifle, which they transform into Super Rifle and Pacific Trail. Marcello and Corrado establish Fingen Apparel, each with 50% of the shares, and acquire the American brand Cotton Belt. The holding company adds an office for licenses which, in 1995, is awarded Calvin Klein Jeans, in 1996 Calvin Klein Asia and Europe, and in 1997 Guess Europe. For a short time, the two brothers have 20% of van Cleef and Arpels.
Fingen Apparel groups together the companies CK Jeanswear Europe, Maco Apparel, and Euro Cormar. These produce and distribute on license, respectively, the brands Calvin Klein Jeans, for Europe and Asia, and Guess Jeans, for Europe, in addition to the proprietary Cotton Belt brand. Euro Retail manages the retail network of the three brands. A three-year plan anticipates growth in the licence business through three action. A new acquisitions of young and alternative brands, the relaunch of the Cotton Belt brand, and a new children’s division. The long-term forecast expects to increase the current turnover of €234.8 million by 45%. In January 2003, Fingen acquired Sicem. Sicem is a knitwear company in Soliera (Modena) which has the knitwear licenses of Armani Uomo, Krizia, and Roccobarocco. Sicem employs 500 people in Italy and Romania, and has a turnover of about €70 million.
Fingen Apparel children’s project
Within the continuously evolving company, a new children’s project has been started: the Kids division, in June 2003. The line of Calvin Klein Jeans for those under 16 (and perhaps, in the future, also for babies), which was presented at Pitti Immagine Bimbo in June 2003, was launched with the Spring-Summer 2004 collection. The goal for 2005 was to increase the turnover by €5 to €7.5 million euros, which is the norm for a children’s griffe. As to Guess, which is divided into Guess Collection, Guess Jeans, G-Brand, Kids, and Baby, here, too, the idea is a relaunch.
A new headquarters of Fingen Apparel
The entire griffe, including eyeglasses, shoes, watches, and underwear, moved into a new headquarters with 6,000 square feet on via Lambro in Milan. An important goal is to reach young people between 20 and 30 years of age who are more and more fashionable in their style and tastes. For years, Guess has been produced on license by Focus Europe in Crevalcore, part of the Focus Pull group. On the international level, in the first quarter of 2003, the turnover of Guess Inc. was €83.7 million. Fingen Apparel has a network of 32 proprietary stores in Europe displaying the three brands, plus Indigo Blu, the most recent. In April 2003, the group sold Sima Fashion to Fuzzi. For the future, within 2004, the firm at that time expected to open new single-brand and franchise stores for Calvin Klein and for Guess. As a real estate holding company (Fingen Real Estate), the firm created a joint venture with McArthurGlen (after the one in Serravalle Scrivia) for a Designer Factory Outlet 15 miles from Rome along the Via Pontina in Castel Romano. The expected cost: €70 million.