Jantzen

American knitwear company. Established in Portland (Oregon) in 1910 by John and Roy Zehntbauer, sons of a cooper from Missouri, and by the Canadian Carl Jantzen. The factory, with the name of Portland Knitting Company, would have continued to manufacture knitwear if the local rowing team had not requested some special wool swimming costumes to protect athletes from cold in 1913. In 1928 the company, which had changed its corporate name to Jantzen, became famous outside of the USA, in Europe, South America, and Australia, not only for its swimming costumes but also for sportswear. Another goal was scored in 1923, when Jantzen chose a new design for his garments: a picture of a girl diver (the first real pin-up) that drove truck drivers crazy. A future movie star, the protagonist of Tarzan, contributed in the brand’s launch: Johnny Weissmuller, 5 times Olympic swimming champion, chose Jantzen during his competitions. Since then, the Jantzen brand has always been synonymous with swimwear. Esther Williams wore Jantzen during her aquatic movies. In 1947, Norma Jean Baker, a completely unknown, was chosen to launch the first Jantzen swimming costume in elasticized fabric, called Double Dare, because it extolled the chest. This girl became famous with her new name: Marilyn Monroe. In 1954 the corporate name was changed to Jantzen Inc. Sales and proceedings attained its historical best in 1973. the company had 4,500 workers.
&Quad;2002. Jantzen was bought out for 25 million dollars by Perry Ellis International, one of the biggest swimwear brands, whose products are distributed in the USA and in 30 countries worldwide. The growth of Perry Ellis’ proceedings, which indicated a 7.9% increase in royalties at the end of the year, was meaningfully attributed to the acquisition of Jantzen. From its headquarters in Portland. Jantzen produces and sells Southpoint and Trademarks articles, of which it has the licenses, as well as of Nike and Tommy Hilfiger.