Coach, Inc.
Coach, Incorporated began as a small family-owned leather goods manufacturing company in 1941. Start up began in the family’s Manhattan apartment with six artisans trained by previous generations of the family, adding to the company’s charm. Gaining increasing notoriety for the quality of their craftsmanship, the Coach brand began to expand as new customers sought out the goods. While Coach increased in popularity, the brand expanded out of New York and into a global brand, now having stores 500 in North America, 400 factories in China, 20 stores scattered throughout Europe, and 20 countries are able to purchase goods online.
Since the development of the company, Coach has created mid-priced lines of sunglasses, shoes, watches, ready-to-wear, wallets, luggage, scarves, office wear, and key rings. They have expanded their stores from retail to outlet, and also have boutiques in department stores such as Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Nordstrom, and Lord and Taylor. In many malls across the country, Coach is able to be purchased in several stores in the building, making the products easily accessible to consumers.
The peak of the popularity of the Coach brand was in the 2000’s, when the printed signature fabric began to show up in every female’s closet across the United States. Because the brand was more affordable in comparison to many others, and had its recognizable status print, it drew teens and women of many ages and backgrounds to the brand. Practical structure with a practical price tag made Coach bags not only trendy, but also functional.
Throughout the journey of its growing popularity, the brand developed bags with the signature Coach logo, but with a twist. Coach created lines with op art prints, stripes, aquatic scenes sewn into the logos, bright colors, denim, and quilt-like patchwork. The development of these new lines was the beginning of their demise, with these creations showing up at outlets, TJMaxx and Marshall’s stores, and...