GANT

GANT is a Swedish clothing retailer with American roots, headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. The company was founded in 1949 by Bernard Gantmacher and was originally based in New Haven, Connecticut. Bernard Gantmacher was a Jewish immigrant from Myropil, Ukraine and he arrived in New York City in 1907. At first Gantmacher was employed at a garment factory sewing shirt collars. After Gantmacher's return from military service during World War I, he married his wife Rebecca Rose and they founded the Par-Ex Shirt Company with their business partner, Morris Shapiro. The company made shirts for brands including Brooks Brothers and J. Press. In April 1949, the GANT label was launched. GANT dress shirts were known for their back-collar button, locker loop and box pleat. In the 1960s, Gant made the Yale co-op shirt exclusively for the store on the Yale University campus. In the early 1980s, Gant entered the international market when Pyramid Sportswear of Sweden was given the right to design and market Gant outside the U.S. Initially, Pyramid only offered the Gant label in Sweden but quickly expanded internationally. In 2019, GANT celebrated 70 years in the clothing industry.