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fashion wholesale and retail company | |
Founded | New York City, 1973 |
Founder | Jerome Fisher and Vince Camuto |
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20160225092631im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/Nine_West%2C_South_Shore_Plaza%2C_Braintree_MA.jpg/250px-Nine_West%2C_South_Shore_Plaza%2C_Braintree_MA.jpg)
in Braintree, Massachusetts
![](https://web.archive.org/web/20160225092631im_/https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/NineWestPromenade.jpg/220px-NineWestPromenade.jpg)
Nine West (also 9 West) is a fashion wholesale and retail company. The corporate headquarters are located in White Plains, New York.
Brand history
Nine West was named for its founding location in the Solow Building at 9 West 57th Street in New York City. In 1983, Nine West opened its first specialty retail store in Stamford, Connecticut. In 1986, Nine West launched its first national ad campaign. Nine West first expanded internationally with the opening of a Hong Kong location in 1994. It has since become a brand located in over 800 global locations in 57 countries.
Initially founded as a fashion footwear brand, Nine West expanded into handbags, sunglasses, legwear, outerwear, jewelry, belts, watches, cold weather accessories, hats, scarves and wraps, and eyewear.[1] After the launch of handbags in 1995, Nine West expanded to dresses, suits and kids footwear. Through licensing agreements, it also offers eyewear, sunglasses, legwear, outerwear, belts, hats, cold weather accessories, scarves and wraps.
In 1999, Nine West was acquired by Jones Apparel Group.[2]
In 2006, Nine West began collaborating with Vivienne Westwood, Thakoon and Sophia Kokosalaki on limited edition "capsule collections". In 2009, Nine West and New Balance collaborated to develop a collection of footwear. Fred Allard served as Creative Director starting in 2006.[3]
On July 7, 2015, the Canadian distributor and retailer of Nine West, the Sherson Group, filed for bankruptcy protection for the Canadian locations.[4]
References in popular culture
In Gwyn Cready's comedic romance novel Tumbling Through Time, Seph Pyle is transported back in time to 1705 after trying on a pair of sandals at the Nine West store in the Pittsburgh airport.
In the Will and Grace episode "William, Tell", Karen makes a comment about Will's office being below street level, saying that all he could see from his window is 'bad shoes' and then pointing at the window and saying 'See, Nine West'.
In the Futurama movie Into The Wild Green Yonder, a member of Leela's ecofeminist group mentions that her "man-kicking shoes" are from Nine West.
References
- ^ "Nine West brand", Jones Apparel Group
- ^ Nine West Inc. Company History, fundinguniverse.com
- ^ "Jones Apparel Group Names Creative Director For Nine West Brand", allbusiness.com, Wednesday, October 18, 2006
- ^ "Nine West store owner in Canada files for bankruptcy protection". CBC News. July 9, 2015. Retrieved 2015-07-09.