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The Donna Karan Company LLC history
The Donna Karan Company LLC company history timeline
In 1984 Karan used seed money provided by Tomio Taki, chairman of the American branch of a Japanese textile firm and a major partner in Anne Klein, to launch the Donna Karan Co.
So, in 1984, Karan's boss, Frank Mori, effectively fired her.
1985 Launch Of Donna Karan New York & Donna Karan New York accessories
Karan started her original fashion house in 1985, after working for pioneering designer Anne Klein.
In 1987, for example, Karan jumped into the hyper-competitive hosiery business.
After the bridge line DKNY debuted in 1988, Karan’s company diversified and sold blue jeans, men’s wear, and a children’s line in addition to accessories, hosiery, and perfume.
In 1989 Karan drew on the recognition of her Donna Karan New York collection to launch a second line dubbed 'DKNY.' The DKNY line was designed to provide stylish, casual, and affordable clothing that would appeal to a less elite market segment.
1990: DKNY Jeans hit stores; Karan's earns second CFDA Designer of the Year award.
Among her boldest moves was her 1991 introduction of men's clothing under the DKNY label.
1992: Karan's first menswear collection, signature fragrance, and DKNY Kids are introduced.
1993: DKNY Men, a more casual line of menswear, is introduced.
1994: The first DKNY store opens in London.
1995 First Issue of Woman to Woman was published in this year.
The DKNY line continued to excel, for example, and even the lagging beauty business began posting profits for the first time in 1995.
1996: Donna Karan International goes public on the New York Stock Exchange; a DKNY store opens in Manchester, England.
1997 Launch of Donna Karan Signature Collection
1998 In this year, DKNY Stores were opened in Beverly Hills at California, Manhasset in New York, Las Vegas in Nevada and Short Hills at New Jersey.
Two scents, DKNY Men and DKNY Women, debuted in 1999; the latter with a bottle designed by Weiss, reminiscent of a woman's (presumably Donna's) back.
Donna Karan built her fortune from trademark deals and selling her namesake brand to LVMH in 2000.
Karan projected sales of $1 billion annually by the year 2000.
2001 In 2001, Donna Karan New York flagship was opened on Madison Avenue in New York City and in Costa mesa, California.
LVMH agreed and the purchase was completed in early 2001, so Karan and an ailing Weiss, who was dying of lung cancer, could spend their time outside the boardroom.
In 2002 Brusone moved up to chairman and LVMH insider Fred Wilson was appointed CEO. Karan herself was rumored to be clashing with LVMH over control of her collections, while the conglomerate reportedly sought new designers to work within DKI's divisions.
2002: DKNY Kids is relaunched through a deal with CWF.
2003 Donna Karan New York flagship store was opened in Tokyo, Japan.
2004 DKNY 'Be Delicious for Women' was launched where as DKNY Coats was re-launched in this year.
In 2004 Karan received a lifetime achievement award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America.
2005 Donna Karan Essence Fragrance and DKNY 'Be Delicious for Men' was launched in 2005.
2006 Donna Karan New York Store was opened in Seoul, Korea whereas DKNY Flagship store was opened in Tokyo, Japan.
2007 In 2007, the Donna Karan New York store was opened in Beijing, China.
In 2007 she founded Urban Zen, a line that included clothing, accessories, and wellness goods.
2008 Safat, Kuwait saw the opening of Donna Karan New York store and DKNY store in 2008.
2009 In 2009, DKNY store was opened in New Delhi, India.
2011 DKNY PR Girl launched blog on Tumblr in 2011.
Her involvement in that company increased, and in 2015 it was announced that she was stepping down as chief designer of Donna Karan and would serve only as an adviser.
She released a memoir, My Journey, in 2015.
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The Donna Karan Company LLC competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Versace | 1978 | $1.8B | 1,500 | 18 |
| Ralph Lauren | 1967 | $6.6B | 18,250 | 467 |
| Proenza Schouler | 2002 | $13.0M | 154 | - |
| Elie Tahari | 1973 | $690,000 | 25 | - |
| HELMUT LANG | 2006 | $8.9M | 110 | 5 |
| Andrew Thomas Huang | 1975 | $6.3B | 7,309 | - |
| French Connection | 1972 | $241.3M | 2,260 | - |
| Gucci | 1921 | $7.1B | 25 | - |
| Tory Burch | 2004 | $3.4B | 3,433 | 173 |
| Bottega | 2016 | - | 31 | - |
The Donna Karan Company LLC history FAQs
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The Donna Karan Company LLC may also be known as or be related to Donna Karan, The Donna Karan Company LLC, Donna Karan New York and DKNY.