87 years of suiting up with Hugo Boss

Forgive the pun – I couldn’t resist. When it comes to the iconic men’s brand, founded in the Germany city of Metzingen in 1923, people first think of (and search for) suits that exude composure and luxury. But this global brand boasts four independent lines, each of which targets a different lifestyle: BOSS black for business wear, BOSS Orange for casual wear, and BOSS Green for performance sportswear, and BOSS Selection offering high-end luxury clothes, accessories, men’s shoes, and fragrances.
The history of Hugo Boss is an interesting, if occasionally dark, study of business adaptation and innovation. Founded by German tailor Hugo Boss, the workshop first produced outfits and uniforms for the male working class (primarily industrial workers) and eventually grew into a small factory.
With uniforms in high demand during World War II, Boss directed factory efforts to support the Nazi party using forced labor from France and Poland. This was not a shocking nor uncommon decision for clothing manufacturers of the region and period, but Boss’s connection was buried until 1997 with an article published by Austrian magazine Profil. Following the Profil article, the company hired a historian to research its Nazi era history and in 1999, pledged to reimburse former slave laborers.
Following the war in 1948, Boss’s grandsons Uwe and Jochen Holy took over the firm, steering it into the promising direction of men’s wear. Menswear was a competitive industry in Germany by the 1960s; the Holy brothers responded by modernizing production plants and increasing capacities to satisfy this demand.
A short recession of 1966 might have signaled the end of the German economic miracle, but Boss was able to sustain itself and eventually outperformed competitors through the Holy Brother’s unique fabrication decisions. The brothers offered business suits that were cut more youthfully than contemporary establishments. In addition, they made use of light Italian fabrics in fashionable colors and designs, a contrast to traditional German men’s suit made of heavy stiff fabrics. Under the Holy brothers, clothing manufacture and sales expanded beyond German.
After gaining popularity across Western Europe, Boss expanded into United States in 1976. Here, the company became firmly entrenched in 1980s yuppie culture of conspicuous consumption by young, ambitious, slightly macho businessmen. Stateside symbols for Boss were fit and handsome men and included top athletes, the cast of Miami Vice, and actor Sylvester Stallone.
At the height of its success, Boss went public in 1985 and was acquired by the Italian fashion giant Marzotto in 1991. By this time, however, recession threatened Boss’s success as consumers cut back on expensive clothing.
CEO Peter Littmann was hired to resuscitate the company image and started by adding “Hugo” before “Boss” in the company name. Littmann introduced a sophisticated three-brand idea to target different demographics: “Hugo” was aimed at young and trendy professionals, while “Baldessarini” targeted financially independent top executives interested in luxury fashions. Additionally, half of the manufacturing done in Germany was moved abroad – mainly to Eastern Europe – in an effort to cut production costs. These moves proved successful for the company.
Under a successive line of CEOs, Hugo Boss transformed from a men’s tailor to a lifestyle empire. The Hugo Boss line has expanded to include sportswear, shirts, underwear, and licensed accessories like ties and sunglasses, as well as women’s clothing. This means that the zealous can now coordinate their Hugo Boss jackets with Hugo Boss wallets, T-shirts, and penny loafers.
Besides its product placement and sponsoring (the Godzilla mention tickles my fancy), Hugo Boss has broken into the arts, establishing its Hugo Boss Prize in partnership with the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation in 1996. The Hugo Boss Prize recognizes significant contemporary artists and awards winners with $50,000. Some have (not unfairly) considered this a PR move on Hugo Boss’s part to further penetrate the US market, but recognition for the arts is not too shabby.


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