The company, founded in Chicago in 1916 by brothers Jacob and Louis Weinberg, has outfitted Clark Gable, Joe DiMaggio, Walter Cronkite and Blagojevich, among others.
The Weinbergs sold Oxxford to Byer-Rolnick, a Dallas-based hat manufacturer, in 1963; Levi Strauss eventually took ownership in 1979. Nine years later, Oxxford's CEO at the time, Jack McDonald, purchased it back with the help of an investment team that included Harvard Management, which runs Harvard University's endowment.
The investors lost everything in the early '90s, when lender Heller International foreclosed on Oxxford's assets. Hit by the rise of business casual, it was losing money at the time. Meanswear company Tom James purchased Oxxford from Heller in 1994 and owns it today.
These days, Denton saId, Oxxford is on firmer financial footing. "Our business over the last five or six years has been better; we've had nice increases every year," he said. "A lot of people who are interested in dressing well are finding us and are very interested in the process. They don't want to go to a store and settle for something."
Oxxford is profitable, according to Denton. "Our profit and financials are very healthy," he said. "Things are good."
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Mon, 02/03/2020 - 16:22
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From... Crains Chicagos
From... Crains Chicagos Bussiness
The company, founded in Chicago in 1916 by brothers Jacob and Louis Weinberg, has outfitted Clark Gable, Joe DiMaggio, Walter Cronkite and Blagojevich, among others.
The Weinbergs sold Oxxford to Byer-Rolnick, a Dallas-based hat manufacturer, in 1963; Levi Strauss eventually took ownership in 1979. Nine years later, Oxxford's CEO at the time, Jack McDonald, purchased it back with the help of an investment team that included Harvard Management, which runs Harvard University's endowment.
The investors lost everything in the early '90s, when lender Heller International foreclosed on Oxxford's assets. Hit by the rise of business casual, it was losing money at the time. Meanswear company Tom James purchased Oxxford from Heller in 1994 and owns it today.
These days, Denton saId, Oxxford is on firmer financial footing. "Our business over the last five or six years has been better; we've had nice increases every year," he said. "A lot of people who are interested in dressing well are finding us and are very interested in the process. They don't want to go to a store and settle for something."
Oxxford is profitable, according to Denton. "Our profit and financials are very healthy," he said. "Things are good."