1854–present
Founded in Paris in 1854 as a luggage company, Louis Vuitton debuted its ready-to-wear womenswear in 1998 and its menswear line in 2004 under the artistic direction of Marc Jacobs (b. 1963). Kim Jones (b. 1973) served as artistic director from 2011 to 2018. After Jones’s departure to Dior in June 2018, Virgil Abloh was named artistic director of menswear in March 2018 and debuted his first collection for Spring Summer 2019 in June 2018. Following Abloh’s death in November 2021, the in-house menswear team designed the subsequent menswear collections. Pharrell Williams was appointed creative director of menswear in February 2023.Sources: WWD.
1961-1980
Primalta was registered as a trademark in 1961 for clothing, footwear, headgear and textiles by Eurafric Trading Company Ltd (1958–2020). The company was incorporated in Liverpool. Men’s Primalta label cotton shirts, nylon shirts and tracksuits were advertised by retail outlets across the UK from the late 1960s until the late 1970s.Sources: Companies House; Intellectual Property Office; Bury Free Press; Belfast Telegraph.