Lee

The H.D. Lee Mercantile Company was founded in Kansas in 1889 by Henry David Lee and four business partners. The company imported and distributed dry goods and groceries. In 1911, the company introduced 8-ounce denim bib overalls, in 1912 it opened its first garment factory in Salina, Kansas, and in 1913 produced ‘Union-All’ coveralls, the name derived from the union of shirts and trousers and aimed at automobile drivers. After the United States entered the First World War, the Lee Union-All became the official fatigue uniform for American soldiers fighting in Europe, boosting the company’s revenue. In 1924 the company produced a new version of jeans they called ‘101 Cowboy pants’ or ‘101 Cowboy Waistband Overalls’ that had the same basic cut, rivets and back pocket stitching as Levi’s. In 1927, zip fly fastenings were added to one of their waist overalls, the model called the 1010, later named the 101Z. A slimmer jacket design, model 101J, appeared in 1932 and in 1933 a blanket lining was added which became the Storm Rider. The name Lee Riders was introduced and trademarked in 1935 and in 1944 the distinctive back pocket stitching that became known as the ‘Lazy S’ was introduced. The same year saw Lee 101 Cowboy pants renamed as ‘Lee Riders’. In 1955 the jeans were worn by James Dean in the film Rebel Without a Cause, creating a surge in demand for denim jeans. In 1956 he wore Lee 101Z jeans in the film Giant.

Lee changed its official name to H.D. Lee Company, Inc. in 1943, to reflect the company’s primary focus on garment manufacturing. After the Second World War, the company began targeting middle-class Americans, who began to view denim pants as fashionable rather than merely functional, and expanding internationally. In 1964, Lee established its first overseas factory in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium, and in 1969 the company was sold to the Pennsylvania-based VF Corporation, which manufactured Vanity Fair lingerie. The investment saw the company begin modernizing its manufacturing facilities in the United States and forming manufacturing partnerships with factories in Scotland, Belgium, Spain, Australia, Brazil and Hong Kong. By 1970, Lee was exporting their garments to more than eighty countries. In 1986, the company had seventeen sewing plants, five laundries, nearly 10,000 employees, and the capacity to produce 200,000 pairs of jeans per day. In 2018 VF Corporation split off their Jeanswear division which included Lee and Wrangler, creating Kontoor Brands Inc. Lee generated US$688 million in revenue in 2020.
Sources: BBC News; International Directory of Company Histories vol. 8; Lee.com; James Sullivan, Jeans: A Cultural History of an American Icon (New York: Gotham, 2007); Sue Nightingale, A Dandy Guide to Dating Vintage Menswear: WWI Through the 1960s (Atglen, PA: Schiffer, 2011); kontoorbrands.com.