NEW YORK — After two seasons carefully testing its women’s line, Original Penguin by Munsingwear is moving full steam ahead for spring.
The brand, a division of Perry Ellis International, is launching a swimwear collection, designed in-house, and introducing handbags, eyewear and children’s apparel, all of which are produced by licensees. It is also dramatically expanding its women’s sportswear line and plans to more than double its wholesale distribution to about 180 stores from 80.
“For spring, we are offering a women’s collection, not just items as we have done before,” said Chris Kolbe, vice president of Penguin. “We see this as a lifestyle brand.” Company executives said the brand is expected to reach wholesale volume of $5 million by the end of 2005.
The Original Penguin by Munsingwear label was founded more than 50 years ago as a golf-inspired men’s wear line. The brand has been owned by Perry Ellis since 1996, and was relaunched in spring 2003 with a large line and broad distribution for men, as well as a capsule collection for women.
Since the relaunch, the brand has found fast appeal among fashion-forward consumers with retro-inspired and preppy offerings with a twist at reasonable price points. Wholesale prices are about $24 for a polo shirt, $40 each for dresses and skirts and $100 for outerwear. Penguin is sold in stores and boutiques such as Barneys New York and for spring will roll out to Fred Segal and Nordstrom, among others. It also has a store in Manhattan at 1077 Avenue of the Americas. The brand competes with active-oriented labels such as Puma and Lacoste, as well as Abercrombie & Fitch and Diesel.
Penguin has also gotten a boost lately on the hit Fox show “O.C.,” in which the male characters often sport looks from the brand.
“We see a lot of opportunities in the women’s market; we think it could be at least as big as men’s,” said Kolbe.
Swim was a “natural step for the brand,” he said. While many companies look to licensees to develop swimwear lines, Perry Ellis now owns Jantzen, one of the largest swimwear brands, and Penguin sought out that company’s expertise to develop the line, noted Kolbe.
Related Articles
You May Also Like
“We are using the same sourcing as Jantzen, but we have our own styling and direction,” Kolbe added.
The initial swim collection is made up solely of bikinis, many of which have graphics and prints used in the sportswear collection. Wholesale prices are $15 each for tops and bottoms.
The handbag collection, produced by Yak Pak, has eight styles, including some in cotton piqué fabrics, and has an average wholesale price of about $34, while eyewear, produced by Baum Vision, features eight styles, including plastic and metal frames, ranging in wholesale price from $55 to $60. The company has had women’s footwear since 2003, which is made by 2 Feet Productions.
The core sportswear collection has about 240 stockkeeping units for spring and includes apparel in a wider selection of fabrics such as wool and wool blends, silk and cashmere. Among the new offerings are miniskirts, kilts with gold buttons and plaid capri pants, as well as blouses, short-sleeved sweaters and zip-up jackets in bold colors.
The company plans an advertising campaign for spring, to run in magazines such as Nylon, BlackBook and Index, said Laura Bellafronto, Penguin’s marketing manager.