Repository Spotlight: PVH Archives

By Suzanne E. Shapiro, PVH Historian / Heritage Brands Archivist

                             Cluett, Peabody and Co. (makers of ARROW brand) factory photo circa 1900.                     Image courtesy PVH Archives.

Overview

The PVH Archives is a digital and physical resource created to preserve all archival materials pertaining to PVH Corp. and its portfolio of iconic apparel brands including CALVIN KLEIN, TOMMY HILFIGER, and the Heritage Brands—Van Heusen, IZOD, ARROW, Warner’s, and Olga. Our brands’ expansive histories are told through archival garments, advertisements, photographs, and other unique business materials, some dating back to the 19th century. With a 20,000+ square foot archive facility in Long Island City, NY and a research database offering more than 58K digital records, this landmark initiative honors our past as a source of inspiration and provides rich insight into our heritage of leadership in the American apparel industry.

View of CALVIN KLEIN archive room; garments are arranged chronologically and in run-of-show order starting from the brand’s 1968 origins. Image courtesy PVH Archives.

Establishment

All brands possessed product and print archives in some fashion—some fairly realized, some undeveloped. In 2014, a need to relocate the Heritage Brands archives surfaced, thereby initiating a campaign to inventory, rehouse, and digitize key holdings. Realizing that all brand archives would benefit from a similar processing program, PVH leadership green-lighted a multi-stage initiative to centralize all physical assets at an offsite facility and align documentation within one custom-built digital platform. The physical archives have been fully installed and accessible since summer 2016; the PVH Digital Archives was launched to all corporate associates globally in winter 2017.

Collection Strengths

Warner’s brassiere, 1927. In the next decade, Warner’s introduced the A-B-C cup sizing system. Image courtesy PVH Archives.

• Advertising and marketing materials across all brands, spanning the late 19th century to today

• Women’s undergarments from the 1870s on, including corsets, early brassieres, shapewear, and intimates

• Menswear shirting swatches dating back to the 1920s; approx. 70K total

• Photographs and footage of American factories and industrial processes

• Full run-of-show of CALVIN KLEIN and TOMMY HILFIGER Collection presentations – more than 25,000 garments combined

• Photographic prints of iconic CALVIN KLEIN advertising campaigns including unpublished outtakes and contact sheets

• Sponsored athletic team gear including Olympic sports, Formula 1 racing, and PGA Tour

• Inspirational library of non-PVH brand vintage apparel, ranging from industrial workwear to high-end contemporary designer, curated by designers

Celebrity endorsements figured highly into Van Heusen’s advertising in the mid-20th century. Image courtesy PVH Archives.

Services

Reporting to the VP of Internal Comm who leads strategy and corporate outreach, a team of four full-time fashion archivists, designated for specific brands, support a variety of research requests:

• Appointments and loans for design inspiration (internal) and for exhibition (external)

• Image, garment, and special subject matter research

• Tours and appointments for partners in industry and academic groups by request

In-reach/Outreach Initiatives

Special installations in the flexible Viewing Room space bring the apparel archives to life. Here, Tommy Hilfiger explains some of his earliest designs. Image courtesy PVH Archives. © 2017 Mark Von Holden Photography. All Rights Reserved. 

• Quarterly tours for new hires and any interested associates via PVH University program

• Original content including “Stories from the Archives” editorial series on PVH.com and social media

• Regular #ThrowbackThursday posts and news stories on PVH intranet and mobile app

• Engagement initiatives such as digital archives “scavenger hunt” challenge

• Installations of dressed mannequins for retail training and tours

• Definitive brand history documents and oral history filming with company principals 

• Networking events for fashion industry and archive field influencers

Please reach pvharchives@pvh.com to learn more!

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