Clothier Henry Brooks started his tailoring business in 1818. When his four sons took over the business they changed the name to Brooks Brothers. In its heyday, Brooks Brothers was the tailor of choice for presidents, celebrities, and millionaire tycoons. Even Abraham Lincoln was a patron. The Brooks Brothers name indicated quality, refinement, and conservatism, offering dark suits, striped ties, and shirts in two colors - blue or white.

Out of touch?

The company never lost its reputation for quality, but times and fashions change, and Brooks Brothers refused to change with them. When "Casual Fridays" proliferated among American businesses, and other designers rushed to cater to the new way of dress, designers, Brooks Brothers ignored the change in dress style. The company also dismissed the need to revamp its styles, despite increasing competition in the menswear scene. Younger men saw Brooks Brothers as a label their fathers and grandfathers wore, a little too bland for the fashion-forward times - the morbid joke is that every time there's a funeral, Brooks Brothers loses another customer. In addition, the clothier had become the victim of its exclusivity. Its stores were somewhat intimidating, and its salesmen were seen as aloof, if not smug, especially for those trying to shop there wearing jeans and sneakers. (As the story goes, there was a time when the flagship store on Madison Avenue was closed on Saturdays because "outsiders shopped then.") The average customer was in his 40s or 50s, not exactly a growth market.

Brooks lightens up

British retail giant Marks and Spencer acquired the company in 1988, but BB continued to flounder for eight more years. By the end of the 1994 fiscal year, sales had only grown 2 percent, and operating earnings had fallen 58.7 percent. Joseph Gromeck was hired as the new CEO in 1995, and profits have skyrocketed since he walked in the door. He started with the merchandise, increasing the variety of clothing styles and color choices. Brooks Brothers began selling men's shirts and ties in livelier colors and patterns, such as lavender gingham, pink, and lime green. Designers have altered the cut of some suits, and are using new fabrics, including traveler-friendly materials that are less prone to wrinkling. They have also introduced suit separates (jackets and slacks to mix and match) and casual clothing, such as khakis, jeans, and cotton shirts with a little less starch. New Brooks Brothers advertisements, placed in magazines like GQ and Vanity Fair, feature slick photography and young, carefree models, albeit in "classy" black and white. The company has even started offering classes to large firms on how to dress casually without looking sloppy.

Losing the stuffiness

The company also went to great lengths to give its stores more customer appeal. Dark wood paneling and fixtures were replaced with lighter wood, and more light was added to give the stores a bright, airy feel. Country club-like nautical accents were removed. Shirts and ties are no longer locked away in glass display cases, nor are they packaged in plastic, as in years past. Brooks Brothers has also retrained its salespeople - they're friendlier now, and more apt to try to sell to the scruffy youngsters poking their head into the former bastion of stuffiness. Management also established a central distribution center, in order to ensure merchandise availability in the stores.

Looking sharp

Since Gromeck's arrival, sales have increased 50 percent, and the venerable haberdasher has managed to modernize without alienating its traditional customer base. Sinking profits, tied to increased marketing costs and opening of new stores caused the ouster of six top executives in November 1999. Brooks Brothers is still banking on its roots though - tailored clothing, shirts, and ties still make up 65 percent of the business, with sportswear representing about 20 percent. Women's clothing accounts for the last 15 percent of sales, and the company is looking to increase that share to 20 percent by the end of 2000. The company opened its first three women's-only stores in fall 1998, and introduced a new women's businesswear line. (In May 1999, the company opened its new 24,000-square-foot flagship store in New York, with over half of the main floor dedicated to women's appparel and accessories.) Brooks Brothers also introduced a new luxury collection in the fall of 1998, with hand-tailored suits retailing in the $1,000-$2,000 range. Other recent projects include the Brooks Brothers credit card, an eyewear licensing deal, and a plan to open shops in airports across the country, starting with New York's LaGuardia in 1999, and Columbus, Ohio, and Dallas-Fort Worth. Brooks Brothers also plans on expanding in Europe in 2001 with the addition of stores in Italy, Austria, and Switzerland.

Still Brooks Brothers