Ben Sherman

{{Infobox company

| name = Ben Sherman Group Limited

| logo = Ben_Sherman_logos.gif

| revenue = US$256,200,000
(Oxford Industries Annual Report 2016)

| image =

| image_caption = Ben Sherman's logo, pre- and post-2011

| foundation = 1963 in Brighton, England

| founder = Ben Sherman
(born Arthur Benjamin Sugarman)

| key_people =

| products = Mod, casual clothing

| parent = Marquee Brands

}}

File:50 Carnaby Street.JPG

Ben Sherman is a British clothing brand selling shirts, sweaters, suits, outerwear, shoes and accessories predominantly for men. Ben Sherman has been described as an 'iconic British brand'.{{Cite news|title=Ben Sherman's new collection is perfect for long summer evenings|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/shopping/esbest/fashion/mens/ben-sherman-summer-collection-b1164927.html|work=Evening Standard|date=18 June 2024|access-date=4 July 2024}} Ben Sherman designs sometimes feature the Royal Air Force roundel which is often called the mod target.Jobling, Paul and David Crowley, Graphic Design: Reproduction and Representation Since 1800 (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1996) {{ISBN|0-7190-4467-7}}, {{ISBN|978-0-7190-4467-0}}, p. 213 In its beginnings in the 1960s, the company made its mark with fashionable short sleeved, button-down collared shirts.{{Cite news|title=Ben Sherman sold to Marquee Brands|url=http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/jul/20/ben-sherman-sold-marquee-brands-us-private-equity-firm|work=The Guardian|date=20 July 2015|access-date=21 February 2022}}

History

The company was founded in 1963 by Arthur Benjamin Sugarman (1925–1987), the son of a Jewish salesman, born in Brighton.{{cite web |title=The man behind Ben Sherman’s winning British style|url=https://www.drapersonline.com/people/my-fashion-life/the-man-behind-ben-shermans-winning-british-style|publisher=Brighton & Hove News|website=drapersonline.com|date=17 January 2020|access-date=16 January 2025}} Sugarman emigrated to the United States in 1946, via Canada, where he later became a naturalised US citizen. He married the daughter of a Californian clothes producer and later returned to Brighton, where he established a shirt factory at 21 Bedford Square in 1963.{{cite news|title=First Ben Sherman factory to be converted into flat |url=http://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2015/07/22/first-ben-sherman-factory-to-be-converted-into-flat/41093|last=Wadsworth|first=Jo|publisher=Brighton & Hove News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180124201104/http://www.brightonandhovenews.org/2015/07/22/first-ben-sherman-factory-to-be-converted-into-flat/41093/|url-status=live|archive-date=24 January 2018|date=22 July 2015}} Sugarman spotted that early 1960s London-based modern jazz fans were eagerly buying the Oxford-collared American button-down shirt brands such as Brooks Brothers, Arrow, and Hathaway, that were worn by visiting American jazz artists including Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, and Canadian jazz artist Oscar Peterson. At the time, these were only available from official importers. He decided to produce a version of these shirts.

Mods quickly embraced the brand, especially as Sugarman was using higher-quality materials and stitching detail than the imported shirts.{{Cite web|title=Driving Through The Past: Ben Sherman|url=https://brightonjournal.co.uk/driving-through-the-past-ben-sherman/|website=Brighton Journal|last=Ayling|first=Kim|date=10 February 2018|access-date=21 February 2022}} The Ben Sherman Originals label was created, and by 1965, the company had opened a small office on the upper floors of an office-block in a London backstreet. This acted as the showroom for their shirt and beachwear collections. The first Ben Sherman store was opened on Brighton's Duke Street in 1967.{{Cite web|last=Ayling|first=Kim|date=2 October 2018|title=Driving Through The Past: Ben Sherman|url=https://brightonjournal.co.uk/driving-through-the-past-ben-sherman/|website=www.brightonjournal.co.uk|access-date=21 February 2022}} Writing of the brand in 2015, the Guardian wrote that it was "on a par with labels like Fred Perry for the mod set in the 60s".{{Cite web|title=Ben Sherman now a safe choice but history could help its relaunch|url=https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2015/jul/20/ben-sherman-now-a-safe-choice-but-history-could-help-its-relaunch|work=the Guardian|date=20 July 2015|access-date=4 July 2024}}

Ben Sherman remained popular in the late 70s and early 80s as acts including The Jam, The Specials and Madness helped the brand appeal to the mod revival and rude boy movements. The brand also, along with Fred Perry, Lonsdale, Dr Martins, and to a lesser extent Levis, became associated with skinheads at this time.{{Cite web|title=Battle of the brands|website=Deutsche Welle |url=https://www.dw.com/en/fashion-labels-worn-by-europes-skinheads-restore-their-reputation/a-5226933|date=16 February 2010|access-date=24 July 2024}}

Benjamin Sugarman sold his business in 1975 and retired to Australia.{{Cite web|last=Ayling|first=Kim|title=Driving Through The Past: Ben Sherman|url=https://brightonjournal.co.uk/driving-through-the-past-ben-sherman/|website=Brighton Journal|date=2 October 2018|access-date=21 February 2022}} The company passed through a number of hands in the following years. In 1993, British investor 3i backed a management buyout of Ben Sherman Limited from Northern Ireland-based Dunkeld fashion group, then in receivership, for £4 million which resulted in the creation of the Sherman Cooper Group.{{Cite news|title=3i collars £46m as US firm buys Ben Sherman|url=https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/companies/article/3i-collars-pound46m-as-us-firm-buys-ben-sherman-tp3qftnl9g3|last=Davey|first=Jenny|work=The Times|date=22 June 2004|access-date=21 February 2022}} In 2000, 3i financed a second management-buyout that created Ben Sherman PLC. In mid-2004, Oxford Industries Inc. of Atlanta purchased the Ben Sherman brand for £80 million (then US$146 million) from 3i and Irish venture capital company Enterprise Equity. In October 2009, Ben Sherman opened a store at 39 Savile Row.{{Cite web|title=Ben Sherman, Savile Row, London|url=https://www.drapersonline.com/companies/ben-sherman-savile-row-london|last=Ryan|first=John|website=Drapers|date=17 October 2009|access-date=21 February 2022}} Oxford Industries Inc. completed the sale of Ben Sherman to Marquee Brands, controlled by the US investment group Neuberger Berman for £41m in 2015. In turn, UK operations were licensed out to The Baird Group (BMB Clothing).{{cite web|title=Ben Sherman ramps up UK operations in growth strategy |last1=Man |first1=Pui-Guan|url=https://www.drapersonline.com/news/ben-sherman-ramps-up-uk-operations-in-growth-strategy |website=www.drapersonline.com|date=3 October 2017|access-date=16 August 2022}}

At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Team GB’s opening ceremony outfits were designed by Ben Sherman creative director Mark Williams.{{Cite web|title=Stylish athletes to make Tokyo the most fashionable Olympics yet|url=http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/jul/17/stylish-athletes-to-make-tokyo-the-most-fashionable-olympics-yet|website=the Guardian|date=17 July 2021|access-date=21 February 2022}} Drawing on the Mod heritage of the brand, athletes wore civilian Harrington jackets and button-down shirts.{{Cite news|title=Stylish athletes to make Tokyo the most fashionable Olympics yet|url=http://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2021/jul/17/stylish-athletes-to-make-tokyo-the-most-fashionable-olympics-yet|work=The Guardian|date=17 July 2021|access-date=21 February 2022}} In March 2024 the company launched its first ever golf-focused apparel collection.{{Cite news|title=Ben Sherman launches first golf apparel collection and unveils tour ambassador |url=https://golfbusinessnews.com/news/new-products/ben-sherman-launches-first-golf-apparel-collection-and-unveils-tour-ambassador/ |work=Golf Business News|date=4 March 2024|access-date=14 July 2024}} At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Ben Sherman once again outfitted Team GB.{{Cite web|title=Ben Sherman and Team GB Unveil Official Ceremony Wear for Paris Olympics|url=https://www.sailweb.co.uk/2024/05/15/ben-sherman-and-team-gb-unveil-official-ceremony-wear-for-paris-olympics/|website=www.sailweb.co.uk|date=15 May 2024|access-date=9 July 2024}}

=Image=

The Ben Sherman brand has often been compared to fellow British clothing brand Fred Perry and Lonsdale. As well as being worn by several prominent bands, Ben Sherman has also been featured in several films, including 2006's This is England.

In July 2015, The Guardian described Ben Sherman as being at a 'low ebb as a trendsetter,' saying that Ben Sherman was now a 'safe choice', but that 'history could help its relaunch'.