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You’re no stranger to the sunrise.
You know dedication is keeping a promise to yourself.
You do what you dream about.
What do you wear?
Champion is an all-time favourite among fashion designers, rappers,
streetwear addicts, and even supermodels.
Many recognize its high-profile collaborations with some of
today's hottest brands, including SUPREME, Vetements, and OFF-WHITE.
But few know the history behind its 100-year legacy.
After inventing the hoodie, sports bra, and anti-shrink technology,
Champion rose into becoming the official outfitter for the NBA — and
then fell into being a Walmart product.
Today, it's survived into becoming a premium brand that can be
embraced by and worn by any.
In 1919, Simon Feinbloom and his sons, Bill and Abe, started a
company in Rochester, New York.
It was called the Knickerbocker Knitting Mills.
It focused on making heavy-knit sweaters and wool underwear for outdoor workers.
Competition was stiff.
Knickerbocker’s direct competitor, Russell Athletic, was on its way to becoming
the largest manufacturer of its kind.
They not only changed athletic wear from wool to cotton but invented
the iconic crewneck sweatshirt.
It was around then that the Feinblooms realized they could
only survive by innovating and expanding their product line.
So they pivoted from focusing on outdoor workers to athletes and changed their
company name to Champion Athletics.
Afterwards, they pivoted their selling strategy by striking a partnership
with Michigan State University.
They became the official outfitters for Michigan’s football team and
later all of their sports teams.
Michigan coaches were so pleased with Champion’s products that
they raved about it to others.
From then on, Champion continued to sell directly to college
sports teams across the U.S.
It was a wise move that led to recognizing the need for a
product that started its legacy.
Around the 1930s, Champion noticed an ongoing problem among all athletes.
They struggled to stay warm when training during cold conditions.
So Champion teamed up with Moe’s Sport Shop to design and develop
a garment that would protect them.
The outcome: a sweatshirt with an added hood.
That same year, Champion pioneered a new technology called the Reverse Weave.
It prevented its hoodies from shrinking during the washing process.
Champion was then adopted by many in need of high-quality
uniforms — including the U.S.
Military Academy.
But at the same time, it was also being worn by those who didn’t
need to follow a dress code.
According to VICE, Champion gained popularity among college students
as casual wear, particularly as jocks would give their track gear
to their girlfriends to wear.
Still, the Feinblooms remained focused on creating products for athletes and
making Champion a leader in sportswear.
In the late 60s, they invented the mesh nylon jersey to combat heat exhaustion
for football and basketball players.
Afterwards, they started to make products for female athletes and
invested in pioneering the sports bra.
In spite of their continued focus on athletes, Champion started to
transition from being seen as merely sportswear or casual wear to street
style — all thanks to its iconic hoodie.
At the time, hip-hop culture was emerging in the Bronx.
Many artists and break-dancers would wear Champion hoodies as their go-to uniform.
Graffiti artists, in particular, liked that it provided an inexpensive,
accessible, and practical way to conceal their identities.
Meanwhile, skate culture was emerging on the other side of America.
Like graffiti artists, they shared a spirit of rebellion and wore
hoodies when sneaking into car parks, reservoirs, or empty pools.
In an interview, fashion journalist, Gary Barnett, shared that it was
around then that Champion ceased to be just an athletic item and
more of a real fashion statement.
But that didn’t affect Champion’s credibility in the world of sports.
They forged ahead with signing deals with the NCAA, NFL, and NBA, and
generated over $200 million in sales.
One conglomerate took notice and offered Champion a lucrative deal — one that would
either build or destroy their legacy.
In the late 80s, the Sara Lee Corporation offered the Feinblooms
$320 million for Champion.
It may have come as a surprise to some since they were a food conglomerate.
But they were heavily focused on diversifying their brands and had already
expanded into knitwear by acquiring Hanes.
By the time Sara Lee made its offer, they had already grown the Hanes business
significantly — setting an example of what could become of Champion.
The Feinblooms accepted Sara Lee’s offer and took the $320 million in cash.
Not long after, Champion fell into the spotlight for reasons
beyond their acquisition.
It became more embraced by hip-hop and skate culture and was seen as a
symbol for music, art, and rebellion.
By the early 1990s, hardcore bands and almost every hip-hop group started
to rock Champion — including Gorilla Biscuits, Wu-Tang, Onyx, and Gang Starr.
Meanwhile, skate brands like Underworld Element began to spoof
their “C” logo on decks and clothing.
And then in 1992, Champion made history by taking part in one of the greatest
moments in American sports history.
They became the official outfitter for all NBA teams.
And their jerseys were proudly worn by the Dream Team: the first group
of NBA stars who could compete in men’s basketball at the Olympic Games.
The group included Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, Karl
Malone, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird.
While being part of this historic moment helped Champion gain global
recognition, it wasn’t enough to help them withstand what would happen next.
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In the early 2000s, Sara Lee took a step back from the clothing industry.
They became more invested in their food brands and put
Champion on the selling block.
This likely came as a surprise to many since Champion signed a lucrative
contract with the XFL that year.
They became the official outfitter for the league’s eight teams
and were given exclusive retail rights for replica jerseys.
The deal may have caused some push back amongst Sara Lee’s executives since they
only sold Champion’s European division.
Had they predicted what would happen next, they may have sold it all together.
XFL ratings are down 75% from week one.
They now rival the lowest ratings ever in prime time, not just for a sports
program but for any television show.
Only one year after the XFL contract was signed, the league folded.
Champion not only lost a lucrative contract but their reputation
for outfitting winning teams.
From then on, Sara Lee paid little attention to Champion,
and consumers followed suit.
As a result, Champion’s spotlight was taken away by brands like Nike and Adidas
— forcing the once highly-coveted brand to sell its products in Walmart and Target.
Two years later, Sara Lee officially announced that it would
only focus on its food brands.
And that Hanes would become the new parent company for all of its clothing brands.
The news may have led some to believe that Champion’s luck was about to turn around.
But Hanes made the mistake of setting up fragmented licensing
deals and launching generic products — which only made Champion
fall further behind its competitors.
In fact, it took nearly a decade for Champion to be given an
opportunity to rebuild its legacy.
And it’s all thanks to a man who was once a flea market vendor.
In 2015, a former flea market vendor by the name of James Jebbia turned his skate
label into a legendary streetwear brand.
It was called Supreme.
Week after week, their in-house collections sold out.
So it was likely no surprise to anyone when they announced a collaboration
with Michael Jordan that year.
But it may have been a shock to many when they announced another collaboration
with a forgotten brand: Champion.
Together, Supreme and Champion released a hoodie that saw a fair amount of
success and led to more collaborations.
It was then that Champion’s luck started to turn around.
In 2016, Hanes bought their European division back — which kickstarted
their return to the spotlight.
Champion released a reversible sweatshirt with Vetements, which saw huge success.
To capitalize on the momentum, they collaborated with more brands
and released a full collection of sweatshirts and sweatpants.
Soon after, Complex listed Champion as one of the best brands of 2017.
That same year, Champion opened its first stores in London’s SoHo district
and Amsterdam's Jordaan neighbourhood.
One year later, Champion reached nearly $1.4 billion in global
sales and opened its first U.S.
stores in Los Angeles, New York, Boston, and Chicago.
They also made headlines for launching more high-profile collaborations with
Supreme, Vetements, OFF-WHITE, Stussy, Bape, BEAMS, Timberland, KITH, and atmos.
Celebrity endorsements included Chance The Rapper, 50 Cent,
The Game, and Kylie Jenner.
But both aren’t the only reasons why Champion was able to make a huge comeback.
Consumers became more interested in athleisure fashion and brands with
long histories and classic logos.
Today, Champion remains a billion-dollar brand that’s survived over 100
years in the clothing industry.
They proved that the high and low of fashion can work together.
And that while there are many contenders, there is only one champion.
This is the story of how the face of sportswear in America was
abandoned by its company and then made a comeback as a premium brand.
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