H&M

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H&M AB (originally known as Hennes & Mauritz), is a Swedish clothing company, known for their inexpensive and fashionable clothing offerings. It was established in Västerås in Sweden in 1947 by Erling Persson, though at the time it only sold women's clothing and was called Hennes, Swedish for "hers." In 1968, Persson acquired the premises and inventory of a Stockholm hunting equipment store named Mauritz Widforss. Included in the inventory was a supply of men's clothing, prompting Persson to expand into menswear. Accordingly, he renamed the store Hennes & Mauritz, later abbreviated to H&M. H&M have more than 1900 stores in 22 different countries and has more than 50,000 employees. The Church of Sweden is a major shareholder in the chain.[1]

Though its price point is well in the discount fashion range, they have marketed their brand to the high-end fashion consumer, both through ads in fashion magazines and the placement of their stores in areas more typically associated with expensive designer stores. In November 2004, selected H&M stores offered an exclusive collection by fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld. Throughout the world, the collection sold out within an hour. In November 2005, the success was repeated with a collection by Stella McCartney.

1 H&M in Europe
- 1.1 Trivia
2 H&M in North America
3 See also
4 External links

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H&M in Europe

In 2003, H&M announced its entry into the traditionally exclusive Milan fashion scene. Initial analysts declared that the high-fashion Italian market would be extremely resistant to the entry of this low-end competitor. It remains to be seen if H&M and other low-end retailers will be able to find a market there.

In February 2004, The Gap, another prominent international retailer, sold off all of its German outlets to its competitor, H&M.

H&M is co-operating with Stella McCartney and introduced a line by her in the autumn of 2005. The planned face for this campaign was British model Kate Moss. On 20 September 2005, H&M announced they have dropped Moss for the advertising campaign of their autumn clothes range, stating that her image was "inconsistent with H&M's clear dissociation of drugs" in light of recent drug allegations. The contract was reportedly worth £4 million a year. Singer and model Tamyra Gray was featured in a short film and promotion campaign for the new denim jeans for women as well.

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Trivia

In 1986 H&M (as H&M Hennes Fashion Stores) sponsored the Mercury Records new artist sampler "Beat Runs Wild - 9 Tracks, 9 Cats, 9 Lives" which showcased new bands such as Wet Wet Wet and Swing Out Sister.

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H&M in North America

Image:Harlem - H&M.jpg

H&M launched its first American outlet on March 31, 2000 on New York's famous Fifth Avenue. Following the success of that flagship, additional outlets were opened in the SoHo, Gramercy, and Herald Square areas of Manhattan, followed by outlets in Upstate New York in Syracuse, Utica, and West Nyack. The brand then expanded to other regions of the country, including Chicago and its outlying suburbs.

The first two H&M stores to appear on the West Coast of the US opened in San Francisco, California on November 19th, 2005. One store is located at 150 Post Street (next to Brooks Brothers), and the other store--H&M's bigger West Coast flagship--is located at 150 Powell Street.

H&M opened its first Canadian store in Fairview Mall in Toronto and soon after, its flagship store in Toronto's Eaton Centre in March 2004. Following great financial success, H&M opened ten other stores within the Greater Toronto Area. Stores will be opened in Montreal in Spring 2006.

H&M continues its expansion in the Canadian market, planning to double the current 11 stores to 22 in Canada by end of FY2006. Planned new markets include Barrie, Hamilton, London, Kitchener/Cambridge/Waterloo, and Windsor. Although current expansion is primarily in the Ontario market, plans for expansion into Quebec continue, with the opening of 5 new stores in Montreal, beginning in March of 2006. The first store to open will be in the Fairview (Pointe Claire) shopping centre on March 30, followed by one in the Rockland Centre (April 6), the Galeries d'Anjou (April 13), and the Carrefour Laval (May 18). So far, only Rockland and Laval locations will be stocking menswear. Certainly, expansion into Western Canada will start in 2007, continuing into 2008 through 2010.

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