{{Short description|American brand of denim jeans}} {{Distinguish|Lee Cooper|Levi Strauss & Co.}} {{Use American English|date=April 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}} {{Infobox company | name = Lee | logo = Lee logo.svg | logo_size = 150px | type = | founded = {{start date and age|1889}} | location = Greensboro, North Carolina, U.S. | key_people = | industry = Clothing | products = | revenue = | founder = Harry David Lee | operating_income = | net_income = | num_employees = 400 people | parent = Kontoor Brands (2019–present) | subsidiaries = | website = {{URL|https://www.lee.com/|lee.com}} | footnotes = }}
'''Lee''' is an American brand of jeans made from denim, first produced in 1889 in Salina, Kansas. The company is owned by Kontoor Brands, a spin-off of VF Corporation's Jeanswear Division.<ref name="KTB spinoff">{{cite web|url=https://www.vfc.com/news/press-releases/detail/1687/vf-corporation-completes-separation-of-kontoor-brands-inc|title=VF Corporation Completes Separation of Kontoor Brands, Inc.|date=October 30, 2024 |publisher=VF Corporation}}</ref> Since 2019 its headquarters has been in Greensboro, North Carolina,<ref>{{cite news| url=http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2003/07/07/daily4.html | first=Kansas | last=City | title=Lee Jeans parent will buy Nautica in $586M deal | date=July 7, 2003}}</ref> relocated from Merriam, Kansas.<ref name="lee">{{cite web|url= https://www.lee.com/about/history.html |title=Lee Through the Years|publisher=Lee|accessdate=March 7, 2021}}</ref> The company states that it is an international retailer and manufacturer of casual wear and work wear and that it has more than 400 employees in the United States.<ref name="history">{{cite web|url=http://www.lee.com/our_company.asp#|title=Lee History|publisher=Lee.com}}</ref> In Australasia, the brand has been owned by Pacific Brands since 2007, after it was acquired from Yakka.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.finz.co.nz/news%20-%20business%20-%20Yakka%20part%20of%20Pacific%20Brands%20-%2013%20April%202007.php |title=Business news - Kiwi dollar poised to eclipse previous highs |access-date=September 13, 2010 |archive-date=October 14, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014182632/http://www.finz.co.nz/news%20-%20business%20-%20Yakka%20part%20of%20Pacific%20Brands%20-%2013%20April%202007.php |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==History== [[File:Lee Jeans Booth Kansas City.jpg|thumb|alt=A Lee Jeans booth at a local 5k race in Kansas City.|A Lee Jeans booth at a local 5k race in Kansas City]] thumb|The identification patch on a set of Lee jeans
The company was formed in 1889 by Henry David Lee as the HD Lee Mercantile Company at Salina, Kansas, producing dungarees and jackets. The growth of Lee was prompted by the introduction of the Union-All work jumpsuit in 1913 and their first overall in 1920.<ref name="history"/> Later in the 1920s Lee introduced a zipper fly and continued to expand. Around this time, the first children's overalls line was sold. In 1928 H.D. Lee, founder and president of The H.D. Lee Mercantile Company, died.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kshs.org/real_people/lee_h_d.htm|title=Kansas State Historical Society|publisher=kshs.org|access-date=May 5, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821211417/http://www.kshs.org/real_people/lee_h_d.htm|archive-date=August 21, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> During the 1930s and 1940s the company became the leading manufacturer of work clothes in the US. In 1944, the Lazy "S" became the official Lee back pocket. Buddy Lee dolls were a promotional item. In 1954, Lee expanded into casual wear. During the 1960s the company expanded to 81 countries and in 1969 was acquired by VF Corporation, becoming a brand.<ref name="history"/> Lee aired its first television advertisement, which promoted Lee western wear.
In the 1970s Lee shifted its focus from the workwear business and began catering to fashion cycles. Lee created an all-new fit for women under the Ms. Lee label. A youth wear line for boys and girls was introduced. In 1996, the company launched Lee National Denim Day as part of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Working with the Entertainment Industry Foundation, Lee National Denim Day has raised over $75 million to help fund breast cancer research programs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.denimday.com/about_us.aspx?id=33|title=Lee National Denim Day|publisher=denimday.com|access-date=December 14, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220024433/http://www.denimday.com/about_us.aspx?id=33|archive-date=December 20, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eifoundation.org|title=Women's Cancer Programs|publisher=EIF}}</ref> In 2014, the brand was relaunched in Paris via the Citadium Paris store.{{Citation needed|date=October 2017}} In 2019, Lee, Wrangler, Rock & Republic, and VF Outlet were separated from VF Corporation into Kontoor Brands.<ref name="KTB spinoff"/>
On May 21, 2026, Kontoor announced the sale of Lee Jeans to Authentic Brands Group for $750 million plus up to $250 million depending on the brand's performance in the future.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://greensboro.com/news/local/business/development/article_3275d543-f3ea-498f-9ca1-62be26364895.html|title=Greensboro's Kontoor to sell Lee jeans for $1 billion|last=Craver|first=Richard|work=News and Record|date=21 May 2026 |language=en}}</ref>
==Manufacturing== '''Lee Factory sit-in'''
In 1981, 240 factory workers in Greenock, Scotland, staged a sit-in in protest against plans to move the factory to Northern Ireland. What was planned as a one-night protest continued for seven months.<ref name=":0">I thought one-night demo would save our jobs ... seven months later we were still there; Lee jeans shop steward tells of sit-in to save jobs Daily Record (Scotland) March 8, 2005</ref> The protest became recognised as a gender issue and part of working class social history,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Clark |first=Andy |title=Women and Workplace Struggles: Scotland 1900-2022 |url=https://www.open.edu/openlearn/scotland-women-struggles |access-date=2026-04-06 |website=Open Learning |language=en}}</ref> as women led the workers union, and peacefully deferred the shut-down for a number of years.
Anniversary events are still held to mark the protest.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=5 February 2016 |title=Lee Jeans workers on struggle 35 years on: We found strength in music during seven-month industrial dispute|url=https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/lee-jeans-workers-struggle-35-7313020|last=English|first=Paul|work=Daily Record}}</ref> <ref>{{Cite news |date=4 February 2011 |title=Lee Jeans women remember seven-month sit-in success|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-12366211|last=Alderson|first=Reevel|work=BBC Scotland News}}</ref> On the 30th anniversary, MSPs in the Scottish Parliament, debated a motion to "''salute the workers for capturing the imagination of the whole country and achieving a landmark victory against a US multinational"'',<ref>{{Cite news |date=2011-03-10 |title=MSPs pay tribute to Lee Jeans sit-in women |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-12703205 |access-date=2026-04-06 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> and on the 40th anniversary in 2021, Greenock local government held a commemorative dinner of fish and chips (which was what had been brought to feed sit-in workers). In 2026, The National Theatre of Scotland and Tron Theatre released a touring play,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Edinburgh |first=What's On |title=Stand & Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-in at Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh West |url=https://www.whatsoninedinburgh.co.uk/event/166158-stand-&-deliver:-the-lee-jeans-sit-in/ |access-date=2026-04-06 |website=What's On Edinburgh |language=en}}</ref> by Frances Poet ''Stand & Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-In.''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Poet |first=Frances |title=Stand & Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-In |url=https://www.nickhernbooks.co.uk/stand-and-deliver |access-date=2026-04-06 |website=Nick Hern Books}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=CALL OUT FOR LEE JEANS FACTORY STRIKERS |url=https://www.nationaltheatrescotland.com/whats-on-temp/call-out-for-lee-jeans-factory-strikers?ref=ed_direct}}</ref>
{{As of|2005}}, Lee Jeans have been manufactured by Arvind Mills, in a number of small factories in Chamarajanagar, India. About 60,000 workers produce 5,000 pairs of jeans a day.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/catalyst/2006/09/14/stories/2006091400250300.htm |title=The Hindu Business Line : Building a rural workforce |access-date=June 12, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821142742/http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/catalyst/2006/09/14/stories/2006091400250300.htm |archive-date=August 21, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
==Advertising== In the 1930s "The Great Lee Success Story" advertisements were launched that led to Lee's slogan "The Jeans that Built America".<ref name="lee"/>
Within the United States, the company spends more than $40 million per year on advertising. In 2009, Olson was appointed as the lead interactive agency for the American brand and redesigned their website. Barkley Inc. had previously handled interactive advertising for the brand. Arnold Worldwide continues to provide offline advertising services for the brand.<ref>http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/account-activity/e3i859557a801e205467f722f01fcc1f441 Lee Jeans Taps Olson for Interactive Adweek March 5, 2009</ref>
==See also== *Rock & Republic
==References== {{Reflist}}
==Further reading== * {{cite book |last1=Marsh |first1=Graham |last2=Trynka |first2=Paul |title=Denim: From Cowboys to Catwalks: A Visual History of the World's Most Legendary Fabric |publisher= Aurum Press |year= 2002 |isbn= 1-85410-791-7}} * {{cite book |last = Rodengen |first = Jeffrey L. |year = 1998 |title = The Legend of VF Corporation |publisher = Write Stuff Enterprises |isbn = 0945903383 |url-access = registration |url = https://archive.org/details/legendofvfcorpor00rode }}
==External links== * [http://www.lee.com Lee Jeans] * [http://leejeans.com.au Lee Jeans Australia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002135722/http://leejeans.com.au/ |date=October 2, 2024 }} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20080805205534/http://www.denimday.com/ Lee National Denim Day]
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Category:Clothing brands of the United States Category:Manufacturing companies based in Kansas Category:Salina, Kansas Category:1920s fashion Category:1930s fashion Category:1940s fashion Category:1950s fashion Category:1960s fashion Category:1970s fashion Category:1980s fashion Category:1990s fashion Category:2000s fashion Category:2010s fashion Category:1889 establishments in Kansas Category:Jeans by brand Category:1969 mergers and acquisitions