Guess

Guess is an American clothing brand and retailer. In addition to clothing for both men and women, Guess markets other fashion accessories such as watches, jewelry, perfumes, and shoes.Guess began in 1981 as a book of styles by Georges Marciano. Maurice, Georges’ brother, was first sought by Georges to help with product development. Armand and Paul, also Georges’ brothers, were in charge of distribution and advertising, respectively. Armand ran distribution. Paul created the advertising, all of it in-house. Georges designed the clothes, burnishing Guess’ signature style: stonewashed denim, lighter in color, softer and more form-fitting than the competitors.[9][10] This initial chain of command later led to the earlier break-up of the brothers’ cooperation with Georges selling his share of the Guess company to his other brothers due to a disagreement in a choice of product distribution strategy. Georges wanted to keep Guess in only the more exclusive stores, such as Bloomingdales. The remaining brothers in the disagreement wanted a larger distribution in KMart. Georges hated the idea. Different camps formed within the company, with each pledging allegiance to either Georges or the other three. Georges eventually gave in and sold his stake to his brothers in 1993 for $214.2 million. To finance the purchase, they had to borrow $210 million, and $105 million was still outstanding three years later. To raise money, the brothers decided to take Guess public.[11] Paul was the only remaining brother to ultimately lead Guess on his own