Fred Perry embraces its past to make greater strides in the future.
At the new Fred Perry store that opened in January in New York, they’re selling more than merchandise. They’re selling heritage. The walls, painted marine blue, are decorated with photographs depicting the company’s legacy. There’s Fred J. Perry, the company’s founder and the last British man to win the men’s singles title at Wimbledon (he won it three times, 1934–’36). On another wall is musician Paul Weller, leader of 1970s punk group The Jam and representative of the company’s musical heritage. All that’s missing is a photo of the label’s newest icon, Scotland’s Andy Murray, Britain’s best hope for a Wimbledon title in years.
It might seem like a risky time to open a store, the company’s first in the United States, but according to John Young, country manager in the U.S., Fred Perry, like Murray, has been on a hot streak. “The brand has had its most dynamic growth the last three years. Our retail shops around the world have impacted this,” he says. The company isn’t out for world domination, though. “We’re a niche brand. Our prices are the same as Nike, but we keep it special.”
Adam Rapoport, style editor at GQ magazine, says part of the company’s success comes from knowing its place in the market. “They’re very aware of who they appeal to. They appeal to hipster fashion kids, and then they sell to people who actually play tennis.”
Tennis, of course, is where the company got its start in the late 1940s. Its first product was perhaps the least sexy item in sportswear, the sweatband. But that successful venture was nothing compared to what officially launched the company, the polo shirt.
The short-sleeved, piqué cotton polo was introduced to tennis in the late 1920s by French player René Lacoste. Perry’s polo debuted in 1952 at Wimbledon. It was white, naturally, and had a green laurel wreath insignia, which Perry lifted from the wreath sewn on the ribbons once awarded to Wimbledon champions. Perry had top players wear the shirts and eventually added their monograms for a personal touch. Retail sales soared.
In the ’60s, players outfitted in Fred Perry included Arthur Ashe and Billie Jean King. John F. Kennedy was a fan of the polo, as were England’s scooter-riding, soul-music-loving Mods, which kicked off the company’s connection to music. Today, the Perry family has no involvement with the company (Perry sold his financial stake in 1961). It remains a U.K.-based operation but is a subsidiary of Japanese apparel manufacturer Hit Union Company Ltd.
That’s not all that’s changed. The once-omnipresent tennis collection now accounts for just 7 percent of the brand’s revenue. To keep up with sports apparel trends, the company added Activair, a lightweight, moisture-wicking fabric, to its tennis line. The polo now comes in 36 colors. The company has a high-end Laurel collection and is pushing its youth-oriented Subculture music website and concerts. There are no plans, however, to change the company’s familiar design. “That’s like saying there are plans to change tennis,” Young says.
And in these tough economic times, Fred Perry’s iconic style might be the company’s greatest asset. “During a recession, buyers are forced to look at what’s always been popular, and go back to their roots,” says Caroline Shnay, men’s buyer for retail chain Scoop. “The Fred Perry polo is timeless.”
Perry, who died in 1995, would have turned 100 in May. At Wimbledon, Murray will pay homage to his tennis forefather by wearing a more traditional kit: fitted shorts, a polo style shirt, a classic bomber jacket and his initials under the laurel wreath. An even more fitting tribute, one the company wouldn’t mind adding to its heritage, would be Murray raising the trophy.
Originally published in the July 2009 issue of TENNIS Magazine.