Katz Underwear Company
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Industry | Underwear |
|---|---|
| Founded | September 1898 Honesdale, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Defunct | 1993 |
The Katz Underwear Company was an American underwear manufacturing company from 1898 to 1993. It was founded in Honesdale, Pennsylvania.
The Katz Underwear Company was founded in September 1898 by three Katz Brothers: Jacob F., W. Jonas and Samuel, and began as a small shop with 11 employees on the third floor of the Dodge Building at the corner of Main and Seventh Streets in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. The first product manufactured was muslin underwear under contract to the three largest underwear manufacturers in the United States.
By 1902, the business had outgrown its quarters, and a new factory was built on Sixth Street in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. The Katz brothers decided to discontinue their contract work and began production of their own line. As the company continued to grow, it became necessary to expand facilities,[1] and over the years four additions were made to the original factory.
Opening in the Empire State Building (1933 – 1948)
On October 27, 1933, the company opened its national sales office in New York City on the 39th Floor of the Empire State Building, which remained in the company until the late 1980s until it was moved to Madison Avenue; Katz was one of the oldest tenants in the history of the Empire State Building (1933 - 1988). The Katz Underwear Company's time in the Empire State Building saw an annual visitation of over 1,500 customers and was receiving over 15,000 calls a year. The office handled both large and small accounts, working with buyers from all fifty states and internationally, with Saudi Arabia, China, South Africa, France, UK, Switzerland, South America and the Caribbean.