Hugo Boss established his company in Metzingen, Germany, in 1923, only a few years after the end of World War I, while most of the country was in a state of economic ruin. Before and during World War II, Mr. Boss's company both designed and manufactured uniforms and attire for the troops and officers of the Wehrmacht as well as for other governmental branches of Nazi Germany. Boss died in 1948, and the company then languished in relative obscurity until the 1950s, when, in 1953, Hugo Boss released its first suit design for menswear. In 1993, 70 years after its founding, Hugo Boss launched its first fragrance, and created a division which has since grown to be an important part of the company. In 1999, Boss Orange for men was launched described as sporty and casual separating itself from the trendy Hugo brand and the sophisticated Boss Black brand. Boss Green is a completely sporty brand selling items designed for sport or a sporty look. The company's products, divided over three brands, are available throughout the world in 103 countries and more than 5,002 retail stores. These brands are Boss, Hugo, and since 2004, Baldessarini. The latter, BaldessariniGmbH, is a more independent business unit which focuses on a more prestigious image than its two sister brands. It sells, like the other Hugo Boss brands, clothing, shoes, fragrances and accessories but will leave Hugo Boss after the Spring/Summer 2007 collection has been sent to boutiques. This is due to the newly launched premium Boss line, Boss Black Selection, outselling Baldessarini. Baldessarini fashion was recently sold for up to ˆ9m (Aug 2006) to Ahlers AG--a fashion brand holding company. Werner Baldessarini will continue to design the collections; he will also be in charge of marketing. Hugo Boss is presently a subsidiary held by Italian material manufacturer Marzotto S.p.A. Today's sub-brands for men include: Boss Black/Boss Black Selection, Boss Green, Boss Orange, Hugo, and Baldessarini. For women: Boss Black, Boss Orange (announced in July 2005 for Spring/Summer 2006 launch) and Hugo. Also part of the brand are Lifestyle Accessories. All fragrance brands (Hugo, Hugo Boss and Baldessarini) are owned by Procter & Gamble.

Karl Lagerfeld

Born Karl Otto Lagerfeldt as the only child of Christian and Elizabeth Lagerfeldt in Hamburg, Germany. His father was a member of a Swedish merchant-banking family and made his fortune introducing condensed milk to Germany. His mother, Elizabeth, was German. Lagerfeld was born 10 years after the couple's marriage, when his mother was 42 and his father 60. He has several half-siblings from his parents' previous marriages. A Catholic baptismal record indicates his birth date as 10 September 1933 but Lagerfeld states he was born in 1938. German birth records are not open to public inspection. The German newspaper Bild am Sonntag has quoted his former teacher and classmates as confirming the earlier date. He has produced legendary pieces like the shower-dress, with beaded water streaming down the front; a car-dress with a radiator grille and fender, and a multitude of outstandingly eccentric hats. Lagerfeld, along with Calvin Klein, was the target of a pieing by PETA in 2001 at a fashion premiere at Lincoln Center in New York City. In 2004 he designed some outfits for the international music artist's Madonna Re-Invention tour, and recently designed outfits for Kylie Minogue's Showgirls tour. Recently, Lagerfeld collaborated with the international Swedish fashion brand H&M. On November 12, 2004, H&M offered a limited range of different Lagerfeld clothes in chosen outlets for both women and men. Only two days after having supplied its outlets, H&M announced that almost all the clothes were sold out. Lagerfeld has expressed a lack of fear that working with lower-end brands will taint his image, although in the past he has worked closely with the exclusive hosiery designer Wolford. Lagerfeld is also a photographer. He produced Visionaire 23: The Emperor's New Clothes, a series of nude pictures of South African model David Miller. Lagerfeld is currently the chief executive of design at the House of Chanel. The designer was also the subject of a French reality series called Signé Chanel in 2005. The show covered the creation of his Fall/Winter 2004-2005 Chanel couture collection. It aired on Sundance Channel in the United States during the fall of 2006. On December 18, 2006, Karl Lagerfeld announced the launch of a new collection for men and women dubbed K Karl Lagerfeld. The collection will include fitted T-shirts and a wide range of jeans.