Calvin Klein

Calvin Klein (1942- ), American fashion designer. Born in New York, as a boy Klein taught himself to sketch and sew. He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1962 and worked his way up through the design ranks in New York’s garment district until in 1968 he set up his own fashion house, Calvin Klein, Ltd. Klein’s original designs, with their clean lines and spare shapes, quickly won him recognition.

In the late 1970s his designs became increasingly sophisticated, with broad-shouldered jackets and slim, softly tailored separates. In the early 1980s Klein brought masculine tailoring to womenswear, for example in autumn and winter tuxedo coats. His signature continues to be understated, simple but sophisticated styling, using luxurious fabrics in rich and neutral tones, free of excess and ornament. Klein pioneered designer jeans and the company now produces jeans, sportswear, and underwear for men, women, and children and, more recently, a range of innovative perfumes, including CK One, the world’s first fragrance marketed for both sexes.

Klein ranks high among fashion’s modernists. He is known not only for his creativity but also as an entrepreneur and communicator, with a particular talent for strong visual imagery in his advertising. The company operates a growing network of free-standing retail stores in such cities as New York, Paris, Moscow, London, Barcelona, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Hong Kong, and Tel Aviv. Klein has received four awards for outstanding design from the Council of Fashion Designers of America and has three times won the Coty Award. He holds a number of honorary and advisory positions. Klein’s daughter, Marci, has introduced him to a younger generation’s tastes and needs, factors that have enabled him to modernize and evolve new styles.