Kellwood, Perry Ellis enter licensing agreement

NEW YORK Kellwood and Perry Ellis will be showing consumers that women really go crazy for sharped-dress men.

The two major retailers announced Friday that they have signed of a licensing agreement for Kellwood Company’s Kellwood Distribution Division, the U.S. based marketing arm of Smart Shirts Ltd., to market a men’s dress shirt collection under the Perry Ellis and Perry Ellis Portfolio brand names.

The new collection will combine Perry Ellis’s neo-traditional, modern classics design with Smart Shirts’ proven ability to make and deliver high quality dress shirts. The new line will be available at major department stores and specialty stores throughout the United States for fall 2008.

“Perry Ellis has a track record of creating fashionable menswear that marries innovative design with contemporary styling,” stated Robert C. Skinner, Jr., chairman, president and ceo of Kellwood Company. “Combining the brand power and design excellence of Perry Ellis with Smart Shirts’ manufacturing expertise creates an exciting opportunity for Kellwood in the men’s apparel market.”