Whatever Happened to Esprit?

Let us face itin the 80s, we loved a fantastic emblem. I mean, what says impeccable design like a corporate brand logo? Enter Esprit–the brand that expressed it’s European chic and devil-may-care attitude through vivid colors, comfortable silhouettes and it is very own prominently featured bold and clean sans serif font.

Of course, the 1980s were about look-what-I-can-afford fashion statements, and Esprit made it easy to make sure that the Jones (and Jennifers, and Jessicas…) knew exactly where you stood. However, the 80s have come and gone (thank goodness)–so whatever occurred to 80s style vanguard Esprit???

What Happens to Esprit

Well, as it happens, a great deal of downs and ups. Let us start at the beginning–in a story that speaks to our hipster/bohemian hearts, the brand was founded in 1968 by Doug and Susie Tompkins, who sold clothing they had made out of the back of their station wagon. They founded their company with–according to a focus on caring for the environment, their employees and the world at large. Seeking to create designs that were”inspiring and fun”, Esprit finally succeeded — who could be miserable sporting an over-sized cardigan emblazoned with bold primary red and yellow stripes (accented with bright blue trim)? Alright, so it sounds a little more clown-ready than boho-chic, but, again, it was the 80s. The brand appeared from the”me” decade, tapping into the one world awareness that began to blossom at that time, starting the brand-as-we-knew-it not in the US but at Cologne, Germany.

So when and where did the decrease happen? It is hard to say–certainly most people did not really detect when Esprit went out of favor — it was a quiet downslide, a combination of marketing issues, pricing problems and understanding problems in the face of the development of 1990s grunge and anti-corporate sensibilities. Esprit finally closed all it’s North American stores after a 98 percent revenue downturn in 2011 and, moving forward, concentrated on Asian and European markets.

Hence the story could end there (although it is going to live forever in our high school yearbook photos)–BUT, a trip to the present Esprit website had us pleasantly surprised, largely by the, er, quite 2014ishness of everything (clean present design, user friendliness, a socially conscious message and very super elegant, clean and modern clothing designs… compared to the somewhat depressing Chic Jeans site we discovered recently). The minute that is boo-hoo? If you are in the US, there is”now no e-shop in your country”. The joke’s on us, Esprit. Maybe we will get back together again, and if not–we will always have that summer at band camp.

Meanwhile, if you are feeling nostalgic (or even just don’t have any idea what we’re talking about), check out this Esprit ads board we found on Pinterest.

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Angela

Angela is a senior writer who has been hanging round TBF since way back into 2007. When she’s not weighing on the virtues of, say, feathers as a fashion statement, Angela functions as a bridal consultant in the St. Louis area. She enjoys sunsets, and long walks in Goal.

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