Code,211002
Subject,Ron Gottfried
Date,7/3/2012
Interviewer,Marc Frisch; Sean Martin; Kelsey Smith
Abstract,"Ron Gottfried talks about his family's apparel business that started in the 1920s. His father, Emil Godfrey saw the need for specially sized dresses for ethnic women, who tended to be shorter and proportioned differently. Before Ron worked for his family's business he had his own college gear business in the 1940s. Ron Godfrey moved around the apparel business over the years, and relates some if the intricacies of running a garment business, from choosing styles to finding factories. He ends by talking about the decline of the industry in the United States and Cleveland, and the move towards Asian made clothing."
Special Notes,
minutes:,
0,Family business started 1927 by Emil Godfrey (father)
1,
2,Need for special sizes for ethnic women
3,Actress Marie Dressler gave free use of her name for the line
4,Mynette line-petites
5,sold in daytime department stores
6,changing times
7,"fashion was a ""fast-moving"" business"
8,Began his own involvement in 1940s
9,Ohio State sweater and the start of Joe College Jr. Co.
10,His father needed him in the family business
11,Joined his father and tightened up the business
12,"Head of the company, first with double knits"
13,Introduction of expensive suits for men
14,suits sold well-went from wool to polyester
15,Sold the business
16,CM Coventry
17,Sold business to Jerry Leury
18,
19,Leury's talent
20,Gottfried Dress Company
21,back to garment industry after time in other industries
22,Sweaters
23,
24,Assistant to president of a company of feuding family members
25,Cleaned out unproductive employees
26,Sweater fit problems
27,
28,Cleaning out the warehouse
29,Bought out the family
30,Liquidated business
31,Small shops went out of business
32,Merchandising for catalogs
33,JoAnn's fabric displays
34,Spetember 11th and predicting the downturn
35,Company had a sense of style and good fit-helped them hang on
36,Crisis bad for apparel business
37,Closed down February 2002
38,
39,
40,Office locations
41,factory locations-looked for versatility and flexibility
42,Shipping and quality
43,Many of the subtrades used to be located in Cleveland
44,Decline of the industry
45,Have to have an eye for what's in but tempered customers' desires
46,Fast moving business
47,"many ""lost their way"" and lost talent"
48,
49,Juniors line
50,"Business is easy to get into, hard to stay in"
51,The switch to sportswear
52,"Went skiing, first woman he'd seen wearing pants"
53,With postwar life changes came change in women's fashion
54,Sportswear dominates
55,Fashion represents the times
56,Market shows
57,
58,The impossible buyer
59,Throwing the dresses out the window
60,
61,Buying form shows
62,
63,
64,From over 100 companies in Cleveland to 0
65,Became non-competative
66,More on the decline
67,Modern machinery
68,Industry moves constantly around the world