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October 29, 2009

Fashion Icon Marc Ecko Sells Naming and Branding Thanks to Poor Real Estate Market

It seems to be a sign of the times when Marc Ecko loses control over his brand name thanks to the decline in real estate prices. He has signed over 51% of the Marc Ecko brand to Iconix, which controls Joe Boxer, Rocawear and London Fog, for $63.5 million, "plus $90 million in financing for a newly formed joint venture."

This is a fashion guy who has successfully used video games to get his name out there.

Whew, that is a lot of equity tied up in one designer name. But he'll need it, as he is trying to lease out a 280,000 square foot headquarters in midtown Manhattan and manage a 30-acre estate in New Jersey.

He's laid off workers and even auctioned off his watch trademarks and the Avirex brand, leading Agency Spy to say "Brand Loss Eckos Thru the Web."

This comes on the heels of reports that his signature urban look is losing favor with the kids, though Ecko himself seems phlegmatic about losing his name: "I've lived through a leveraged position...I don't know whether, once you grow up your business like that, you have full control anymore anyway."

And at least one blog says his brand is one of the top ten urban brands out there ... of hundreds.

I have written before about how well known people lose their names (I'm talking to you, Joseph Abboud and Steve Saleen), but this seems like an epidemic in the design world, where egos are attached to names equals brands.

Technorati Tags: Marc Ecko, Ecko, Fashion, Clothing, Urband brands, Clothing designer

Posted by William Lozito at October 29, 2009 10:40 AM
Posted to Company Naming | Fashion | Naming Rights | Product Naming | Retail | Trademarking

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