Cherokee, JEM Sign Licensing Agreement
Cherokee Inc. in Van Nuys, Calif., has signed a licensing agreement with JEM Sportswear, which will make men’s and boys’ knit tops in the United States under the Sideout label.
Jeff Marine, chairman and chief executive of JEM Sportswear, said the Sideout brand has a clean and marketable lifestyle heritage that will be very marketable when it debuts for Spring/Summer 2010.
Robert Margolis, chairman and chief executive of Cherokee, said there is need for branded lifestyle merchandise such as Sideout for many middle-market retailers that don't have the economies of scale to manufacture their own brands.
JEM, a 38-year-old company based in San Fernando, Calif., has several licenses with well-known entertainment companies such as Disney, Hasbro and Live Nation. Many of its products are made in its factory in Ensenada, Mexico.
Cherokee licenses a number of brands it owns, including Carole Little, Chorus Line, All That Jazz and Molly Malloy. Its Cherokee brand is sold at Target in the United States and Tesco in Great Britain.—Deborah Belgum
