| Type | GmbH & Co. KGaA |
|---|---|
| Industry | Outdoor Clothing, Camping Equipment |
| Genre | Outdoor Clothing |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Founder(s) | Ulrich Dausien |
| Headquarters | Idstein, Germany |
| Key people | Manfred Hell Christian Brandt Markus Bötsch |
| Revenue | € 156.3 million (US$ 226.635 million) (2007)/ 251 million € (2009) |
| Employees | ca. 280 (2007) |
| Website | www.jack-wolfskin.com |
Jack Wolfskin is a German producer of outdoor wear and equipment that was founded in 1981 and is now owned by Quadriga Capital, Germany. With 240 Jack Wolfskin stores across Europe and Asia (especially Japan), the company is now among Europe's three largest outdoor wear manufacturers.[1] Their products include mountain and leisure clothing, footwear, rucksacks, sleeping bags, and tents. The brand is popular not only among hikers and mountaineers but predominantly worn in everyday situations; Jack Wolfskin clothes and accessories are fashionable amongst urban Germans (Wilderness chic).They opened their first store in London in 1990. In 2011 Jack Wolfskin was aquired by the Blackstone Group.[2]
Jack Wolfskin has a history of aggressive legal action related to their paw print logo. In 2002 they succeeded in prohibiting the taz newspaper[3] from using a paw print design on merchandise designed for outdoor use on the grounds that the taz logo designed in 1978 was not registered as a trademark, whereas the Jack Wolfskin logo was registered in 1982.
In October 2009 Jack Wolfskin's lawyers sent demands for damage payments to handicraft hobbyists who had used paw designs in their creations, irrespective of whether the paw design was of wolf, cat or other animal.[4] This prompted a backlash in online forums for handicrafts and bloggers documenting corporate behaviour, outraged at the bullying tactics used by a large firm against individual hobbyists with barely measurable income through clothing and no intention to mimic Jack Wolfskin goods. The protest reached national news media in Germany. A blunt refusal to back down by Jack Wolfskin led to calls to boycott their products in several online communities in Germany and abroad. As the impact of the negative publicity became apparent Jack Wolfskin later issued a press release to indicate they would in future open dialog directly with people it suspected of breaching its copyright, rather than sending damage payment demands as the first contact.
In November 2009 Jack Wolfskin threatened the Dutch company Bearwear, a clothing supplier to the gay bear scene, with legal action causing it to suspend its European web shop and generating ill-feelings to Wolfskin with its customers. This was eventually resolved, allowing Bearwear to continue trading with its logo that incorporates a bear paw print.
In August 2010, Jack Wolfskin have signed a 3-year deal to sponsor the English football club Liverpool, in a chance to increase their exposure in The UK.[5]