| Type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Consumer goods |
| Founded | 1996 |
| Founder(s) | Tamara Mellon, OBE Jimmy Choo, OBE[nb 1] |
| Headquarters | London, England |
| Key people | Joshua Schulman, Chief Executive Officer. Tamara Mellon OBE, Chief Creative Officer. Sandra Choi, Creative Director and designer. |
| Products | Shoes, clothing, and bags |
| Revenue | £85.3 million (2010) |
| Employees | 96 (2010) |
| Parent | Labelux |
| Website | www.jimmychoo.com |
Jimmy Choo is a British high fashion house specializing in luxury shoes, designer bags, and accessories. The company, J. Choo Limited, was founded in 1996 by couture shoe designer Jimmy Choo OBE and Vogue accessories editor Tamara Mellon OBE. In April 2001 Equinox Luxury Holdings Ltd. bought out Jimmy Choo's 50% ownership of the ready to wear business. The company was bought by current owners Labelux in 2011.
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J. Choo Limited was founded by Malaysian-born couture shoe designer Jimmy Choo OBE and Vogue accessories editor Tamara Mellon OBE in 1996, and registered as such on the United Kingdom register of companies.[1] The company began by making shoes and opened shops in several locations over the following five years, marketing their products as the "Jimmy Choo London" line.
Choo sold his 50% share in the company to Equinox Luxury Holdings Ltd. in 2001. Lion Capital acquired a majority shareholding in November 2004,[2] and the company was sold in 2007 to TowerBrook Capital Partners for £225 million.[3] It was later sold to Labelux, the current owners, for £525.5 million in 2011[3] with J. Choo Limited still the company name throughout. The company is currently registered under the name J. Choo Limited [4]
J. Choo Limited is under the purview of Tamara Mellon, founder and chief creative officer, and Sandra Choi, previously an apprentice under Choo and now the creative director of the company. Choi is the niece of Choo's wife Rebecca. The company produces the Jimmy Choo London line (also known as Jimmy Choo ready-to-wear or Jimmy Choo) and the ready-to-wear line has been expanded to include accessories, such as handbags. The company is also responsible for the "Jimmy Choo" website.[5]
The Jimmy Choo brand has 115 stores worldwide in 32 countries with its international flagship store in Bond Street, London. In the United States Jimmy Choo boutiques are found in: New York City, Bellevue, Washington, Chevy Chase, Maryland, Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago, Beverly Hills, Canoga Park, Los Angeles, Costa Mesa, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Orlando, Palm Beach, Florida, San Diego, and Phoenix, Arizona. In the United States, Jimmy Choo currently only has 40 shops, but Tamara Mellon, co-founder of Jimmy Choo, revealed on September 29 that she hopes to open up 50 new stores in China, one of the world's fastest-growing markets for luxury products. Jimmy Choo is working to open its 3rd shop in China by the end of 2011.[6]
In 2010 Jimmy Choo was voted Britain's most desirable brand by OK Magazine, followed by Jack Wills and Louis Vuitton.
Jimmy Choo began Jimmy Choo Couture Limited in late 2006[7] to continue his work on the exclusive Jimmy Choo Couture line, which is produced under license from J. Choo Ltd., available by appointment only at Connaught Street in London.
The brand has won awards for its products, including the British Fashion Council Awards Designer Brand category in 2008,[8] the Accessories Council[nb 2] Brand of the Year 2008,[9] the Footwear News Brand of the Year Award, and the 2009 Nordstrom Partners In Excellence award.[10]
J. Choo Ltd. has over 400 design patents to its name.[11] Jimmy Choo is a global "luxury accessory brand", designing and creating: women's shoes, handbags, small leather goods, scarves, sunglasses, belts, eyewear, perfume and men's shoes.[12][13][14] The company's products are regularly seen being worn by people such as HRH Duchess of Cambridge, Zara Phillips and Michelle Obama.
The company has had several prominent cases for copyright and trademark infringement, as well as being the target of "knock-off" counterfeit imports in the UK, the US and Australia.[15][16][17] In one case the company took action against Marks & Spencer in 2006, for selling a copy of the Jimmy Choo Cosmo silk satin evening bag; The case was settled for an undisclosed sum,[18] while other cases include the Oasis and Warehouse chains.[19] Since these events the Jimmy Choo brand has adopted the trend for tie-ups, according to a report by Susie Mesure in The Independent,[19] "Jimmy Choo is famously litigious, suing high street chains including Oasis, Warehouse ..." while Lauretta Roberts, development director of WGSN, replied that "High street designers pore over catwalk collections for ideas. This [red carpet labels seeking tie-ups with high street stores] enables brands to take some control of that process and profit from it,".[19]
In December 2008 the company threatened to sue a New Zealand website, Kookychoo.com, for trademark infringement.[20] Kookychoo is a company which sells products unrelated to shoes; items such as toys, jewellery and bean bags. Kookychoo's owner stated, "It's terrifying to be honest because I'm feeling really bullied. There was never any malice intended, we just wanted to start a small New Zealand business so it's quite frightening."[21] J. Choo Limited did not comment.