The Timberland Company

The Timberland Company (NYSE: TBL) is an American manufacturer and retailer of outdoors wear with a focus on footwear. Its three key locations are in Stratham, New Hampshire; Danville, Kentucky; and Ontario, California.

Timberland footwear is popular for hiking, mountaineering, and casual wear. The Company also sells apparel such as clothes, watches, and leather goods.

In 2007, Timberland was named the 78th best employer in the US on the CNN Money "One hundred best companies to work for" list.^[2] Timberland is a strong proponent of corporate social responsibility.

Timberland’s corporate headquarters are located in Stratham, New Hampshire. Timberland also operates from a number of offices around the world.

Company history

• In 1918, Timberland founder Nathan Swartz began his shoe-making career in Boston, Massachusetts, as an apprentice stitcher.
• In 1952, Swartz bought half an interest in The Abington Shoe Company in Abington, mainly doing contract work for other manufacturers.
• In 1955, Swartz bought the remaining interest and brought his sons into the company.
• In 1960, the Swartz family introduced the then innovative injection-molding technology into the footwear industry. This enabled the production of virtually waterproof boots made in colder tempeture form or in tropical weather form depending on the customer,By connecting the soles to the leather uppers without stitching.
• In 1973, the brand name "Timberland" was introduced for the waterproof leather boots produced by the company. Because the boot proved to be very popular, the company name was officially changed to The Timberland Company.
• In 1978 and 1979, Timberland added casual and boat shoes to its boots product line.
• In the 1980s, the company expanded internationally - first into the Italian market and, later, to many other countries.
• Sidney Swartz, one of the founder's sons, took the helm at the company (he still serves as Chairman). Under his leadership Timberland began to evolve into a lifestyle brand, adding clothing and women's shoes to its products.
• Throughout the 1990s, the Timberland Company added more product lines such as backpacks, watches, and kids' footwear.
• In 1998, the Timberland PRO series of "Workboots for the Professional" was launched. Jeffrey Swartz stepped up to become Chief Executive Officer of the company and brand his grandfather and father had started.
• In 2006, the company acquired howies, the Welsh clothing company.^[4]
• In 2007, Timberland acquired skateboard-footwear company, Ipath.^[5]
• In 2011, Timberland signed a definitive merger agreement with VF Corporation at $43 per share or approximately $2 billion ^[6] Due to shareholder concerns' the agreement sparked an investigation into the price of the shares in order to safeguard the rights of the shareholders.^[7]

Stores

In addition to stores in the United States, Timberland also operates stores worldwide.

References

External links

• Company online store
• UK online store
• French website
• Japanese website