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Riportiamo il testo originale e la sua traduzione in italiano dell'articolo pubblicato il 07 novembre 1954 sul New York Times, presente nella sezione F a pagina 6.
EN. "On Nov. 6, 1874, three men pooled their talents in a new men's wear business. Today that company bears the names of the two who died shortly after, Marvin N. Rogers, a clothing manufacturer, and Charles B. Peet, a clothing jobber. The third partner, Frank R. Chambers, built the Rogers Peet Company and remained its guiding spirit until his death at the age of 89 in 1940. Looking back today, Phillips Roome Turnbull, president, notes that Rogers Peet built slowly and carefully. Its policies were evolutionary rather than revolutionary-neat and conservative, like the garments it sells. The business aimed at building on integrity from the first. Rejecting the philosophy of caveat emptor-let the buyer beware- prevalent in the retailing field late in the nineteenth century, Rogers Peet was among the first to attach a tag on every garment giving the fabric composition. Rogers Peet extensively used laboratories to test fabrics received from American and English mills. Mr. Chambers, a practical man, checked the weathering abilities of cloths by spreading them on the roof of the company's building.
Money-Back Pioneer
In 1880 Rogers Peet became the first men's wear shop to offer the dissatisfied customer his money back. Following the lead of John Wanamaker in Philadelphia, it marked merchandise with a price tag and turned its back on the then prevalent practice of haggling. The only divergence from the marked price was for the clergy, which received a 10 per cent discount, now quite general. Rogers Peet still numbers many clergymen among its customers.
Although conservative, the business was no stick-in-the-mud operation when it came to advertising. In 1879 it was the first retail advertiser to use illustrations of specific merchandise. It introduced a light, neighborly touch to copy that today is widely emulated. It used cartoon drawings at a time when they were a rarity.
Rogers Peet company prospered. At one point it had stores at twelve locations in New York. As retail merchandising pointed to larger single units, it consolidated. Today Rogers Peet operate stores at Broadway and Warren Street, Fifth Avenue and Forty-first Street and Fifth Avenue and Forty-eighth Street. It also has a store in Boston. Its wholesaling operation extends the Rogers Peet name to more than forty leading cities.
Well Grounded
The man who runs the business today came into it in 1920 after studying wool weaving in the mills of Scotland. He started in the tailoring department and successively worked or a brief time in each of the company's departments to develop familiarity with the entire operation. In 1921, Mr. Turnbull was named assistant secretary and treasurer and a director, in 1923 treasurer, in 1928 vice president and in 1937 president, the post his father held from 1916 until his death in 1923.
In his thirty-four years with the company, Mr. Turnbull has seen many changes in the men's wear trade. Clothes have become lighter, as heating facilities indoors and in transportation improved. Man-made fibers have hewn an important niche in the men's wear market. Shorter working hours and suburban living have increased demand for leisure wear.
A Look at the Near Future
What of the future? Mr. Turnbull makes no long-range predictions. He feels the vogue for dark colors will continue for a while. He sees synthetics finding their best use finally in blends with natural fibers; he believes that synthetics can not completely replace fibers like wool or silk.
For the immediate future, he thinks there will be only minor changes in the popular narrow lapel and natural shoulder. He believes that the best market area for higher-priced clothing is still in the city, rather than in suburban shopping areas.
Rogers Peet, under Mr. Turnbull's guidance, has attempted to keep up-to-date without sacrificing tradition. The president thinks he's succeeded. He believes that both his father and Mr. Chambers would recognize today's stores and would approve of the company's modernization".
IT. "Il 6 novembre 1874, tre uomini unirono i loro talenti in una nuova attività di abbigliamento maschile. Oggi quell'azienda porta i nomi dei due che morirono poco dopo: Marvin N. Rogers, un produttore di abbigliamento, e Charles B. Peet, un grossista di abbigliamento. Il terzo socio, Frank R. Chambers, fondò la Rogers Peet Company e ne rimase l'anima guida fino alla sua morte, avvenuta all'età di 89 anni nel 1940. Guardando indietro oggi, Phillips Roome Turnbull, presidente, osserva che la Rogers Peet si sviluppò lentamente e con attenzione. Le sue politiche erano evolutive piuttosto che rivoluzionarie: pulite e conservatrici, come i capi che vendeva. L'azienda mirava a costruire sull'integrità fin dall'inizio. Rifiutando la filosofia del caveat emptor - che l'acquirente stia attento - prevalente nel settore della vendita al dettaglio alla fine del XIX secolo, la Rogers Peet fu tra i primi ad applicare un'etichetta su ogni capo di abbigliamento indicando la composizione del tessuto. La Rogers Peet si servì ampiamente dei laboratori per testare i tessuti ricevuti dalle fabbriche americane e inglesi. Il signor Chambers, uomo pratico, verificò la resistenza dei tessuti agli agenti atmosferici stendendoli sul tetto dell'edificio dell'azienda.
Pioniere del rimborso
Nel 1880, Rogers Peet divenne il primo negozio di abbigliamento maschile a offrire ai clienti insoddisfatti il rimborso. Seguendo l'esempio di John Wanamaker a Filadelfia, etichettò la merce con un'etichetta con il prezzo e abbandonò la pratica allora diffusa della contrattazione. L'unica differenza rispetto al prezzo indicato riguardava il clero, che riceveva uno sconto del 10%, oggi piuttosto diffuso. Rogers Peet annovera ancora molti ecclesiastici tra i suoi clienti.
Sebbene conservatrice, l'azienda non era certo un'azienda arretrata in fatto di pubblicità. Nel 1879 fu la prima azienda pubblicitaria al dettaglio a utilizzare illustrazioni di prodotti specifici. Introdusse un tocco leggero e amichevole alla copia, oggi ampiamente imitato. Utilizzò disegni animati in un'epoca in cui erano una rarità.
L'azienda Rogers Peet prosperò. A un certo punto aveva negozi in dodici sedi a New York. Man mano che il merchandising al dettaglio puntava a singole unità più grandi, si consolidò. Oggi Rogers Peet gestisce negozi in Broadway e Warren Street, Fifth Avenue e Forty-first Street e Fifth Avenue e Forty-ottesima Street. Ha anche un negozio a Boston. La sua attività di vendita all'ingrosso estende il nome Rogers Peet a più di quaranta città importanti.
Ben fondato
L'uomo che oggi dirige l'azienda vi entrò nel 1920 dopo aver studiato la tessitura della lana nelle filande scozzesi. Iniziò nel reparto sartoria e successivamente lavorò per un breve periodo in ciascuno dei reparti dell'azienda per acquisire familiarità con l'intera attività. Nel 1921, il signor Turnbull fu nominato assistente segretario e tesoriere e direttore, nel 1923 tesoriere, nel 1928 vicepresidente e nel 1937 presidente, carica che suo padre ricoprì dal 1916 fino alla sua morte nel 1923.
Nei suoi trentaquattro anni in azienda, il signor Turnbull ha assistito a molti cambiamenti nel settore dell'abbigliamento maschile. Gli abiti sono diventati più leggeri, grazie al miglioramento degli impianti di riscaldamento interni e nei trasporti. Le fibre sintetiche si sono ritagliate un'importante nicchia nel mercato dell'abbigliamento maschile. Gli orari di lavoro più brevi e la vita in periferia hanno aumentato la domanda di abbigliamento per il tempo libero.
Uno sguardo al prossimo futuro
E il futuro? Il signor Turnbull non fa previsioni a lungo termine. Ritiene che la moda dei colori scuri continuerà ancora per un po'. Vede i materiali sintetici trovare finalmente il loro impiego migliore nelle miscele con fibre naturali; ritiene che i materiali sintetici non possano sostituire completamente fibre come la lana o la seta.
Nell'immediato futuro, prevede solo lievi cambiamenti per quanto riguarda i popolari revers stretti e le spalle naturali. Ritiene che la migliore area di mercato per l'abbigliamento più costoso sia ancora la città, piuttosto che le zone commerciali suburbane.
Rogers Peet, sotto la guida del signor Turnbull, ha cercato di mantenersi al passo con i tempi senza sacrificare la tradizione. Il presidente ritiene di esserci riuscito. È convinto che sia suo padre che il signor Chambers riconoscerebbero i negozi di oggi e approverebbero la modernizzazione dell'azienda".
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When American tailoring met the great European fashion houses
In the landscape of 20th-century men's clothing, few names have played a cultural role comparable to Rogers Peet Company. Not just a retailer or manufacturer, but a true meeting point between American tailoring, the military industry, pop culture, and European haute couture.
Over the decades, the New York brand has collaborated with some of the most important international fashion houses, anticipating the modern concept of fashion collaboration by over half a century.
Today, these partnerships tell a precise story: Rogers Peet was not simply a store, it was a cultural platform for masculine elegance.
1956 – Christian Dior and the American tie
In 1956, Rogers Peet Company commissioned Christian Dior for a series of exclusive ties designed for the American customer.
It was not simple licensing: the French fashion house reinterpreted the Ivy League taste through its own Parisian aesthetic.
The result was one of the first examples of dialogue between:
European elegance
American pragmatism
structured retail distribution
Today we would call this operation a capsule collection. At the time it was revolutionary.
The 40s-70s – Borsalino and the perfect fedora
Between the 40s and 70s, Rogers Peet collaborated with Borsalino, creating fedora models intended for the US market.
The hat was not just an accessory: it was the element that defined male social status.
Rogers Peet understood before others that the American customer wanted:
European quality
American fit
immediate in-store availability
Thus was born one of the most representative fedoras of post-war business attire.
60s-70s – Yves Saint Laurent and the modernization of the tie
In the 60s and 70s, Yves Saint Laurent also designed tie collections dedicated to Rogers Peet Company.
Here the paradigm changes.
If Dior had dialogued with tradition, Saint Laurent brought fashion into the wardrobe of the American bourgeois man:
bolder patterns
modern geometries
influence of pop culture
It is one of the first moments in which menswear stops being just a social uniform and becomes personal expression.
Bally and Austin Reed: building the complete wardrobe
Rogers Peet was not limited to accessories.
Between the 60s and 80s he also collaborated with:
Bally for special shoe models
Austin Reed for tailored coats
The project was clear: to build a total wardrobe, anticipating the modern concept of a lifestyle brand. The customer entered for a suit and left dressed from head to toe.
Dobbs and the American hat culture
Between the 40s and 50s, Rogers Peet also worked with Dobbs, one of the most iconic American hat manufacturers.
Here it was not about importing Europe into America, but about codifying the American aesthetic itself.
The result was the look of the post-war urban professional: coat, fedora, briefcase, city.
The link with the American army
Rogers Peet was also an official supplier of uniforms for US army officers.
Among the items produced:
US Navy officer long overcoat (1953)
US Army dress blue uniform (1958)
pilot shirt and bomber (50s)
Here a fundamental element of contemporary men's style is born: many military garments will become cornerstones of casual menswear.
The brand's military heritage is not inspiration: it is origin.
Rogers Peet in pop culture and museums
The brand appears in 20th-century American culture, between theatre and Broadway musicals.
But above all, some items are preserved at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, including:
Palm Beach suit (1931)
knickerbockers (1930)
duster coat (1900-1910)
When a garment enters a museum it ceases to be fashion. It becomes costume history.
A modern vision before modernity
Today the word collaboration is everywhere.
But Rogers Peet Company was already practicing it 70 years ago with a precise logic: not uniting logos, but uniting cultures.
Paris, London, Switzerland, New York and military America met in the same place: the contemporary man's wardrobe. This is the true legacy of the brand.