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cover of episode Banana Republic: Mel and Patricia Ziegler

Banana Republic: Mel and Patricia Ziegler

2024/8/19
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How I Built This with Guy Raz

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Mel and Patricia Ziegler, journalists at the San Francisco Chronicle, sought a life beyond the newsroom. With limited funds but complementary skills, they embarked on a venture that merged army surplus with high fashion, creating the unique brand, Banana Republic.
  • Mel and Patricia Ziegler were journalists at the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • They started Banana Republic with $1500 and no retail experience.
  • Their initial idea involved repurposing army surplus into stylish clothing.

Shownotes Transcript

With $1500 in savings and no experience in retail, Mel and Patricia Ziegler stumbled upon a clever idea: buy inexpensive Army surplus gear, refashion it into stylish clothes, and sell them in a setting that felt more like a safari than a store. With a retro- feel catalog that turned shopping into an adventure, Banana Republic caught the attention of the media, and sales grew. But so did the headaches of running the business, and in 1983, the Zieglers sold the brand to The Gap. Over the years, Banana Republic lost its distinctive, retro-Safari feel, and the Zieglers departed to start another brand, The Republic of Tea. Today, Banana Republic remains a multi-million dollar business, with hundreds of stores around the world.

This episode was produced by Kerry Thompson with music by Ramtin Arablouei. It was edited by Neva Grant. Our audio engineer was Kwesi Lee.

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