MARC, Andrew

American designer

Family: Married Suzanne Schwartz. Career: Launched the Andrew Marc line, 1981; developed leather and fur bomber jacket designs, 1981; founded Precision International for watch manufacture and distribution, 1986. Address: 390 Fifth Avenue, Suite 606, New York, NY 10018, USA.

Publications

On MARC:

Articles

"Marc's New Man," in WWD, 1 September 1998.

"Andrew Marc Said Near Pact for Levi's Dockers Outwear," in Daily News Record, 23 September 1998.

Gilbert, Daniela, "The Newest Faces," in WWD, 3 January 2001.

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Fine leather apparel and luxurious watches are the trademarks that put Andrew Marc in the luxury fashion industry. Beginning in 1981 with the introduction of his famous leather and fur bomber jacket, Marc has climbed the fashion ladder by setting his designs apart from the rest. He quickly developed leather and cloth outerwear collections based on the concepts driven by his jackets. By doing so, he has become a leader in setting style rather than following the trends of the time.

Marc's company performs all design work in-house and generally begins the design process up to one year in advance of the selling season. His apparel is described as upscale, but secondary labels such as Marc and Andrew Marc Additions are used for upper-moderately priced and bridge designs. With this marketing strategy, Marc is best known for having a strong sense of his customers.

Andrew Marc Schwartz is partnered with his wife, Suzanne Schwartz. Together they combine their unique abilities to cater to the masculine and the feminine. The result is high-quality, mass-appeal fashion. When working with leather, the Andrew Marc collection uses all techniques for designs, including waxing, distress, tie-dye, and water-color. With today's technology, Marc can produce a very thin and supple coat of wax, which gives the skin a smooth polished finish to the touch, but which is still sturdy. In 2000, as wearing suede and leather became more of a year-round fashion trend, Marc's jackets and skirts were in higher demand. For the spring 2001 collection, Marc will offer the waxed leathers in a variety of pastel colors.

In 1986 Marc began producing elegant timepiece watches under the Precision International company. The look and design of the rugged yet exquisite watches were inspired by the Marc bomber jackets. The watches are unique by virtue of their styling and quality is assured by its Swiss-made components and stainless steel construction. Jewels such as synthetic sapphires and rubies are located in the places most subject to wear due to friction. All watches are water-resistant to 330 feet and targeted to consumers who are fashion-oriented, yet want a watch to be sporty, refined, and with easy-to-read features.

By 1998 Marc ventured out to produce a collection of leather and cloth outerwear under the Levi's Dockers label. The new line consisted of women's leather and cloth Dockers outerwear, as well as men's leather Dockers outerwear. Marc continues to develop leather and cloth apparel as well as his unique and elegant watches. His style is modern and chic. Hehas always been a trendsetter, never a follower in the fashion industry. He takes both the masculine and the feminine to create looks that are unique and appealing to all customers. Andrew Marc designs are created to last through time.

—Kimbally A. Medeiros