CK Home's future excites parent P-VH

NEW YORK — Home is an extraordinarily exciting arena for apparel giant Phillips-Van Heusen, and Calvin Klein Home will be its vehicle for growth.

The home business is one of the reasons "we are excited by our acquisition of Calvin Klein," said Mark Weber, president, P-VH. "It meant a great deal to us." P-VH, an apparel force with revenues of $1.4 billion, bought Calvin Klein earlier this year, bringing it into the high-end apparel arena as well as its debut into the home furnishings business.

Weber sees strong growth and long range potential for the brand, which he calls "a modern, yet classic approach to home."

One of the keys to the success and growth potential of the Calvin Klein Home brand "is seeing the degree of execution and attention to detail. Our core bed and bath business is just scratching the surface of its potential."

Weber, who carefully analyzed the Home Collection business while doing due diligence for the company's purchase of the entire Calvin Klein operation, noted that "when we acquire a company, we don't unless we have strong management — a high quality of people."

In Calvin Klein Home, Weber emphasized, "we have enormous confidence in Barbara's ability. There's nothing we will do that she doesn't approve."

Barbara Deichman, senior vp, home design, is spearheading the expansion of the brand into other product areas beyond bed, bath, tabletop and rugs — into furniture, paint and wallcoverings, Weber explained.

"We have a growing share of market in bed and bath, and a new partner in Salton, in tabletop and gifts," he said.

"We are actively exploring furniture," Weber said, "and we hope that marriage is getting close — hopefully with an announcement by the end of this year or in the first quarter of 2004." And while the home business is new to P-VH, Weber emphasized, "We clearly believe Calvin Klein belongs in the furniture business," — an important element in projecting the total home impact.

The global market also is key to P-VH's growth outlook for Calvin Klein, which is strong in apparel and expanding in home. "We have soft home in Europe," and the brand is expanding in Japan and has pending licensees in Asia.

The slate of domestic licensees includes Design Works for bed and bath, Salton for tabletop and gifts, W-C Linens for table linens, Pacific Coast Feather for down bedding products, and Nourison for rugs.