Belstaff is a clothing brand owned by Ineos. The company was founded in 1924 by Eli Belovitch and his son-in-law Harry Grosberg in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.[1] The name Belstaff is a combination of Eli's surname and his Staffordshire home. Belstaff was the first company to use wax cotton in the manufacturing of waterproof apparel for motorcycling.[2]
Belstaff was founded in 1924 by Eli Belovitch and his son-in-law Harry Grosberg in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire.[1] In 1948, Belstaff became a subsidiary of James Halstead. The company was affected by the textile crisis of the 1990s, precipitating the closure of the Longton factory after previously closing its Silverdale site. James Halstead continued to own the brand selling the Belstaff motorcycle range and helmet brands until 2004. Alongside this, they promoted the fashion side across Europe, Australia, and the US. The brand was sold in 2004 to Franco Malenotti of Sponsor SA Italy.[3] Kate Moss was paid £1,000,000 to appear in Belstaff ads.[4]
In June 2011, Harry Slatkin and The Labelux Group bought Belstaff.[5] Slatkin assumed the CEO role and appointed Martin Cooper as Chief Creative Officer, and together, they planned to reposition Belstaff as an English heritage brand centred on luxury sportswear.[6]Tommy Hilfiger was brought in as a business consultant.[7]
In 2012, the company opened stores in Via Della Spiga Milan, New Bond Street, London and Madison Avenue, New York City.[8]
In 2017, Belstaff opened a store in Ginza Six, Tokyo.[13] The same year it was bought by Ineos.[14] Fran Millar was appointed CEO in 2020, leaving her position at the UCI World Tour cycling team, the Ineos Grenadiers (formerly Team Ineos, and before that, Team Sky).[15]
In 2019, Belstaff exited[clarification needed] its Madison Avenue, NYC store. In 2020 Belstaff opened its eleventh store globally, a store in the Meatpacking District[where?].[16]
