Lee is an American brand of denim jeans, first produced in 1889 in Salina, Kansas. The company is owned by Kontoor Brands, a spin-off of VF Corporation’s Jeans wear Division. Since 2019 its headquarters is in Greensboro, North Carolina, relocated from Merriam, Kansas….Lee (jeans)

1889, Merriam, KS
Lee/Founded

1920s
The 1920s were a huge decade for Lee, seeing the birth of two of their claims to fame. In 1920, Lee introduced their mascot, Buddy Lee.

Since the 1960s, Stylistic Mr. Lee has innovatively provided original and authentic apparel to those who seek for everyday essentials with a modern twist. Mr. Lee’s motive is to inspire consumers by offering a well-curated mix of affordable, sophisticated, and culturally-driven array of merchandise.

Single stitching on the coin pocket and extra stitching on back pockets can round a pair of jeans off to within a year or two. If there are numbers or letters on the inside of the top fly button, look them up—they correspond to mills or factories, which helps date the pant.

Henry David Lee
Lee/Founders
The founder of Lee Jeans — a company previously based in Merriam — has been inducted into the Kansas Business Hall of Fame at Emporia State University. Serial entrepreneur Henry Lee founded the company more than 100 years ago.

In 2014, the brand was relaunched in Paris via the Citadium Paris store. In 2019, Lee, Wrangler, Rock & Republic, and VF Outlet were Separated from VF Corporation into Kontoor Brands.

— Stylistic Mr. Lee — is confusingly similar to its own Lee brand and therefore violates its registered trademark in the Philippines. And it said H.D. Lee failed to establish that its trademark was in use and widely known in the Philippines before Emerald Garments started using its brand name in 1975.

Lee Jeans began life as a small part of a larger endeavor, the conglomerate of companies known as H.D. Lee Mercantile Company in 1889. The mercantile company was the brainchild of Salinas, Kansas resident and savvy businessman, Henry David Lee.

A Brief History Of Lee Jeans. Lee Jeans’ slogan has been “Can’t Bust Em” since the 1940’s, and Buddy Lee, Lee Jeans’ 12.5-inch-tall mascot, has been put through a lot more than explosions and car crashes to prove how tough the brand is.

Lee’s leather logo patch has also been through an interesting transformation as the company has evolved. In 1936, “hair on hide” labels were stitched to the back of their jeans. The company logo was branded directly onto cowhide to appeal to the cowboy lifestyle.

Surprisingly, Lee didn’t begin by making clothing—or manufacturing anything at all for that matter. Established in 1889 as a wholesale mercantile of groceries & goods to the West, The H.D. Lee Mercantile Company expanded gradually, and in 1912 began to manufacture work wear.