Jessica McClintock

Early life

Growing up in the state of Maine, McClintock's father was a shoe salesman, and her mother was a beautician. When McClintock told her mother of her dream of designing dresses, her mother encouraged McClintock to use her creative side. Using skills she learned at an early age from her grandmother (Verna Hedrick, Artist) once she began her career, McClintock made a name in fashion quickly. McClintock attended Boston University from 1947 to 1949. At age 19, McClintock quit Boston University to marry Al Staples, an engineering student at MIT. Shortly after her marriage, McClintock obtained her Bachelor of Arts Degree from San Jose State University in California.

Personal life

Staples and McClintock had a son, Scott (a Hollywood actor who previously worked for his mother's business), and moved to Santa Clara, California where McClintock taught sixth grade music and science. In 1963, Al Staples died in an automobile accident. This led to a second marriage, to airplane pilot Fred McClintock, who was a friend of her husband. This marriage shortly ended in a divorce in 1967. After the divorce, McClintock and her son Scott moved to San Francisco, California.

Start of Career

While living in San Francisco, in 1969 McClintock met a woman by the name Eleanor Bailey. Bailey was the head of design and production and looking for investors for Gunne Sax Company, a local dress store. In the year 1970, McClintock invested $5,000 from her savings and became partners with Bailey, directly in charge of the designing and marketing of the new dress line. Bailey stepped down, leaving McClintock the sole owner of Gunne Sax.

Career

McClintock started with a single-line clothing company and expanded it into a multifaceted outlet targeting international customers looking to purchase bridal, junior and children's designer clothing. McClintock's main design focus was on "romance." Her designs were not only sold nationally, but also worldwide, including regions such as the Middle East, Asia and Europe. In 1979, two new clothing lines were created: One was to target girls with the Gunne Sax line, and the other was a secondary contemporary line under the McClintock name/label. Since these two lines became a success, McClintock was able to open her own retail stores. The first Jessica McClintock store was opened in San Francisco in 1981. A year later, Jessica's son, Scott McClintock, joined the company and made two clothing lines that were manufactured under labels of Scott McClintock Dresses and Scott McClintock Sport. In 1987, Jessica McClintock renamed Gunne Sax as Jessica McClintock. She also added sleepwear lines and her fragrance line. By the mid-90s, McClintock had opened a total of 41 boutiques, and her dresses were sold in department stores in the U.S and other countries. She made her company a family affair with her brother, Jack Hedrich, as Vice President of the company, and Bruce Hutchins, her cousin, in charge of the McClintock boutiques. Her niece, Jessica Hutchins, was responsible for the bridal wear line.

Controversy

From 1993 to 1996, the garment workers' association Asian Immigrant Women Advocates (AIWA) organised a campaign to draw attention to the poor labor practices of McClintock's subcontractors. AIWA called for a boycott of the MClintock company. The boycott stopped in 1996 after both parties reached an agreement as McClintock provided resources for workers such as a garment workers education fund.

Fragrance Line

McClintock developed her first fragrance line in 1988. The perfume was called Jessica McClintock and became one of the top-selling fragrances in the U.S. Her second fragrance was called Jess, which started selling in the year 1995. McClintock also introduced a men's fragrance called Scott McClintock, which was sold exclusively at her boutiques. In the summer of 2001, McClintock came out with another fragrance called Jessica McClintock Number 3 and, in the spring of 2003, she launched three Gunne Sax fragrances called Jasmine Kiss, Vintage Vanilla and Raspberry Romance. Other popular scents in the brand include New Victorian, Gunne Sax and Jessica McClintock Silk Ribbons, which is a bridal-inspired fragrance. Jessica McClintock's perfumes are still sold online and in stores including Walgreens, Target, Perfume Euphorium, Perfume Mart, KMart, Macy's, TJ Maxx, FragranceON, and Perfume Blvd.

Other Products and Lines

McClintock also formed a licensing division with product lines that include Fine China, Eyewear, Jewelry, Handbags, Homemade Rugs, Home Furniture and Furnishings.

Retirement

After spending over 40 years creating satin, silk and tulle gowns, fragrances and other products, McClintock quietly retired at 83 after all of the designer's stores and outlets had been closed by November 2013, including her online store. Starting her business at age 38, Jessica had opened 41 stores that had a reported annual sales of $100 million. The business was affected by the 2008 financial recession when fewer people bought special gowns. In the future, while Jessica McClintock stores will no longer exist, there are plans to license her prom and bridal products again.

Awards and Achievements

1981 Ernie Award, 1985 Best California Designers Award, 1986 Tommy Award, American Printed Fabric Council, 1988 Press Appreciation Award, 1989 Merit Award Design, 1996 Tommy Award from The American Printed Fabric Council, 1996 & 1997 Bridal Information Resource's Retail Choice Award, 1999 DEBI Lifetime Achievement Award, McClintock also received the California Excellence Award, California Mart's California Designer of the Year Award, two Lifetime Achievement Awards, an Excalibur Award from the American Cancer Society and has been repeatedly mentioned in the list of Working Women's Top 50 Women Business Owners since the year 1994. McClintock has also been granted a Doctorate of Humane Letters given by the Academy of Arts in San Francisco.