MISS KIN in the world of fashion: 1902–1939

Purpose This paper aims to examine the marketing strategies designed by a Czechoslovak company Waldes and Co. from 1902 to 1939. The company with its headquarter in Prague and the production facilities in New York, Paris, Barcelona, Dresden and Warsaw was among the world leading producers of fastening devices before World War II. Its success was given by its constant emphasis on improving technologies of production and decreasing cost but most significantly using pioneering concepts of marketing. Genius concept of the main company founder Jindrich Waldes was to promote the fastening products as piece of art and modern fashion trends from clothing industry to shoemakers. Design/methodology/approach Research for this paper benefited from the author’s access to the internal company documents, advertisements and marketing materials in the State Regional Archives in Prague, which were preserved during the Nazi and Communist eras in Prague, and to an heir of one of the company’s original owners. These documents were analyzed chronologically and thematically. They chronicled the company’s ongoing efforts to develop its products as part of the world of fashion in a very competitive market of fastening devices. Findings Waldes and Co. began marketing its products using fashion designers’ testimonials as early as 1904. This unknown company from Prague, with its innovative production of snap buttons, was able to grow internationally within its first decade of existence. By 1913, the company had established marketing management across all major markets, including a unique campaign in the United States. After World War I, Waldes and Co. introduced new products and continued to market its fastening devices as integral to the world of fashion. In 1937, the company was awarded the Grand Prix for advertising at the World Fair in Paris. Originality/value By studying archival documents of Waldes and Co., which are not open to general public, this pioneering research uncovers early 20th-century global marketing strategies used by this today unknown company from Central Europe, which significantly contributed to its global economic success.