THE 1920s: BUILDING THE FOUNDATION

German immigrant Ehrhardt Koch, 37 and a skilled craftsman saw an opportunity to redesign the process used and the quality of “fashion” headwear. In 1920, his dream came true when he borrowed money from his sister, Rose to start New Era Cap Co. His expertise and open-mindedness led to the company producing 60,000 Gatsby-style caps in the first year.

Fact From The Archives:

Our first manufacturing plant was located in a rented back room on Genesee St., Buffalo, NY until 1932

 THE 1940s - PERSISTENCE

World War II was a time of hardship and New Era was no exception. Fabric was scarce, but the Koch’s were resourceful, obtaining surplus, plain fabric by going to the garment district in New York City. In fact, the fabric used to produce the caps during this time was dyed at the family’s home in washing machine to match the colors of local teams.

Fact From The Archives:

New Era’s elastic-backed, adjustable caps made their debut in the 1940s.

THE 1960s – PAVING THE WAY

To better accommodate the growing company, Harold, now leading the charge,  opened a manufacturing facility in Derby, New York, close to the family’s home. The location would become the exclusive producer of the iconic 59FIFTY® cap. Having proven itself, New Era was invited by MLB to sell directly to every team at its annual Winter Meetings. This was a pivotal step to the brand’s path to exclusivity with the league.

Fact From The Archives:

In the 1960s the term “Painting with thread” was coined by Val Koch in reference to our embroidery.

THE 1980s - ONWARD AND UPWARD

Guided by David Koch’s vision, the 1980s became a decade of consistent growth. The company was producing headwear for college sports, AAA and International Baseball leagues and started selling caps to sports fans.

Fact From The Archives:

1980 was the first time we offered MLB On-field caps to fans through a mail-order as in the Sporting News.

THE 2000s - GO GLOBAL OR GO HOME

The vision that marked New Era’s growth in the 1920s and 1930s proved to be alive and well in the early part of the new millennium. The company’s globalization efforts continued with offices opening up in Europe, Japan and Australia within a two-year period.

• Started to see our position as the number one headwear brand in the world and one that spans the worlds of sport, fashion, music and entertainment.

• In 2001, Chris Koch, who had been the company’s president since 1993, was named CEO

• In 2006 the company moved its corporate offices from Derby back to downtown Buffalo where it all started 86 years earlier.

  Fact From The Archives:

After a long, courageous fight with cancer, David Koch passed away in 2002. The David C Koch Regional Perfusion Cancer Therapy Center at UPMC in Pittsburgh honors his Memory by providing medical treatment and care for cancer patients.