Ellen Tracy

Founded by Herbert Gallen in 1949, Ellen Tracy is a clothing manufacturer selling to the international market. Its annual volume now exceeds $150 million. The company has three divisions, the Linda Allard for Ellen Tracy signature collection of career wear, the Ellen Tracy Dresses and Company by Ellen Tracy. Revlon has also produced an Ellen Tracy perfume.
History.
As a result of wartime restrictions during World War II, fabric became difficult to find and Herbert Gallen recognized that this was a chance for him. He got fabric from a friend and produced several blouses which he took to major department stores on Manhattan's 34th Street. He sold all of the sample blouses and started a clothing line using his wife's name, Betty Barr, for the label. He opened a showroom on Third Avenue at the time. Then, with financial backing from Mike Brawer, Gallen formed a new company in 1949 which he called Ellen Tracy. In 1962, he hired recent college graduate Linda Allard as his design assistant and within two years, she was named Director of Design. The company was acquired in 2002 by Liz Claiborne, Inc. and became a wholly owned subsidiary of that company.