Kontoor Brands, Inc.

Lainey Wilson X Wrangler are taking cowgirl cool across the Atlantic on a European concert tour featuring sold out shows in Berlin, UK, and Paris. The Whirlwind World Tour, which kicked off in Zurich on March 4, is supported by Wrangler and coincides with The Wrangler x Lainey Wilson Spring/Summer 2025 collection — now available online and in stores, on both sides of the pond. Here's how the collection looks in our Berlin store!

Thank you to Jim Cramer and CNBC's Mad Money program for the opportunity to discuss Kontoor's acquisition of Helly Hansen. It is an exciting time for our organization and I always welcome an opportunity to shine a light on the incredible accomplishments of our global workforce.

It's a big day in the evolution of Kontoor Brands!

🗞️ Kid-tested jeans get adult upgrade 👖 Kids are tough customers. As any parent of young boys can tell you, picking up your kid after school can often be cause for mild alarm. The clean clothes he was wearing at drop-off a few hours earlier are now masked behind a mosaic of grass stains, milk spills, trace evidence of arts and crafts, and — wait — is that ravioli? meatballs? transmission fluid? In any event, after you get the kid home, the filthy outfit gets stripped in mudroom and tossed right into the washing machine, bypassing the hamper to prevent contaminating your other dirty laundry. But the problem with repeated washing and drying is that the fabric in any garment begins to deteriorate with time. All that agitation, rinsing, spinning, tossing and tumbling takes its toll. A lint trap tells no lies. Kontoor’s innovation team has come up with a fix for that problem: a new technology that bolsters clothing’s resiliency to withstand a long day of activity, plus the evening torments of the washer and dryer. The first iteration of Kontoor’s durability-enhancing clothing technology hit the market last year, when Wrangler released its abrasion-resistant jean for boys. The product was so popular, the same kid-tested technology is now being applied to adult clothing — Wrangler jeans and workwear, and Lee jeans — with additional adult product hitting the shelves later this year and next. “This technology makes the jeans much more resilient,” says Dhruv Agarwal, vice-president of sustainability, innovation and development. “This new technology starts as a superior product and stays stronger, wash after wash, compared to conventional jeans and pants.” The secret formula, which Kontoor started developing in its innovation lab in 2019, is a combination of better fiber technology, new spinning and weaving techniques to reduce friction, and a proprietary topical application that enhances the abrasion-resistance and the tear strength of the fabric. Now in its third generation of development, the technology has improved and become more readily available, allowing Kontoor to scale-up production and apply it to a wider range of products for all ages. The durability-enhancing technology is providing a promising antidote to fast fashion. “Wrangler and Lee are already famous for their durability, and now this technology allows us to further enhance that durability,” Agarwal says. “When the consumer sees this kind of proposition — a jean that is going to last longer and give them better bang for their buck — they're going to choose these products.” Adds Akash Pardeshi, innovation manager at Kontoor, "Stronger, longer-lasting clothes mean better value for consumers, more wear and less hassle. True durability never goes out of style.”

Back in the saddle! The calendar just flipped to 2025, but the Wrangler design team is already working busily on refining its global creative concepts for the fall/winter of 2026.

Kontoor extends a hearty congratulations to Steve Armus, vice-president of licensing and collaborations, on being named Employee of the Year for 2024! The annual award, given by our CEO, recognizes outstanding achievement by an individual who has excelled at delivering value for our company throughout the year. “Steve has consistently generated exciting new growth opportunities for our brands by spearheading culturally relevant collaborations and licensing opportunities that delight long-time fans while introducing our product to new customers,” said Scott Baxter, President, CEO & Chairman of the Board. “Steve plays a pivotal role in our brands’ demand-generation efforts; we’re lucky to have him on our team.”   #EmployeeRecognition #Leadership

These aren’t your dad’s jeans. But that doesn’t mean they can’t be. “These are not the jeans that my dad grew up wearing, but I got him a pair and they are his new favorites,” says Jimmy Shafer, senior vice president of Lee, referring to the new Lee X Move jean. “It feels like denim. It looks like denim. It wears like denim. But it has additional innovative properties built in — cooling technology, moisture management, stretch-and-recovery, and flex. All those performance benefits give these jeans the wow factor.” Now Lee is scaling up the wow factor with the launch of Lee X, its premium performance platform for men’s denim and non-denim pants and shirts. The idea behind Lee X is to institutionalize the brand’s long-time commitment to innovation by creating a sustainable platform to showcase the newest and next in menswear. Using the latest fabric technologies and design innovations, Lee X promises to bring next-gen comfort and style to trendy sophisticates of all ages — including Jimmy’s dad. “We’re providing a premium wearing experience without charging a premium price point,” Shafer said, adding that most of Lee X product lines will sell in the $50-$60 range. The non-denim pants are designed for the office but made for hitting the links after work. The jeans, meanwhile, have the rugged look and feel of authentic denim, but are made with a stretch and comfort to rival your favorite weekend sweatpants. Put simply, these are clothes you have to try-on to believe. “The way we engineer fabrics is constantly evolving and changing,” Shafer said. “The Lee X platform will put us on the leading edge of innovation.” Lee X also represents the logical evolution of the brand’s storied history of innovation — one that started a century ago with the introduction of the first zipper in a pair of jeans. More recently, Lee’s innovation journey has included brand-fan favorites such as Extreme Motion, MVP, Flex Motion and Ultra Lux — a decade of innovation which together represent the lion’s share of Lee’s revenue stream today’s market. Lee X, in effect, becomes the platform to uplevel the brand’s innovation game and do so at scale. “Lee has endeavored to make innovation a key part of our reason to exist in the world,” Shafer says. “We've had this innovation engine working in the background for many years, but until now we haven’t had a vehicle to bring innovation to market in this consistent flow. And that's exciting because we have an organization that loves to innovate.” Kontoor’s innovation team echoes that sentiment. “The Lee X platform represents a significant leap forward for our Lee brand, embodying our commitment to innovation and consumer-centric design,” says Dhruv Agarwal, vice president of sustainability, innovation and development. “Lee X line is a new channel to scale and commercialize our creative outputs. It allows us to bring our most exciting ideas to life.” In short, Shafer concludes, “Lee X is what's next.”

It's the hap-happiest season of all. This week, Kontoor celebrated its holiday brunch, featuring an ugly sweater contest, food, mimosas, dancing, and merriment. Thanks to all our employees who help Kontoor shine brightly during every season of the year.

Twinkling lights, cowboys on ice skates, and the merry jingle of spurs can mean only one thing: It’s a Texas Christmas in the Fort Worth Stockyards, home to Wrangler’s flagship store. Big thanks to all our retail associates who help make the holiday season merry and bright!

Where do you shop for the guy who’s got it all? Mrs. Claus knows.