The Children's Place

In 1969, Harvard Business School graduates David Pulver and Clinton Clark decided to venture into children's retail, opening the first The Children's Place in Hartford, Connecticut. Initially, the store sold a wide array of products, including toys and accessories. After a few years of refining their strategy, the founders pivoted to focus on medium-priced children's apparel, a move that proved successful. The company experienced a series of ownership changes that shaped its path. By 1981, it had grown to about 65 stores and went public. Shortly after, in 1982, it was acquired by Federated Department Stores. This was followed by another sale in 1988 to an investment group after a period of losses. A significant milestone occurred in 1997 when the company launched its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the NASDAQ exchange, trading under the ticker PLCE. A notable, though challenging, chapter was its acquisition of the 313 North American Disney Stores in 2004. The Children's Place operated these stores under a licensing agreement, but the subsidiary handling them filed for bankruptcy in 2008, and the stores returned to Disney's ownership. More recently, the company has focused on strategic acquisitions to strengthen its portfolio, purchasing the rights to the Gymboree and Crazy 8 brands in 2019 after their parent company went bankrupt. This allowed The Children's Place to integrate popular product lines into its existing channels, solidifying its market position.