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Fresh out of college, George Zimmer makes his first foray into the apparel industry, working in Hong Kong for six months as a salesman for his father's coat manufacturing business
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George Zimmer and his college roommates open the first Men's Wearhouse store in Houston, TX
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The first Men's Wearhouse sold $10 slacks and $25 polyester sport coats. The store had exposed neon lighting, cheap tile flooring, and the cash register was a cigar box. George Zimmer's personal car was a van with the company logo on the side and clothing racks in the back.
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The second Men's Wearhouse store opens in Houston, TX. It wasn't long before George Zimmer's understanding of the way men shop paid off-by 1980, there were 12 Men's Wearhouse stores in Houston.
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In the 70s, automobile ads were very common, but TV commercials for retail clothiers were pretty much unheard of. The first commercials looked and sounded very much like commercials for used cars. Early tag line included: "Considerably more for considerably less" and "The only thing better than a friend in the business is a father in the business." (George Zimmer's famous "I guarantee it" line didn't appear until the 1980s.)
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With 12 stores thriving in Texas, Men's Wearhouse expands to its second market, the San Francisco Bay Area.
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Rental stores and converts these stores into Men's Wearhouse locations. This purchase helps cement Men's Wearhouse's position as the leading tuxedo rental company in the U.S.
