White House Black Market is an American women's clothing retailer headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida. The multichannel brand, founded in 1985, specializes in upscale clothing.
White House Black Market owns and operates various clothing and accessories boutiques in the United States, where they sell their tops, dresses, skirts, pants, jackets, outerwear, shoes, jewelry, and accessories. Since 2003, White House Black Market has operated as a subsidiary of Chico's FAS.[2]
History
1980s and 1990s
The company began in 1985 when cofounders Patricia Smith and Richard Sarmiento opened the first store called The White House, in Baltimore, Maryland. The White House only carried women's clothing in shades of white. The boutique performed extremely well, catering to an upscale clientele of women.[3]
In 1991, with the help of National Retail Group, a North Carolina–based consulting firm, The White House began its national expansion. After a decade of selling exclusively white merchandise, the brand launched a new retail format—"Black Market"—in Annapolis,MD, in 1995.