The IKE BEHAR History - The American Dream

Our reputation for excellence in craftsmanship is what makes Ike Behar unique in the shirt industry. Ike's reputation for demanding exceptional is what sets him apart from his competitors. As Ike Behar says, "where others look for ways to cut corners, I look for ways to put more into a shirt."

The Ike Behar story begins in pre-revolutionary Cuba where Ike, the youngest of three brothers, learned the fine art of custom-tailoring at the shop owned by his father, Samuel Behar.It was here, working at La Confianza (the Confidence), that young Ike refined his tailoring process and started experimenting with designs of his own.  By the age of 17, Ike was making custom shirts to compliment the suits crafted by his father.  It was here that Ike Behar, at his father's side, learned what would become his credo:  "Hard work and an uncompromising dedication to one's craft is the only way to achieve perfection."

At the age of 20, Ike, with fifty dollars in his wallet, left Havana, Cuba for New York City to pursuit the American Dream.  He took his first job on a trial basis, offering a custom shirt-maker his services for free in order to prove his skills.  By the end of the week, the shirt-maker was so impressed  that he paid him his wages and offered him a permanent position. Eventually, Ike bought the company and, over the next decade continued to perfect his craft with his patented shirt-making innovations.

In 1970, a young tie-maker named Ralph Lauren, interested in expanding his business in men's apparel, approached Ike Behar. Impressed by the quality and care of Ike's workmanship, Ralph Lauren wanted Ike to make shirts for the Ralph Lauren line.  In 1982, as more American companies, including Polo, turned to overseas manufacturing, the Ike Behar/ Ralph Lauren affiliation came to an end.  

Ike served his new country faithfully in the Korean War and believed in the American worker.  He always wanted to craft the best shirt possible and he sensed that the American consumer wanted more from their domestic shirt manufacturers.  Ike believed there was a void in the market that only he could fill:  No one in North America was producing hand-crafted, domestically-produced, fine men's shirts of the quality that he envisioned.  With his wife, Regina and their three sons, Steven, Alan, and Lawrence, Ike Behar entered the market and began producing shirts under his own private label.  In March of 1983, Men's Wear magazine called Ike the shirt industry's "well-kept secret", but within the season the secret was out.

Although his business has grown, Ike's approach and attention to detail has not changed.  Ike Behar has come a long way, but he has never forgotten that his reputation for excellence in craftsmanship, unrivaled in the shirt industry, is what has made his dream a reality.

In 1995 Ike Behar, looking to expand his markets beyond the United States, purchased Cline Shirts in Ontario, Canada.  This was a decision that would bring many changes to Ike's life.  Being a family-owned business and now an international company has meant that Ike and his family have had to work twice as hard to maintain the level of excellence that Ike Behar's customers have come to expect from him.  There were some growing pains, but Ike Behar's shirts are now being carried in some of the finest retailers in Canada including Harry Rosen and Holt Renfrew.

Alan Behar is now the president of the Ike Behar Apparel & Design, Inc.  Along with his brothers Steven and Lawrence, Alan deals with the daily challenges of running a growing company.  This has allowed Ike Behar to create the C.E.O. program and streamline the Custom program, as well as oversee production in both the U.S. and Canada.  He has also been working on his Ike Behar Collection.  While Ike Behar may not be out visiting the stores and meeting his customers the way he used to, he currently has no plans of retiring.  He is a consummate artist and shirts will always be his love and life.