You’ll understand why some people still refer to the fashion retailer as Hennes
Pronunciation of fashion label names has always been a hotly contested topic, from Zara (dzah-dah) and Givency (jhee-von-shee) to Yves Saint Laurent (eve san lau-ron) and Louis Vuitton (loo-wee vwee-tahn). H&M, on the other hand, is actually super easy to say, but have you ever stopped to think what the two letters stand for?
In 1947, when the store’s founder, Erling Persson opened his first shop in Sweden, H&M was called Hennes. The term Hennes is Swedish for “Hers” and is quite fitting (‘scuse the pun!) because they only sold women’s fashion at the time.
In 1968, Hennes became Hennes and Mauritz after the retailer acquired Stockholm hunting and fishing brand Mauritz Widforss. Don’t worry, they didn’t get all outdoorsy, but they did begin selling men’s and children’s clothing.
Six years later, in 1974, Hennes & Mauritz rebranded to the abbreviation H&M, and it remains as such today.
The more you know!
