• Portfolio, Tuesday, April 22, 2008 10:23 AM

In 1996, filmmaker Spike Lee contacted Christopher Koch, the fourth-generation president of New Era Cap, about making a New York Yankees hat in red instead of the traditional navy. Producing a cap in anything but a team's original colors was considered sacrilege, but Koch recognized the potential marketing bonanza of his company's hats on the head of the trendsetting Lee.

New Era made a small batch of red caps for Lee, who was later seen wearing them at the 1996 World Series. Almost immediately, the company, which has the official license to make hats for Major League Baseball, was deluged with requests for the cap, and it soon began churning out dozens of color and style variations for other popular teams, too. An urban fashion accessory was born.

Now CEO, Koch has been transforming New Era from a conservatively run family business into a major apparel maker and style setter, with projected sales of $350 million this year. New Era's revenues doubled from 2002 to 2005. Koch opened a flagship store in London, near Piccadilly Circus, last summer, and plans to open stores in Birmingham, Paris, and Amsterdam, later this year.

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