1920: Young veterans of WWI were now returning stateside with a preference for the woven boxers and a sleeveless ribbed knit "skivvie shirt" - styles that were military issue during the war. Boxers and skivvie shirts gave the wearer a sense of freedom that the Roaring Twenties would only encourage.
1921: The Cooper Underwear Company entered the hosiery market, introducing a full line of stockings for men, women and children. The line sold well and added considerably to company revenues.
1924: Henry Cooper died in 1924, leaving Robert, his son, alone at the helm to try to pick up the company's pace. Robert's cousin, the orphan son of the late Charles Cooper, had long exhibited a passion for the company. Ralph had worked his way from factory hand to a management position and sought to take a more active role in turning the company around.
1928: Ralph Cooper assembled a plan to borrow money, buy a majority interest in the company from Robert and other family members, and blaze new trails. Robert would move to California and run the distribution side of the company for the Western states. It was an agreeable solution except that it came on the eve of the country's worst financial panic ever: the Great Depression.
1928: Arthur Kneibler was hired by Cooper Underwear to head the sales and marketing team. Not long after he joined the company, he became known as the originator of one of the great milestones in the history of underwear, the Jockey® short.
1929: The Cooper Underwear Company, which had long used "Cooper's" in its marketing materials, changed its official name to "Cooper's, Inc.", reflecting more diverse product offerings while emphasizing its family origins.
1929: Cooper's developed the Singleton. This was a more interesting new-style union suit with short legs and a sleeveless top. The Cooper's Singleton was packaged in cellophane bags - a first in the underwear trade - and this turned out to be a true selling point in modern self-service apparel stores. The Singleton and its innovative packaging helped the company get through the Great Depression.
