Refrigiwear

In 1954, at the height of the Fabulous Fifties, up the road a bit from Wall Street’s bull market, two ambitious, hard working entrepreneurs, Myron Breakstone and Mortimer “Mort” Malden, who had never met previously, married sisters.

Myron, whose grandfather founded Breakstone Dairy, was quite familiar with the hostile working conditions in cold storage warehouse. Working for a time in the family business with cold storage conditions, he was convinced there was an alternative to wearing uncomfortable heavy wool coats and layers of bulky undergarments.

Against his father’s wishes, Myron took his first shot in 1952 with the “Insulated Clothing Manufacturing Company” located at 333 Fifth Avenue, Manhattan. Myron, with assistance from DuPont’s newly formed Textile Fibers Department, created and manufactured the first innovation in insulated clothing to hit the market in years. The initial garments, called “Weather-Alls”. Unfortunately, the “Insulated Clothing Company” ceased operations the same year due to lack of capital. Myron struck out again in 1954 and, joining his brother-in-law Mort Malden, founded RefrigiWear Clothing Company.