Levi Strauss & Co. was founded as a dry-goods business in San Francisco in 1853.
Levi Strauss, a German-born immigrant, arrived in San Francisco during the California Gold Rush. Rather than beginning as a jeans manufacturer, he established a wholesale dry-goods business that supplied clothing and other goods to stores and workers. The company later became closely associated with riveted denim work trousers.
The business’s early history is often confused with the 1873 patent that made riveted trousers famous. The patent was a major milestone, but it came two decades after Strauss established his San Francisco enterprise. The company also initially sold many goods besides trousers.
Its transformation into a global denim brand developed gradually through partnerships, manufacturing, branding, and mass distribution. That long evolution explains why Levi Strauss & Co.’s founding date predates the recognizable blue-jeans industry by many years.