They Make Sweaters You Can Cotton To

When business partners Robert Bock and Gary Steinberg opened a sportswear showroom at 525 Seventh Ave. in New York City, they envisioned it as a showplace par excellence for international fashion. Mr. Bock says, "You know the phrase jack-of-all-trades, master of none? Well, we wanted to concentrate on one thing and do it well."

Four years down the road, they noticed a void in the market they were eager to represent: Contemporary, quality cotton sweaters made in the United States were few and far between. So, in keeping with their motto, they abandoned their sportswear representation business and went whole hog into designing and manufacturing cotton sweaters. "We wanted to be great at one thing again," Mr. Bock says.

That was 1984. Today their knitwear company, "525 made in america," still focuses on sweaters, but has expanded its fabric roster to include cotton chenille, alpaca and mohair, as well as a few man-made materials. But mostly they emphasize natural fabrics.

525 made in america sweaters retail from $58 to $110 and are available locally at the Red Garter, Panache and the White House.