MAURICE RENTNER

(1889-1958) Maurice Rentner began in the clothing business by working in his father's button making factory.  In 1913, he and a brother formed M & H Rentner, and he formed Maurice Rentner, Inc., in 1923.   By the 1930s, Maurice Rentner was established as a maker of quality suits and dresses. He was an important early leader of the Fashion Originators Guild of America, being a founding member and its first president.

During the 1950s, one of the designers at Maurice Rentner was Wilson Folmar. After Rentner's death in 1958, the company merged with that of his sister, Anna Miller, and the designer there, Bill Blass, became the head designer at Maurice Rentner.  Blass acquired the company in 1967, and changed the name to Bill Blass, Ltd. in 1970.

See also: Bill Blass