White House Black Market

What White House Black Market does

White House Black Market (WHBM) is a US women's specialty apparel retailer founded in 1985 and operating as a wholly-owned subsidiary brand of Chico's FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) under the legal entity Chico's Distribution Services, LLC. The company serves fashion-conscious women seeking versatile clothing that transitions across professional, casual, resort, and special-occasion settings, with extended sizing including petite and curvy fits. Its product portfolio spans core apparel (dresses, tops, pants, denim, jackets, blazers, sweaters, matching sets) plus a jewelry and accessories line, organized around branded collections including the iconic White + Black monochromatic line, Resort Collection, Color Crush, and WorkKit, and a proprietary stretch-fabric technology sub-brand called WHBM FORME™.

WHBM distributes exclusively through owned channels: a 24/7 direct-to-consumer e-commerce website with free shipping and buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS) capability, and a network of physical boutiques across the United States. The brand is headquartered in Fort Myers, Florida, with reported headcount in the 1,001–5,000 range. Revenue is generated through two primary streams: direct retail apparel sales (priced approximately $39 for accessories to $230 for premium dresses) with frequent promotional discounting (e.g., a 40% off Cyber Summer campaign with free shipping and tiered discounts), and a proprietary WHBM Credit Card issued in partnership with Synchrony Financial, augmented by the WHBM Prestige status-tiered rewards program designed to drive repeat purchase frequency and customer lifetime value. WHBM operates without standalone AI capabilities, third-party integrations, or international distribution, and brand-level financial results are not separately disclosed from the Chico's FAS consolidated reporting.

Name

White House Black Market

Legal name

Chico's Distribution Services, LLC

Website

https://whitehouseblackmarket.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

White House Black Market is a US women's specialty apparel retailer and wholly-owned subsidiary of Chico's FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) that sells versatile black-and-white clothing, resort wear, workwear, and accessories through owned e-commerce and US boutiques, monetizing via direct retail sales and a co-branded credit card.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Women's Specialty Apparel Retail

NAICS

Clothing and Clothing Accessories Retailers (458110), Clothing, Clothing Accessories, Shoe, and Jewelry Retailers (458)

SIC

Retail-Women's Clothing Stores (5621), Retail-Apparel & Accessory Stores (5600)

akta.pro primary industry

Women’s Apparel Retail (CRAAABAB)

Keywords

• Women's fashion retail
• Specialty apparel boutiques
• Women's workwear
• Apparel e-commerce
• Loyalty program services

Headquarters

HQ city

Fort Myers

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Retail Apparel Sales: Direct retail sales of women's clothing, accessories, and footwear through e-commerce website and physical store locations. Products are sold at full retail price with promotional discounts during sales events.
2. WHBM Credit Card: Proprietary branded credit card program in partnership with Synchrony Financial, offering cardholders exclusive discounts and rewards for purchases

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

White House Black Market (WHBM) is a U.S. women's specialty apparel retailer that designs, sources, and sells its own branded clothing, accessories, jewelry, and footwear. The assortment is organized into distinct, season-driven collections (e.g., Resort, Color Crush, White + Black, WorkKit, Core Apparel) and is sold through company-owned retail boutiques and the whbm.com e-commerce site. The brand targets women seeking versatile, monochromatic-leaning wardrobe pieces for work, travel, and everyday wear, with pricing generally ranging from $39 to $230 per item.

Product overview

White House Black Market (WHBM) is a women's fashion retailer offering a diverse apparel portfolio under multiple product lines. The core offering includes dresses, tops, pants, denim, jackets, blazers, and accessories, complemented by specialized collections such as Resort Collection for vacation wear, the iconic White + Black monochromatic line, Color Crush for red and burgundy tones, and WorkKit for business casual attire. The brand features proprietary sub-brand WHBM FORME™ with stretch fabric technology, operates a loyalty program called WHBM Prestige, and offers a proprietary credit card. Products are available in petite sizes and through both online (24/7) and physical boutique locations throughout the United States.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WHBM FORME™ Apparel Line
• Resort Collection
• Color Crush Collection
• White + Black Collection
• WorkKit Collection
• Core Apparel Collection
• WHBM Jewelry and Accessories
• WHBM Footwear
• WHBM Prestige Loyalty Program
• WHBM Credit Card

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Chico's FAS Inc.coreOthersWhite House Black Market is a subsidiary brand of Chico's FAS Inc., which also owns Chico's and Soma brands. The parent company provides corporate infrastructure, distribution, and shared retail platform resources.
• Synchrony FinancialminorOthersPartnership for WHBM branded credit card program offering cardholders exclusive rewards and financing options for purchases

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Chico's: Sister brand under the same Chico's FAS parent selling women's apparel to a similar demographic through boutiques and e-commerce.
• J.Jill: Women's apparel retailer focused on versatile, quality clothing for 40+ women via boutiques and online, closely mirroring WHBM's positioning.
• New York & Company: US women's workwear and casual apparel retailer serving a comparable professional-women demographic.
• Talbots: US women's apparel brand targeting professional women 30+ through boutiques and e-commerce, directly comparable to WHBM's customer and channel model.
• Ann Taylor / LOFT: Specialty women's workwear and casual apparel retailer serving the same business-casual professional demographic as WHBM.

Broad incumbents

• Banana Republic: Larger apparel brand offering elevated workwear and casual clothing to professional women, overlapping WHBM's occasion-driven assortment.
• Anthropologie: Women's apparel and lifestyle retailer offering distinctive fashion to style-conscious women, an adjacent competitor for wardrobe spend.
• Express: Mall-based apparel retailer with women's workwear and going-out styles overlapping WHBM's occasion-based offering.

Emerging players

• Boden: Women's apparel brand offering versatile work-to-weekend styles online, appealing to a similar professional female customer.
• Cabi: Women's apparel brand targeting stylish professional women, comparable in customer profile though using a social-selling model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/whbm
• Facebookfacebook.com/WhiteHouseBlackMarket
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/whitehouse-station-family-med

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about White House Black Market