What New Era is known for
Founded in Buffalo, New York in 1920 by Ehrhardt Koch as the E. Koch Cap Company and renamed New Era in 1922, the headwear maker became MLB's official cap supplier; Koch's son Harold developed the 59FIFTY fitted cap in 1954, and it reached the public market in 1980.
New Era was founded in Buffalo, New York in 1920 by Ehrhardt Koch, who borrowed $1,000 from his sister Rose and $1,000 from a co-worker to start the E. Koch Cap Company, producing caps on the third floor of a building on Genesee Street with a staff of 14, including Koch's sister and son. In 1922 Koch renamed the company New Era Cap. The company's signature product, the 59FIFTY fitted cap, was developed by Ehrhardt's son Harold Koch in 1954 to standardize on-field caps across Major League Baseball; by the 1970s it was worn by the majority of MLB teams, and it went on sale to the public in 1980. New Era remains headquartered in Buffalo and continues to serve as official on-field headwear supplier to MLB, alongside licensed caps for the NFL and NBA.
How ORBIS reads this city
Best for — The 59FIFTY cap, official MLB headwear since 1920
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