Wrangler
Wrangler is the rodeo riders’ jean: the 13MWZ launched in 1947, designed by the tailor Rodeo Ben and worn by professional cowboys. Today, with $1.91 billion in revenue, Wrangler is by far the largest brand of Kontoor Brands, a listed group from Greensboro that was spun off from VF Corporation in 2019.
Wrangler
- Origin
- United States
- Founded
- 1947
- Group
- Kontoor Brands
- Production
- Supplier list published
- Core materials
- Cotton
- Price level
- 2/4
How much this brand discloses, and how much of it we could verify. It is not a quality rating — a composition line cannot tell you how good a fabric is. How we calculate it
- Production disclosure 25/25
- Linked sources 20/20
- Own material check 0/15
- Fabric weight stated 0/12
- Country stated per product 0/10
- Construction detail stated 0/10
- Cost breakdown published 0/8
Evidence for the price About what this price band usually documents
Who the brand is for
For anyone looking for a sturdy, rather classic jean, whether in the barn, at work or in town. Wrangler sells jeans, shirts, jackets, footwear and accessories and presents itself as a brand rooted in the western lifestyle. The 13MWZ Original Cowboy Cut we checked cost €80 in the German online shop and is listed as 100 percent cotton.
Who owns the brand
The story starts in Greensboro, North Carolina: in 1904 C.C. Hudson and his brother founded the Hudson Overall Company, renamed Blue Bell in 1919. In 1943 Blue Bell bought the workwear firm Casey Jones and with it the rights to a rarely used brand name: Wrangler. The 13MWZ followed in 1947. In 1986 Blue Bell merged with VF Corporation.
Since 23 May 2019 Wrangler has belonged to Kontoor Brands, the jeanswear business VF spun off and listed, together with Lee. Helly Hansen joined in 2025. Kontoor reported revenue of $3.15 billion for fiscal 2025, Wrangler $1.91 billion of it, up six percent. A single customer accounts for almost a third of group revenue: Walmart, with 30 percent.
The rodeo riders’ jean now lives to a large extent off the world’s biggest supermarket.
Where it is made
According to Kontoor, the group manufactured or sourced around 157 million units in 2025. 77 percent came from about 330 contract facilities in 28 countries, 23 percent from its own plants in Mexico; the group closed part of them in the third quarter of 2025.
The factory list on the group website only covers Wrangler and Lee together. The version dated 30 June 2026 lists 823 facilities in 36 countries, each with name, address and a worker range. 566 of them work for licensees, companies that have Wrangler or Lee goods made under their own control. Directly sourced or owned are 256 facilities in 18 countries, most often in Bangladesh (118), China (34), Mexico (26), Pakistan and India (16 each). Three of them belong to Kontoor itself, all on the Yucatán peninsula: Tekax, Acanceh and Izamal.
The product itself gives no origin. The page of the 13MWZ we checked names no country of origin, not even in the page source behind it.
What the price buys — our assessment
This section is an assessment. At group level Wrangler discloses more than many fashion brands: a complete list with addresses, even covering licensees. For the single item, though, it stops earlier than Levi's, where at least the country is on the product. €80 buys a plain cotton jean with a real history; where exactly it was made, neither the page nor the list tells you, because both brands of the group are merged in it.
Verifiable statements with a source, not a rating. We publish no ethics score of our own — for that, follow the external link.
- Production countries
- Bangladesh, China, Mexico, Pakistan, India, Guatemala, Kenya
- Supplier list published
- View the list
What we can document
- Hudson Overall Company in Greensboro 1904, Blue Bell from 1919; 1943 purchase of Casey Jones including the Wrangler name; 1947 the 13MWZ with Rodeo Ben; 1986 merger with VF (Wrangler company history)
- Spin-off from VF as Kontoor Brands on 23 May 2019 with Wrangler, Lee and Rock & Republic, ticker KTB (Kontoor press release)
- Group revenue 2025: $3.15 billion; Wrangler $1.91 billion, up 6 percent (Kontoor full-year release)
- Around 157 million units in 2025, 77 percent from about 330 contract facilities in 28 countries, 23 percent from own plants in Mexico; Walmart 30 percent of revenue (Kontoor 10-K)
- Factory list dated 30 June 2026: 823 facilities in 36 countries for Lee and Wrangler combined, 566 of them at licensees, plus three own plants in Yucatán (our analysis of the Excel file)
- 13MWZ Original Cowboy Cut: €80, 100 percent cotton, no country of origin on the page (product page, 27 September 2026)
What we cannot
- Which facilities work only for Wrangler — the list does not separate Wrangler from Lee
- The country of origin of individual items — the product page we checked names none
- Which Mexican plants were closed in 2025 — the annual report gives no locations
- Wages and unit costs — not public
Sources
7 in total · archived internally- Firmenchronik Wrangler — Hudson Overall Company 1904, Blue Bell 1919, Casey Jones und Markenname 1943, 13MWZ 1947, Fusion mit VF 1986 — Wrangler Read 27 September 2026
- Pressemitteilung zur Abspaltung von VF — Abschluss 23. Mai 2019, Wrangler, Lee, Rock & Republic, NYSE: KTB — Kontoor Brands Read 27 September 2026
- Jahresmitteilung 2025 — Konzernumsatz 3,15 Mrd. USD, Wrangler 1,91 Mrd. USD (+6 %), Lee 750 Mio. USD (−5 %) — Kontoor Brands Read 27 September 2026
- Jahresbericht 10-K Geschäftsjahr 2025 — 157 Mio. Teile, 330 Vertragswerke in 28 Ländern, eigene Werke in Mexiko, Walmart 30 % — Kontoor Brands / SEC Read 27 September 2026
- Seite zur Lieferkette mit Fabrikkarte — Kontoor Brands Read 27 September 2026
- Fabrikliste H1 2026, Stand 30. Juni 2026 (Excel) — Grundlage unserer Auszählung — Kontoor Brands Read 27 September 2026
- 13MWZ Original Cowboy Cut Jean, 80 €, 100 % Baumwolle, ohne Herkunftsangabe — Wrangler Read 27 September 2026
Reader reviews of Wrangler
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Read on
A garment is made across several countries. The label almost always names only one of them. Which one, and what falls away in the process.
We asked twenty brands across four groups the same question: does the product page say where the item was made? The answer has nothing to do with price — and that is the real story.
Questions readers ask
Who owns Wrangler?
Kontoor Brands of Greensboro, North Carolina, a listed group (ticker KTB). Kontoor was spun off from VF Corporation on 23 May 2019 and also owns Lee and, since 2025, Helly Hansen.
How old is Wrangler?
The maker Blue Bell acquired the name in 1943 along with the Casey Jones company. The first Wrangler jean, the 13MWZ, launched in 1947. The company behind it goes back to the Hudson Overall Company of 1904.
Where is Wrangler made?
77 percent in about 330 contract facilities in 28 countries, the rest in own plants in Mexico. Directly sourced facilities are most often in Bangladesh, China, Mexico, Pakistan and India. The product page we checked names no country.
Does Wrangler publish a factory list?
Yes, but only together with Lee. Kontoor Brands publishes an Excel list of 823 facilities in 36 countries, dated 30 June 2026, with addresses and worker ranges. Which facilities work only for Wrangler cannot be read from it.
Do Wrangler and Lee belong together?
Yes. Both brands belong to Kontoor Brands. Lee had revenue of about $750 million in 2025, Wrangler $1.91 billion.