Students & Teachers

Looking for information on the history of blue jeans or the origins of our company? Here are some ideas to kick-start your research.

Levi Strauss & Co. is happy to provide basic historical information for students and teachers. Follow these links to find printable documents on these topics:

In addition, we recommend the following books:

  • This is a Pair of Levi’s® Jeans, published by Levi Strauss & Co.
  • Denim: From Cowboys to Catwalks, by Paul Trynka
  • Vintage Denim, by David Little
  • Compassionate Capitalism: How Corporations Can Make Doing Good an Integral Part of Doing Well, by Marc Benioff and Karen Southwick

Younger students will find many biographies of Levi Strauss in the juvenile section of school and public libraries. For the most accurate information, use the articles linked above or rely on books published in 2000 or later.

One of the best places to find material on Levi Strauss & Co.’s modern history is in the Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature, which indexes magazine articles published in the United States. Look under Levi Strauss & Co. or Levi’s® jeans to find articles about our marketing strategies, production, advertising and other topics. You can also do an Internet search for articles available in full text online, or browse the News section of our website for recent media coverage and press releases. But be careful: there are a lot of myths about our company and our jeans in cyberspace, and you shouldn’t rely on the Internet for historical research.

Our company historian is happy to answer basic questions about our history or the company, but we cannot undertake large-scale research. E-mail questions to LDowney@levi.com and allow 1–2 weeks for a response.