Wharton alumnus and clothing executive Rick Helfenbein discussed the economics of international trade yesterday and warned students to avoid bringing suitcases of white powder to South America.
His stories of 35 years in the apparel industry ranged from accidental imprisonment in a Guatemalan jail to his friendship with basketball player Wilt Chamberlain, whom he hired to promote the Big and Tall brand.
Helfenbein's rise began in 1979 with the success of the Le Tigre brand, which he created.
Le Tigre gained overnight popularity after Helfenbein, spying President Reagan wearing a French Lacoste shirt on television, sent a box of Le Tigre shirts to the White House with a note encouraging the president to "wear shirts made by Americans."
Ten days later, the president was spotted wearing the shirts, and the brand took off.
Helfenbein also interacted with another president, Jean-Bertrand Aristide of Haiti, after a coup there.
"Sometimes," he said, "these island nations are so small that you get involved in the politics of the country."
The State Department asked Helfenbein to speak to the Aristide because the two had been involved in business dealings. Helfenbein, however, did not elaborate on the details.
Helfenbein's journeys have also taken him to other parts of Latin America.
He often traveled to Guat-emala, once with a suitcase full of soap powder -- which was meant to improve the quality of textiles being produced there. The powder, however, was mistaken for cocaine by local authorities, and Helfenbein spent 18 hours in jail before the situation was resolved.
Today, Helfenbein is president of U.S. operations for Luen Thai International Group, a large clothing manufacturer.
During his lecture, Helfenbein also voiced support for the elimination of import restrictions.
The deluge of Chinese textiles entering the United States following the end of World Trade Organization quotas has raised concerns for American manufacturers.
Helfenbein, however, said that quotas have hurt domestic consumers for years, while cheap overseas imports have lowered prices of goods in America.
Quotas were often auctioned off to the highest bidder in each country with rights to import garments to America, artificially raising prices for domestic consumers.
When asked about breaking into the fashion industry, Helfenbein hinted at opportunities for students.
"It is a very hard industry to break into, but one of the most backward industries in the world," he said. "You have an opportunity to revolutionize it."
Students seemed enthusiastic after the talk.
"I was really impressed with his creative thinking regarding new business models and thinking outside of the box," College freshman Jared Schachner said.
