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Chip & Pepper's original logo on a pair of blue jeans

Chip and Pepper Foster (Born Gavin and Drew Foster January 25, 1964), better known simply as Chip and Pepper, are Canadian, identical twin businesspeople. They are co-owners of the self-titled Chip & Pepper apparel company and former hosts of their own NBC series, Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness.

[edit] Career

Gavin and Drew's first job was working for their father, Manny Finkleman, for his company, Elman's Food Products in their hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba. In their teens, they adopted their nicknames Chip and Pepper; Chip was named after the movie "Goodbye Mr. Chips" and Pepper after a nurse called the newborn "peppy." In their teens, they began apparel retailing by selling tie-dyed shirts from the trunk of their car. After making $50,000 in one summer, The Chip & Pepper Company was launched in 1987, selling beach-oriented clothing; shorts, shirts, and hats. Pepper has said the label generated $18 million in sales at its height.

At a peak in their poularity, the Foster brothers were featured on a Canadian TV station singing "Chip and Pepper: get hip or get out!" The footage came into the hands of NBC's Head of Entertainment Brandon Tartikoff who decided to give the pair a Saturday morning cartoon show. In fall of 1991, Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness debuted. Serving as a cornerstone to NBC's animated lineup, it included sketches and interviews, but old cartoons such as Casper and Captain Caveman would take up most of the airtime. The show only lasted one season, however, before NBC dropped its animated block altogether in 1992.

During the Fosters' TV work in Los Angeles, their clothing business was, according to them, mismanaged through ties to B.U.M. Equipment. This eventually led to a legal battle over the ownership of the Chip & Pepper trademark and eventual bankruptcy.

In 1994, the Fosters opened a store by the name of Golf Punk. As it grew, the Fosters decided to resurrect their signature brand, which took place in fall of 2003 in Los Angeles.^[1] The blond duo gained notoriety as stylists on the Style Network show The Look For Less and numerous appearances on E!, including Glamour's 50 Biggest Fashion Dos & Don'ts.

Chip and Pepper jeans typically have a boot cut fit and are made of high quality, lightweight denim. They are frequently distressed to increase their style, and are similarly priced to other designer jeans, such as Diesel, Seven for all Mankind, and Paper Denim & Cloth. They are available mainly at upscale department stores such as Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's and Saks Fifth Avenue as well as specialty retailers.

More recently, the Fosters introduced a brand new line called C7P. The line is aimed particularly at the teen market. It also includes an array of denim items including jeans, skirts, Bermuda shorts, and crop pants along with T-shirts, tops, and fleece.^[2]

[edit] External links

• Official Site
• Chip and Pepper News (unofficial)
• Chip and Pepper's Cartoon Madness at the Internet Movie Database

[edit] References