Explorers once sailed the ocean blue, unmindful that their legacy would live on in a global apparel brand. Launched under the spinnaker logo in 1983, Nautica designs, makes, and retails men's sportswear, outerwear, underwear, swimwear, and sleepwear. It also licenses the Nautica name in the US for women's and children's clothing and nonapparel (fragrances, footwear, furniture). Nautica, which is owned by brand behemoth V.F. Corporation, is marketed to department store and boutique wholesale customers, as well as sold through some 80 VF-operated Nautica retail outlets and website. Independent licensees sell the lineup through some 150 Nautica stores, mostly in Asia, the Middle East, and North and South America.