If you’ve heard of Freezy Freakies gloves, Hans and Karl Reichstetter know this about you: You were probably born in the 1970s or early 1980s and you probably spent your childhood in the Northeast.
“That was the epicenter of Freezy Freakdom,” Hans Reichstetter said. Children liked their Freezy Freakies gloves because colorful unicorns, hearts, robots and other objects sprouted on them as if by magic when the weather turned frosty.
The Swany America Corporation, based in Johnstown, N.Y., started making the gloves in 1980, selling them mainly in department stores and children’s clothing stores for more than a decade. The gloves were also very popular in Chicago.
In 1981, the Reichstetters, who are twins, were born into Freezy Freakdom — specifically, Larchmont, N.Y. Recently their apparel company, Buffoonery Factory, based in San Francisco, licensed the brand to make adult versions of the gloves. Their company is one of two with licenses to make Freezy Freakies gloves, and their story offers lessons on the challenges of reviving an old product.
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Seth Godin, an entrepreneur and author who has written books on marketing and how ideas spread, is skeptical. “You’re wearing them because you’re making a statement about your past, not your future,” he said. “With most resurrected brands, that’s all they’re able to do.”
“The question I would ask is, do they expect when these wear out that people will reorder more?” Mr. Godin said.
Mr. Brett, whose company also has licensing agreements with Disney and Nickelodeon, says he is convinced that the answer is yes. And that’s because “the whole retro ’80s trend is really just so hot,” he said.
A version of this article appears in print on February 15, 2015, on page BU5 of the New York edition with the headline: A Colorful Blast From Winters Past. Order Reprints| Today’s Paper|Subscribe
