Liz Claiborne Changing to Fifth & Pacific

After operating under the name Liz Claiborne Inc. (New York) for more than 30 years, the apparel group is renaming itself Fifth & Pacific Cos. Inc.

The company announced last fall that it would make a change after selling its namesake brand to J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (Plano, Texas).

“We didn’t want a contrived name. We didn’t want it to sound like it came out of a naming factory,” ceo William McComb told Women’s Wear Daily. “We also didn’t want it to sound like a hedge fund or a financial services company or a high-tech Silicon Valley company.”

The company, which operates such brands as Juicy Couture, Lucky Brand, Kate Spade and Jack Spade, says the new name reflects its New York and Los Angeles roots, rather than a consumer brand.