The Childrens Place is a specialty retailer that sells clothing and accessories for kids. Founded in 1969 with just a small handful of stores, it became part of the Federated Department Stores chain in 1981. When the parent company sold off some of its brands in 1988, Joseph Sitt led a group of investors to acquire the chain. Profits grew due to a partnership with Disney that allowed The Childrens Place to operate the Disney Store. The success of the High School Musical franchise helped profits grow by more than 15%. It would later sell those stores back to Disney to focus more on its in-house brand