Martin Greenfield

Martin Greenfield (born Maxmilian Grünfeld; August 9, 1928 – March 20, 2024) was an American master tailor, based in Brooklyn, New York, specializing in men's suits. Described in 2014 as "the best men's tailor" in the United States, his list of clients included six U.S. presidents, as well as other notable politicians and celebrities. His company, , also has a white-label business, fashioning men's suits for clothing lines DKNY and Rag & Bone and the television show Boardwalk Empire. to a Jewish family in Pavlovo, a small village located in Carpathian Ruthenia, on the southeastern tip of Czechoslovakia in what is now Ukraine. At age 14, Greenfield was rounded up along with his father, mother, two sisters, brother, and grandparents. All were transported to Auschwitz concentration camp, where his two sisters, infant brother, and grandparents were immediately sent to the gas chamber, followed shortly after by his mother, who was unable to let go of her baby. Greenfield's father died shortly before Auschwitz was liberated by Soviet soldiers in January 1945, leaving him the only member of his family to survive the war.

During his time in Auschwitz, Greenfield learned the power behind clothing. After being beaten for accidentally ripping a Nazi's shirt, he stole it, repaired it, and wore it underneath his uniform all throughout his time in the camp. Wearing the shirt made him realize that clothes possess power; this became an inspiration to Martin and helped him survive the Holocaust. This experience was a contributing factor to how he became one of the most successful and famous men's tailors of America.

Near the end of World War II, Greenfield was moved along with other Auschwitz prisoners to the Buchenwald concentration camp. In April 1945, the American army stormed the camp, and liberated its prisoners. As the troops passed through the camp, Greenfield stopped a young rabbi who was serving as a U.S. Army chaplain and asked him, "where was God?" The rabbi, Herschel Schacter, later told Greenfield that he had never forgotten the question.

Greenfield spent the next two years in Europe, looking for his remaining immediate family, unaware that they had all been killed. His father was killed one week before his camp was liberated. In 1947, at age 19, he boarded a ship to the United States, and stayed with wealthy relatives in Baltimore.

Greenfield and his company have served as the tailor for men's suits for fashion lines including DKNY, Brooks Brothers, Neiman Marcus, and Rag & Bone.