CaliforniaApparelNews.net

Calling the Great Recession a big party pooper might be the understatement of the past 18 months. Some fashion-week fandangos aside, there has been a dearth of big fashion parties since the financial meltdown of September 2008.  That’s why the March 12 grand-opening party for Echo Park Independent Co-op (E.P.I.C.), a store devoted to emerging Los Angeles designers, seemed like the good times of 2007 or hopefully a peek into the very near future. 

Vera Wang at 8445 Melrose. The boutique's sales clerks said a store sign would be installed soon.

A once high-flying section of West Hollywood’s Melrose Avenue might get another chance to become a thriving retail street now that a fashion star opened a boutique there recently.



The February unemployment rate for California’s apparel manufacturing businesses is scheduled to be released on March 10, but if you read the tea leaves on the wider employment picture across the state and the nation, no major recovery is expected for California's schmatte business. 

Isaac Nichelson of Livity Outernational

Gap's 1969 debuts shop on Robertson

After a glum period on Los Angeles’ glitzy Robertson Boulevard, business might be rolling again. This week, three stores will debut on one of Los Angeles’ most high-profile shopping districts. 

Sirens & Sailors closes Feb. 21. 

For the past 10 years, the Sirens & Sailors boutique was one of the influential boutiques on Los Angeles’ Eastside. From its location in a lavender colored cottage in Los Angeles’ Echo Park neighborhood, Sirens made a splash by championing Los Angeles avant-garde designers such as Grey Ant, Jared Gold, Brian Lichtenberg and Smoke & Mirrors. Yet Feb. 21 will be its last day as a physical store.  

Chanteuse's Chenoa Faun at Coco de Mer

With a brief burlesque show, lingerie and fashion line Chanteuse celebrated its debut at the Coco de Mer boutique at 8618 Melrose Ave. in West Hollywood. 

Vigil at Alexander McQueen boutique on Feb. 11

News of the death of fashion designer Alexander McQueen on Feb. 11 stunned and saddened many of the fashion retailers on Los Angeles’ Melrose Avenue. One boutique, Madison, paid tribute to the provocative, young English designer with a mournful scene in its store window at 8115 Melrose Ave.

S&G owners Gita Salem, left, and Sequoia Emmanuelle at their new L.A. boutique 

Even in an uncertain economy, entrepreneurs are still opening shops. One of the latest is designer fashion brand S & G by Sequoia & Gita. On Feb. 4, it held a debut party for its boutique/showroom at 7414 Melrose Ave. in Hollywood, just across the street from The Village Idiot restaurant.

Boulmiche's new Beverly Hills location

Women's boutique Boulmiche helped set luxury trends for more than 35 years in Beverly Hills, Calif. It also gained cachet as the location of a snooty boutique in 1990 film Pretty Woman. In 2010 Boulmiche will move from its perch on the corner of Santa Monica Boulevard and Rodeo Drive to 325 N. Beverly Blvd., also in Beverly Hills.