Survival of the Fittest
Exactly 30 years ago, Dorothy Schoelen and her then-husband started a junior sportswear label called Strawberry Plant. The designer shifted course in the early 1980s, creating a missy collection under the Platinum by Dorothy Schoelen label. The line of mixed print dresses had blockbuster sales at its peak, but a shift in fashion towards minimalism and a slowing economy in the early 1990s took huge bites out of the category and Platinum’s sales. The designer used the opportunity to reinvent the line into a more contemporary collection relaunched under the Breeze label. The energetic Schoelen recently took a breather to talk with California Apparel News senior reporter Andrea Bermudez about the company’s history, the present challenges of manufacturing in Los Angeles and the future of Breeze, which she’s grooming for platinum status.
Who is the Breeze customer?I like to think of her as someone who loves fashion and who likes newness and is aware of her femininity. She’s a trend watcher, but not a trendsetter. She doesn’t constantly have to be on the edge, but she does want something different.Why did you decide to make this category shift into more of a contemporary look?Because it’s what I do best. I like to work with better fabrics. I love to make complete collections. I love to have things such as jackets lined in something wonderful.... I don’t like to take shortcuts, or to have to design with such a price consciousness. This way we can work with five or six prints within a group, and not just be limited to solids and one print.Is the line a hybrid of the missy and contemporary categories? Yes. It’s not that cookie-cutter contemporary-junior look that you see out there, but it’s definitely not a missy look either. It’s more designer-driven.Are the prices comparable to other missy lines?I don’t know about that. We start at $22 and go up to $150 wholesale. Our jackets retail for $200. Which retailers carry the line?Better specialty stores such as Jacobson and Nordstrom.What is it like to start a new label after the success you had with Platinum?It’s like we’re starting a business all over again. And at first it was really difficult for me. When you do that kind of volume, your suppliers give you what you want. People treated me beautifully, which I thought was because of me. Then when my volume slipped and went way, way down—what a difference I saw. I’ve had people refuse to call or didn’t make the time to call back. So for a person that’s been in business 30 years I’ve had to go through a lot of what I consider humiliation to start up again. It’s not easy. When you’re starting out and you’re young and someone doesn’t want to see you, you think its no big deal, I’ll go see them. But when you’ve been in business for 30 years and you’ve been so successful it’s not so easy when you’re not treated the same way. You then realize ’Oh, I see how this works.’Did some of your suppliers treat you the same?There are people who have been wonderful [and] supportive, who believe in me, who have faith that we’ll make it.What exactly happened to Platinum?At one time Platinum was a very large focus in this industry and then we had a huge fall. When the department stores cut [the missy printed dress] category out, our customer was not eliminated. That’s why we still get mail from people asking for Platinum.Why did the department stores cut back on missy?They didn’t phase out the customer, what they phased out was mixed-print dressing. They thought that that look had reached its peak, which it probably had. That’s when that whole minimalist look was coming in and that affected everyone that did [the mixed-print] look. The fact that the big department stores merged and they sought out smaller resources affected everything too.How much did Platinum sell at its peak?I’d rather not say because we’re a family business.Have you phased Platinum out entirely?We’re just using Platinum for special things. We’re just giving it a rest. For special stores, we’ve done special cuts with that label. Any plans to bring the label back?We will probably bring it back in a different kind of way. But right now we’re letting Breeze take center stage.How does Breeze compare with your other labels?Breeze is a combination of Platinum and Silver Connection, a sportswear label we had.What have you learned in the past that you will now apply to Breeze?As a designer, it’s important to design with the times yet keep your own little flair. If you have the right product, someone will recognize it and that’s what I’m doing now. I feel that Breeze is on the right track. It’s new and it’s fresh and it represents affordable.How have you made changes to Breeze from two years ago?At first it wasn’t quite right. It was too price conscious. It wasn’t as focused as it should have been. There were too many garments, but we’ve since narrowed it down with the help of a merchandiser.Do you see Breeze attaining the same level of success that Platinum had?Why shouldn’t it? No one else is making beautiful clothes for this price like I am. No one. At what speed? I have no idea. But I absolutely know it will get there.How will you advertise and market Breeze?The same thing we did with Platinum. Nothing. Just word of mouth.Have you been able to keep your Platinum following?[When department stores eliminated the mixed-print category], many of my Platinum customers were in their twenties. I recognize that there are some women who can no longer buy my clothes, but I like to think of my customer as an ageless type of woman who loves clothes and takes care enough of her figure to be able to wear my clothes at any age. Do you produce locally or overseas?We produce locally.Do you find that you’re having a hard time finding contractors?Oh, only for the past 30 years! That’s always been a problem here. Finding quality contractors for our price category.I hear you work with your sons. So it’s a family affair here? It’s totally a family affair here. My oldest son moved away to New Hampshire, but he’s still a partner though he’s not active. Todd is in charge of sales and Mark works with the production and distribution.What are the benefits working with family?The tremendous trust is most important. Confidence. I have total confidence in them. We all have the same focus and desires. We go together and we fail together. My sons have gone through a lot with me. From seeing a huge business grow and then go the opposite direction. So it’s been a wonderful lesson for them. They’re getting it at a different age. At their age I was just starting.Any changes to look forward to with your company?We already made most of the changes. We’re just waiting for the results at this point. We showed in New York and got tremendous feedback. Everyone is as excited as we are.
