Hot Trends Sizzle in the Hot Desert

LAS VEGAS—If you had to take away just one trend from the recent apparel shows here, it would be this: blazers.

They came in all shapes, colors and fabrics and were aimed at men, women and teens. Blazers popped up everywhere during the Aug. 30–Sept. 2 run of MAGIC International at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC) and at many of the nearby satellite shows, which attracted thousands of buyers filling in Holiday orders and glimpsing Spring 2005 styles.

These blazers are not your father’s fare, straight-laced and conservative. They are creative and whimsical.

“The consumer never had the opportunity to purchase a hip blazer,” explained Isaac Greszes, vice president of 4You America LLC, the American licensee of a Danish menswear manufacturer. “This is fun fashion. Color is very important, too—pinks, reds, greens, whites.”

Greszes said 20 percent of all his orders were for fashionable blazers.

Other companies experimented with a wide array of jackets. Stussy Inc. of Irvine, Calif., showed safari-style blazers with chunky buttons. At Lifted Research Group, a streetwear company based in Santa Ana, Calif., executives introduced a line of blazers made out of corduroy, suede and denim.

Michael Buckley, chief executive of Ben Sherman USA in New York, said blazers are finding their way into the female wardrobe, too. This year the company, whose sales are up 90 percent in all categories, is selling a pinstriped blazer after having tried other styles.

Devil in the details

If blazers were hot, so was anything that had an ounce of detailing. Vendors said it was a matter of survival.

“In this particular market, if you don’t have a strong, detailed look, you can’t compete. You just become another line,” said John Sabo, senior vice president of Redsand, a surfwear company based in Irvine, Calif.

To distinguish itself from the pack, Redsand’s line has added subtle detailing, such as reversible belt loops on bottoms and an asymmetrical yoke on the back of shirts.

Moshe Tsabag, president and owner of Los Angeles juniors company Hot Kiss Inc. Corp., said the focus on details comes from consumers’ desire to look sophisticated. “Girls have enough basics. They’re looking for fashion,” he explained.

Buying mood

Merchandise managers and retail executives combed through thousands of booths that offered every line of apparel and accessories imaginable: from feather-trimmed laptop computer bags to shiny and slinky swimwear.

Organizers at MAGIC International said company participation and buyer attendance was up over the February 2004 and August 2003 shows. “We had roughly 3,300 exhibitors,” said Ernae Mothershed, press spokeswoman for MAGIC International, noting that figure is a five-year high for the semiannual event. The official tally for attendance will not be ready until at least Sept. 13, she said.

Fabric@MAGIC, now in its third edition, had 106 exhibitors, a 44 percent increase over February’s show.

Things felt crowded at the WWDMAGIC show, which moved from the Sands Expo & Convention Center to the LVCC’s north hall. Buyers complained the booths were small and the aisles were narrow.

But that did not stop people from browsing. Tsabag from Hot Kiss said he had more appointments this year than last year because many retailers were filling out inventories they had kept low until recently. Buyers from Hot Topic Inc., The Wet Seal Inc., Gadzooks Inc., Macy’s East and Robinson’s-May stopped by the booth.

“They’re not worrying about the economy,” said Tsabag, whose candy-colored booth was packed with bright jacquard jackets and lace-trimmed tank tops. “They need new product to come into the store. They need to see what’s next.”

But Buckley, whose Ben Sherman USA booth was located in the Designers & Contemporary section of the central hall, had a different take—even though he had 200 appointments booked.

“There’s a lot of uncertainty with the election,” Buckley said. “Consumers need to feel more certainty.”

Even though everyone had a different view of the economy, many agreed the MAGIC show is still a magnet for movers and shakers in the industry.

“This is the one show that everybody does. All of the major players are here,” said Jeffrey Lubell, president and chief executive of Los Angeles–based denim maker True Religion Apparel Inc. “If they’re not at the convention center, they’re making deals at the hotels.”

Over the years, several satellite shows have popped up in the city’s mega-hotels, specializing in everything from swimwear to streetwear to overseas sourcing factories. This year, each show had a different look, feel and degree of success.

The Exclusive Mandalay Bay Convention Center Aug. 29–31

This year marked The Exclusive’s first venture into an exhibition-booth format. The menswear show had been held in hotel suites at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino on the opposite end of the Las Vegas strip. This year, about 160 exhibitors with 475 lines showed their wares.

According to buyers, menswear is riding a big high, especially in the contemporary category. A new wave of men’s apparel styles in bright colors has spurred retail sales after lower-than-expected same-store sales last year, buyers said.

Several buyers said they came to the show with double-digit budget increases.

Steve Hinton, buyer for men’s specialty store Hinton & Hinton in Oxford, Mass., said many of his store’s customers are open to newness. “I have very traditional customers, but they seem receptive to the new color trends,” he observed.

Hinton said he was looking for “anything exciting that will fit into our mix.” He shopped for colorful ties, striped shirts and textured better dress pants with a budget that was 20 percent higher than last year’s.

Buyers from Lino’s menswear in Sherman Oaks, Calif., showed strong interest in cashmere cotton long-sleeved polo shirts wholesaling for $99 and short-sleeved jacquard-print polo shirts wholesaling for $69.50 by Jeff Rose, a men’s and women’s apparel line based in Ashland, Pa.

The Exclusive Trends

bull; Bright neckties with retro influences bull; Striped dress shirts with French cuffs and cuff linksbull; Fitted button-up shirts with top-stitchingbull; Crinkle-cloth dress shirts with three-button cuffsbull; Short- and long-sleeved striped polo shirts

Pool Trade Show Mandalay Bay Convention CenterAug. 30–Sept. 1

Streetwear has always been a strong category at the Pool Trade Show. Several exhibitors said business was brisk at the eighth edition of the show, which featured 400 exhibitor booths. Also shown were footwear, art and home furnishings.

Los Angeles–based young women’s contemporary apparel maker Army Pink came to Pool stocked with sexy miniskirts, tube dresses and ruffled tank dresses in bright rayons, jerseys and poplins.

Los Angeles–based men’s streetwear line Fresh Jive featured T-shirts with pop art–inspired graphics meant to parody today’s icons. Owner/designer Rick Klotz said he spoke with several buyers who were interested in placing orders for Spring 2005.

Howe, a Newport Beach, Calif.–based men’s apparel maker, got a lot of attention from buyers looking to add a bit of punk-rock attitude to their menswear offerings. The company’s founder, Jade Howe, spent much of his time at the jam-packed booth answering questions from buyers and pulling trendy items from the racks.

Pool Trade Show Trends

bull; Young men’s dress shirts with screen-printed graphicsbull; Pin-striped blazersbull; Camouflage men’s shortsbull; Novelty T-shirts with edgy graphic printsbull; Feminine, flirty dresses with ruffled bottoms

International Swimwear/Activewear Market (ISAM) Caesars Palace Special Events Center Aug. 30–Sept. 2

Some 200 swimwear, activewear and accessories lines participated in the ISAM show, which has moved around during the last several years. Last year, the show was held at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.

While foot traffic at the show seemed slow, organizer Barbara Brady said it was primarily an appointment-driven show.

Richard Bataglia, national sales manager of Robin Piccone swimwear in Santa Monica, Calif., said traffic was steady and a lot of regular clients came in to get an early glance at silhouettes and print styles for Spring/Summer 2005. He booked about 30 appointments.

After seasons of stripes and polka dots, retailers were glad to see abstract variations on those trends and were equally optimistic about their sales power.

Buyers from The May Department Stores Co. took copious notes while viewing Calvin Klein’s solid shirred one- and two-piece swimsuits.

Retailer Pilar Jenson of Pilar’s Beachwear in San Diego said she liked the tropical prints offered by Coco Reef, a misses swimwear line based in New York.

ISAM Trends

bull; Ruffled skirt coverupsbull; Slide halter tops with side-tie bottomsbull; Cutout one-piecesbull; Abstract polka-dot and stripe printsbull; One-shoulder bandeau bikinis

WomensWear In Nevada (WWIN) Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino Aug. 30–Sept. 2

Buyers from all over the country converged at WWIN, which keeps growing every year. There was an especially large contingent of specialty store buyers from Texas and the Midwest.

Several buyers commented about the ease of shopping at the show, which provided free lunches and drinks for registered buyers and exhibitors and a shuttle bus between the Rio and the Las Vegas Hilton, next to the LVCC.

Show organizers said there were about 630 booths at the show, compared with 580 to 590 last year.

“Next August, there will be more than 200 booths added,” said Roland Timney, a principal with Specialty Trade Shows Inc., the Coconut Grove, Fla.–based company that organizes the semiannual event. “The Rio is adding on a ballroom, and we hope to expand there.”

Business was brisk at the three-day event. “I think the show is quite good,” said Glenn Fisher, vice president of sales at Commerce, Calif.–based Nancy Bolen City Girl, which makes a line geared toward 35- to 50-year-old women. The company’s booth was packed with buyers.

“Our clientele seemed to have an early, positive start to Fall,” Fisher said. “Suede and leather sold well.”

Lynne Andresevic was also getting a flurry of interest from buyers who stopped by her booth, which held the same lines she stocks in her Crayola Sisters showroom in the California Market Center of downtown Los Angeles.

“We’ve been doing the show for eight years,” Andresevic said. “It’s a good show. It’s a writing show, not a looking show.”

WWIN Trends

bull; Bright colors and pastels bull; Conversational prints bull; Clean embellishments bull; Ruffled skirts bull; Exotic looks from India and China

ASAP Global Sourcing Show Las Vegas Hilton Aug. 29–Sept. 1

Pakistan was the focus at the semiannual ASAP Global Sourcing Show, attended by foreign apparel factories looking to hook up with U.S. manufacturers and designers.

“I feel India and Pakistan will grow percentage- wise as much as China after apparel quotas disappear among World Trade Organization countries next year,” said Frank Yuan, ASAP show organizer and chairman and chief executive of Cyber Merchants Exchange Inc. in El Monte, Calif.

Aamir Haidir Butt, whose family-owned Fashionwear Ltd. has been dyeing, printing and manufacturing apparel since 1965 in Karachi, Pakistan, took advantage of a $2,800 government subsidy to join 16 other Pakistani companies attending the show. Fashionwear produces mostly athletic knitwear for various U.S. and European companies.

In the past, Fashionwear had concentrated on exporting to European retailers because of quota restrictions to the United States. Now it is increasing its capacity and zeroing in on the U.S. export market. He saw 60 companies, mostly start-ups, that inquired about his firm.

There was also a large contingent from China, which is expected to become the apparel factory to the world next year.

Robert Qi, general manager of Shanghai Suntex Garment Factory Ltd. in China, attended the show for the first time. He had about 15 buyers drop by during the first two days of the show, which he considered slow. “There have been some buyers looking at prices, but we don’t expect them to necessarily place orders during the first show.”

There were about 280 to 300 companies that rented booths at the show, compared with 280 companies last year. More than 300 companies participated at MAGIC’s Sourcing Pavilion.

Yuan conceded that MAGIC is proving to be a wily competitor.

Off-Price Specialist Show Sands Expo & Convention Center Aug. 27–31

Wholesalers, jobbers and buyers from Ross Stores Inc., J.C. Penney Co. Inc. and T.J. Maxx crowded into the Off-Price Specialist Show, the only trade show held at the Sands during MAGIC.

Deals were made for clothes that were 20 percent to 70 percent below the original manufacturers’ prices, said Bill Jage, chief executive of the Off-Price Specialist Show.

But a soft Back-to-School market and anemic store sales for August put a chill on the show.

“Retailers didn’t buy with the same enthusiasm,” Jage said. “There wasn’t that strong demand that makes the market buzz. All in all, most of my exhibitors were happy with the business they got.”

The prime obsession at the show was denim.