Out With the Gothic, Says Brentwood Retailer
New times require a new look.Just ask Emma Murmuridis. When she opened her designer boutique Gaia in 2003 at the Brentwood Gardens shopping center in Los Angeles, the store was dominated by a dark milieu. Gothic crosses lined the walls of the 1,100-square-foot boutique. Heavy suede curtains covered its dressing rooms. She thought the deacute;cor was a perfect complement for leathers, often-thick cashmere and tattoo-inspired clothes that Gaia offered. Then Murmuridis felt it was time for a change.
On Sept. 19, the 42-year-old entrepreneur debuted a lighter look to the boutique with a traditional dinner party from her native Russia. With guests nibbling on caviar and sipping vodka, the new style took its bow. The store now features new pebble-stone floors, mostly plain white walls and large stage windows, which displayed mannequins clad in Soviet-style garb for the opening party.
Murmuridis estimated that she spent more than $50,000 on the renovation, which was designed by interior decorator Anthony Schmidt. But she believes that it was money well spent. “It was too dark. Some people didn’t want to walk into the store.”
She maintains that the lighter, softer style invites more consumers into her boutique. What’s selling best is the Oxford Baby Bio shirt, by Italian-based designer DSquared. The fitted white shirt with big cuffs costs $425. “It feels slimming,” she said. —Andrew Asch
