When the Phone Book Doesn't Work, Call Couture Blvd.
Homepage of upcoming fashion Web site Couture Blvd
Venita Haynes watched many independent fashion boutiques go out of business in the past year. Yet instead of resigning herself to being frustrated about the sad current state of indie fashion, she decided to do something about it and possibly make money.
In February, she will debut CoutureBlvd.com. It will be an online, magazine-style directory of fashion designers and the independent boutiques where their latest creations can be purchased. So if your favorite boutique closed, CoutureBlvd will list others which carry similar collections, she said.
Haynes is a veteran buyer for boutiques such as Santa Monica, Calif., fashion destinations such as B.NY and Fred Segal. She believes a magazine-style directory will thrive in a world where everybody and their grandmother Googles. Search engines often offer flawed results, and the name of a business’s Web site can often be quite different from the formal name of the store, which can make searches agonizing. Designers also will be able to use this fashion directory to post art of their collections and list biographies and of course make the big fashion statement.
