E.P.I.C. Devoted to L.A. Indie Design

It’s been a cruel season for Los Angeles’ independent fashion designers. Many of the veteran boutiques that championed their work went out of business because of the lingering aftermath of the Great Recession of 2008. No retailers seemed to be on the horizon to replace them until March 12, when boutique Echo Park Independent Co-Op debuted. Boutique owners Tristan Scott and Rhianon Jones pledged to help with the rescue of the beleaguered indie-fashion scene.

Their pledge can be seen on the sales floor of the 2,300-square-foot boutique, located at 1712 W. Sunset Blvd. All 43 labels represented at E.P.I.C. are emerging Los Angeles designers, and more than half of the shop’s indie designers live in Silver Lake and Echo Park, the vibrant bohemian neighborhoods located on Los Angeles’ Eastside.

“L.A. has so much under-appreciated talent,” Scott said. “We want to show the world what Los Angeles has to offer.”

If the store is unyielding in its devotion to local fashion, it plays loosely with language. E.P.I.C. is not a cooperative in the strict sense of the word. Designers do not sell on consignment at the store. However, each designer creates displays for his or her merchandise. E.P.I.C. seeks designers who are new, inspired by avant-garde looks and use eco-friendly fabrics.

Among E.P.I.C.’s new crop of designers is House of Bare, which designs hoodies reminiscent of monks’ robes. There’s Howl, which makes cocktail dresses with hems featuring snake-like shapes, and there is Himiku, which designs pleated harem pants and created the origami chandelier in the shop’s steel-beam arch. Hollywood designer Ashton Michael created a capsule line especially for E.P.I.C. He used eco-friendly fabrics, toned down some of the more outreacute; avant-garde looks and cut his prices by two-thirds, he said.

Retail price points at E.P.I.C. range from $10 for artwork to $770 for a gown. Both Scott and Jones are novice entrepreneurs, and Scott said pricing already is an issue.

“We are starting to look at lowering price points,” Scott said. “But we want artists to be properly compensated for their work.”

E.P.I.C. should be able to overcome hurdles with prices and a still-flat economy, Jones said, adding that the boutique’s silent investors promised to be patient. She said she also believes many wealthy consumers are looking for one-of-a-kind fashions, specifically the kind on which E.P.I.C. focuses. In the store’s first week of business, E.P.I.C. received its biggest reaction from stylists and magazine editors. “So many of these items are photographable,” she said.—Andrew Asch