Thursday, December 31
Creative Culver City Shopping Center Shaping Up
Retail
More stores come online for Platform, a high-end contemporary shopping center in Culver City.
Agenda Emerge Talks New Ideas In Street & Action Sports
At the end of a trade show, booths are torn down and dinner plans are made, but when Agenda trade show wraps up on Jan. 8, trade show management got one more thing on the itinerary. Call it inspiration. Project Cobalt will present Agenda Emerge at the Center Theater at the Long Beach Convention Center from 7 to 10PM Jan. 8.
Wednesday, December 30
Dollar T Shirt.com: Thrift Goes E-commerce
Retail
Derek Wong started a fashion career printing T-shirts. But when it came time to move on to his next project, Wong didn’t feel like going high-end or designer. He saw opportunity in thrift.
L.A. Made Line Takes New Look to High End Shop Traffic
ADBD at Traffic
After a few years of selling streetwear on Los Angeles’s Fairfax Avenue, Adam Derry of the ADBD label is taking his line a few streets and a world beyond from Fairfax’s streetwear sizzle.
Columbia Inks Licensing Deal With Delta Galil
Manufacturing
Portland, Ore.–based Columbia Sportswear Co. struck a licensing deal with Delta Galil Industries Ltd. to develop and produce a line of performance underwear under the Columbia Sportswear label.
LaJolla Strikes Deal with Roark Revival
Roark x LaJolla
Irvine, Calif.–based La Jolla Group has formed a joint venture partnership with The Roark Revival in which La Jolla Group will provide Roark with “the tools, staffing, financial management and structure to scale their business seamlessly.”
Governor Brown Appoints Two New Cal/OSHA Deputy Chiefs
Manufacturing
Gov. Jerry Brown has appointed Debra Lee and Eric Berg as the newest deputy chiefs for the state’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, also known as Cal/OSHA.
Avocado Activewear
Open on Abbot Kinney
As many boutiques were anticipating the winter holiday retail season winding down, made-in-Los Angeles brand Avocado was just getting started. It opened its first store on Dec. 22.
Indian Garment Company Fined for Stealing Software
Technology
California’s attorney general has won a settlement from a clothing factory in India accused of stealing intellectual property from U.S. software companies.
Contenders: Clothing Line Looking for Bigger Forum
Manufacturing
Skateboarding and surfing have launched hundreds of brands, but for John Anderson, the inspiration for the new Contenders clothing line came from one of the oldest of sports: boxing.
American Apparel Gets Deadline Extension on Reorganization Plan as IRS Files Objections
Manufacturing
American Apparel has been on a fast track to reorganize after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Oct. 5.
Iconix Being Investigated by SEC
Manufacturing
Iconix Brand Group, which owns a number of labels started in California, announced on Dec. 28 it received a formal order of investigation from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Holiday’s Mixed Review: MasterCard Reports Increased Sales, Others Call it a Tough Season
Retail
The reports for the 2016 holiday retail season are in, and the news is mixed.
New California Laws Change Workplace Rules in 2016
Manufacturing
California politicians were busy in 2015 passing a bevy of employment laws that will take effect on Jan. 1.
Tuesday, December 29
Ciao, Bella!
Fashion Exhibition
Those with a love of Italian fashion and warm winters should head to Florida in February for the opening of the “Bellissima: Italy and High Fashion 1945 – 1968” exhibition at the NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale.
Nasty Gal x Courtney Love
It’s a match made in fashion heaven. Los Angeles e-tailer Nasty Gal is teaming up with musician and actress Courtney Love.
Monday, December 28
Apparel Sales Rise During Christmas
The holiday retail season ended up being good for the apparel business, according to a statement released by MasterCard Spending Pulse on Dec. 28, the market research group tracks spending in the MasterCard payments network.
Wednesday, December 23
Levi’s Adds New Global Retail Executive
Manufacturing
San Francisco–based Levi Strauss & Co. named Carrie Ask executive vice president and president of global retail, overseeing all of Levi’s fleet of 2,700 owned and operated stores, franchise stores and outlet stores.
Rodeo Drive’s Xmas Lights
The Winter Holiday season is about lights and decorations. Rodeo Drive does one of the best Christmas light shows in Southern California. Take a look!
2015 In Review: The Year in Trade Shows
Trade Shows
This was a big year of change for apparel and textile trade shows as new players entered the market, new partnerships were formed and new categories opened.
2015 In Review: Mergers & Acquisitions: Big and Little Companies Join Forces to Grow
Manufacturing
Mergers-and-acquisitions activity was alive and well in the apparel industry in 2015.
Jesta’s Omnichannel Suite Helps Harry Rosen Centralize Operations
Technology
Harry Rosen, a 61-year-old luxury menswear retail chain with 17 stores in Canada, has implemented the Retail Vision Suite from Montreal-based ERP (enterprise resource planning) software provider Jesta I.S. Inc.
70 Years of Style
70 Years of Style
Since its inception in 1945, California Apparel News has had a front-row seat for the ever-changing landscape of California fashion. From World War II to the creation of e-commerce, California has had an enormous amount of influence on the rest of the world. Over the course of those 70 years, California Apparel News has covered all things sartorial in the Golden State, documenting and deciphering every step in the evolution of the industry.
Former Owners Taking Back Oak NYC Stores from American Apparel
Retail
After months of negotiations, the former owners of the edgy and hip Oak NYC stores have reached an agreement to buy back their small retail chain from American Apparel.
Tuesday, December 22
Wolf & Man’s Big Howl
We’ve written about the coffee division for men’s clothing brand Wolf & Man. the Whittier, Calif. brand is shifting more attention to different kinds of sales.
Merican Made to Abbot Kinney
The newest store on high profile retail street Abbot Kinney Boulevard is Merican Made.
Holiday Bash for Neighborhood Kids
Blog
For nearly 70 years, members of Los Angeles’ textile and apparel industry have been throwing a holiday party for neighborhood children.
Monday, December 21
Sartorial Celebration
Buyer and editor Marquelle Turner-Gilchrist was looking for a way to showcase “paint new pictures of the black man and highlight the diversity and strength of black men.” What began as a photo project has evolved into a film series called “The New Stereotype.”
What Are You Wearing New Year’s Eve?
Mode Studio released its latest 100 Years of Fashion video called “100 Years of New Year’s Style.”
Forever 21 Opening Three New F21 Red Stores
Retail
Forever 21's new concept store expanding nationwide.
Friday, December 18
Thursday, December 17
Alo Yoga to Open First Flagship Store Soon in Southern California
Retail
The Los Angeles-based label is staking out its first retail foray in a high-end neighborhood.
Fiber Campaign Runs Hot and Cold
Invista may be best known in the swim business as the maker of Lycra, but with its latest campaign, the fiber giant is stepping away from the pool.
2015 RETROSPECTIVE: Retailers Are Returning to Popular Shopping Streets
Retail
Retail on the high-end streets around the Los Angeles area are starting to buzz with shopping crowds not seen since the economy took a dip in 2008.
2015 RETROSPECTIVE: China Stays on Top as U.S. Clothing Factory
Import/Export
China’s exports of textiles and apparel to the United States saw a 1.5 percent increase over last year, meaning that the nation of 1.35 billion people and nearly 20,000 apparel and textile factories sent $43 billion worth of goods to the United States for the 12 months ending Oct. 31.
2015 RETROSPECTIVE: Despite Some Monthly Increases, Apparel Employment Flat in ’15
Manufacturing
The state saw some slight increases in apparel manufacturing employment throughout 2015, according to the California Employment Development Department, but over the course of 12 months ending in October (the latest figures tracked by the EDD), apparel and textile employment in the state remained flat.
2015 RETROSPECTIVE: Gap Initiative Aims to Cut U.S. Stores, Increase Overseas Stores
Retail
Gap Inc.’s operations are impressive. The San Francisco–headquartered retailer says that its product is sold in 3,300 company-owned stores across the globe. In 2014, its net sales were $16.4 billion.
2015 RETROSPECTIVE: Macy’s Inc Tries Off-price, Nordstrom Tries More Stores
Retail
Nordstrom Inc. has been hard at work in Southern California in 2015. Nordstrom opened a new full-line shop at Del Amo Fashion Center this year and announced two other new full-line stores.
Michael Costello, Tyga and Pia Mia at Runway Wonderland
Runway Wonderland
Fashion, music and philanthropy converged at the 2nd annual Runway Wonderland event on Dec. 10 at Hubble Studio in Los Angeles.
Lonnie Kane Receives Icon Award
Events
Lonnie Kane, co-owner of the Los Angeles label Karen Kane Inc. and chairman of the California Fashion Association, received the Icon Award at the second annual Southern California Apparel Awards.
MRket Partners With Equinox for New Activewear Section
Trade Shows
MRket is diving into the activewear market with Move, a new section at the upscale menswear trade show.
High-End Accessories Show Coeur Moves to CMC
Trade Shows
Coeur, the high-end accessories and lifestyle show, is moving to the 13th-floor Penthouse of the California Market Center for its March 14–16 edition during the Fall 2016 Los Angeles Fashion Market.
Varley Activewear: European Sophistication Meets California Style
Varley Activewear
The husband-and-wife team behind the line Varley, Lara and Ben Mead, split their time between the U.S. and Europe, which gives the London-born, California-inspired luxury lifestyle brand the sophistication of London and the ease of California.
Darner: L.A. Company Seeks to Build a Better Sock From Scratch
Darner
Los Angeles is known as a denim and T-shirts town, but when a handful of well-connected manufacturers were asked about producing socks in Los Angeles, most said that they knew little and/or had not heard much about the manufacturing of socks in their hometown, which is one of the bigger manufacturing centers in the United States.
Super-Sized Mega-Ship Making Its Way to California Ports
Import/Export
The largest container ship ever to call in the United States will be arriving at three California ports to test the waters on how the facilities handle a megaship of this size.
2015 Economic Retrospective
As 2015 draws to a close, the editors of California Apparel News take a look at several key economic indicators to assess how California’s fashion industry navigated the slowly recovering economy over the past year.
Wednesday, December 16
T-shirts Designed by West Africans for American Apparel
Fashion
Artisans in Sierra Leone design T-shirt collection for American Apparel.
Tuesday, December 15
Modern Weaving Accessories Lands at The Dreslyn
L.A. online specialty retailer The Dreslyn will launch the first season of Modern Weaving accessories. The collection of handbags and jewelry will be sold exclusively on The Dreslyn for the next four weeks.
Monday, December 14
Bringing in the Holidays With Kin
West Hollywood boutique Kin kicked off the holidays with a shopping event on Dec. 10. The staff gave some time for a photo.
Friday, December 11
Guerilla Atelier: Kicking off the Holidays With Bromley
Carl Louisville didn’t need this before the holidays.
Thursday, December 10
Kitson Announces Closure of All Stores
Retail
Kitson, the boutique chain that pioneered high-end shopping on Los Angeles’ Robertson Boulevard and pop-culture retailing, is going out of business, according to a statement sent by the retailer’s public-relations representative.
Retailers Fined for Bamboozling Customers by Mislabeling Rayon Products
Manufacturing
Four large retailers have been fined $1.3 million for mislabeling apparel and textile products as bamboo when in fact they were made from rayon.
Magazines That Rank at the Top of Model Diversity
Fashion
Fashion magazines get slightly better at putting non-white models on the cover.
American Apparel Hits Financial Headwinds
The largest clothing factory in the United States had a mountain of debt that pushed it into bankruptcy court in October, filing for Chapter 11 protection.
Enthralled by the Mall
The future is here. Or it will be once the $5 billion American Dream Meadowlands mall opens, that is.
Newsmakers 2015: Fashion Business Inc.
Manufacturing
Now in its 16th year, Fashion Business Inc. continued its mission to provide fashion-industry education and professional insight to startup and growing apparel companies.
Newsmakers 2015: Swim Collective Launches Active Collective, Garners Competition from Cabana
Swim/Surf
This was a big year for Swim Collective, the 4-year-old Southern California trade show. In January, the trade show launched a companion event, Active Collective, which featured activewear and athleisure lines showing alongside Swim Collective’s swimwear brands.
Newsmakers 2015: CFA Turns 20
Manufacturing
The California Fashion Association celebrated its 20th anniversary this year as it continues to serve as a hub of industry information and insight.
Newsmakers 2015: New Players at L.A. Fashion Week
Events
The Los Angeles Fashion Week scene is typically an ever-shifting landscape, and this year proved no different with new players, new partnerships and a few no-shows.
Newsmakers 2015: Mammoth Free-Trade Agreement Talks Concluded
Import/Export
After seven years of negotiations, trade representatives from 12 countries hammered out a final agreement this year on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, which could change free-trade as we know it between the United States and Asia.
Newsmakers 2015: Joe’s Jeans Undergoes a Metamorphosis
Manufacturing
It was a topsy-turvy year for Joe’s Jeans, the Los Angeles premium-jeans maker launched in 2001 by designer Joe Dahan.
Newsmakers 2015: Otis Fashion Design School to Leave Downtown L.A.
Fashion
Many can’t imagine that the fashion design department of the Otis College of Art and Design could be any other place but in the heart of the Los Angeles Fashion District.
Newsmakers 2015: Lengthy Negotiations End in New Longshore Workers Contract
Import/Export
The beginning of the year was a challenging time for shippers, who found their merchandise delayed for weeks at the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach.
Newsmakers 2015: Los Angeles Minimum-Wage Laws Prove Challenging to Apparel Industry
Manufacturing
A patchwork of new minimum-wage laws were passed in Los Angeles this year, setting up cities to compete with each other for businesses that want to skirt paying the higher salaries.
Newsmakers 2015: Payments Industry Fights off Credit Card Fraud
Retail
The era of the computer-chip card was formally started on Oct. 1. On that day, banks and credit-card companies notified retailers that they would only be responsible for fraud losses on EMV computer-chip cards, which cannot be hacked by fraudsters, according to supporters of the technology.
Newsmakers 2015: Wet Seal Goes Private
Retail
2015 was the year of new beginnings for Wet Seal. After more than 20 years of acting as a public company, the Foothill Ranch, Calif.–headquartered juniors retailer went private.
Newsmakers 2015: Retail Tech In-Store and Online
Technology
Omni-channel was the tech buzzword of 2012. In 2015, the retail tech world was focused on “Big Data,” or through feeding extremely large sets of data into computer algorithms, then finding trends and patterns, which might forecast what kind of denim consumers will purchase.
Newsmakers 2015: Quiksilver Reorganizes
Manufacturing
One of the innovators and major companies of the surf business, Quiksilver Inc., wiped out this year.
Linden: Keep It Small, Don’t Waste
Linden
For the next couple weeks, until Christmas, Jennifer Lynn Krischer is working overtime at the Los Angeles Ballet’s production of “The Nutcracker.”
Store Inventory Levels Remain Stubbornly High
Cargo Increase
The total number of cargo containers coming into the nation’s major ports will increase approximately 5.5 percent this year compared with last year, according to the National Retail Federation.
Consultants Offer Tips to Boost Holiday Sales
Retail
Retail sales are forecast to spike a week before Christmas, but until then many retailers face a period of doldrums waiting for consumers to show up at physical stores or online.
Wednesday, December 9
What Every Apparel Company Should Know if It Is Paying Its Employees Commissions or Piece-Rate Pay
Industry Voices
Apparel companies, beware, as there are a number of common errors employers make when paying employees commissions or piece rates. Unfortunately, recent decisions in California have complicated this area, and misapplication of the law can be costly. Being apprised of the common pitfalls can help minimize risk to your business.
Tuesday, December 8
Christy Dawn, Meet Emily
Some of the stylish might know the Christy Dawn label’s Audrey dress. On Dec. 7, the line held a party for its Emily dress at the Christy Dawn boutique in Los Angeles’ Venice section.
Monday, December 7
Barbie X Andy Warhol at Ron Robinson
Is the world ready for Andy Warhol Barbie? Such a doll took a bow at the Ron Robinson boutique on Dec. 3.
Friday, December 4
American Apparel Founder Dov Charney Ups Fight to Regain Company
Manufacturing
Dov Charney was ousted as the head of American Apparel one year ago. Now, the founder of the company is making a concerted effort to mount a financial army that will help him acquire the company out of bankruptcy.
LA Fire Department Responds to Friday Morning Fire
Fashion District Fire
A fire broke out at 828 S. Los Angeles Street in downtown Los Angeles on Dec. 4 inside the Italian Fashions by Suzie store located in the ground floor of the 824 Building, which houses wholesale showrooms upstairs.
Remembering Scott Weiland
The sad news of musician Scott Weiland's death has us thinking about the rocker's stint as a fashion frontman.
Get Ready for your Close-Up Sue Wong: Beverly Hills Christmas
Los Angeles fashion people might have seen designer Sue Wong at one of her gala Los Angeles Fashion Week runway shows. But she’s going to be on film. The eveningwear designer will make a cameo in the film Beverly Hills Christmas. The independent film will make a debut Dec. 6 on the UP television network.
Thursday, December 3
Ready For Designer Star Wars?
We’ve seen the Star War T-shirts, hats and the onslaught of marketing gizmos for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which will be released on Dec. 18. But how about designer Star Wars?
November Sales Tough
Retail
L Brands Inc. posted great sales on November, the start of the holiday retail season.
Original Chuck Taps Mark McNairy for First Full Collection
Original Chuck
After four years of designing almost every kind of top to put on a head—think baseball caps, broad-brimmed hats and beanies for the Original Chuck brand—John Putnam, the Los Angeles–area label’s founder, is going for an expansion.
Joe’s Jeans to Seek Approval of Reverse-Merger Agreement
Manufacturing
Joe’s Jeans, the publicly traded company in Los Angeles that makes blue jeans and other clothing, will be holding a stockholders’ meeting in January to approve a reverse merger that will see the company become the Differential Brands Group and traded on the Nasdaq.
PLM: Seeking a Simple Solution for a Complex Supply Chain
Technology
Ever since PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) software was introduced to the apparel industry, the solution has been helping companies do everything from line planning to streamlining production by giving everyone involved in development access to the same real-time information.
PacSun Announces Line With Fear of God’s Jerry Lorenzo
Manufacturing
Pacific Sunwear’s next high-profile line has almost nothing to do with surfboarding, skateboarding or action sports, which have been a focus for the Anaheim, Calif.–headquartered retailer with a fleet of 605 stores.
Wednesday, December 2
On Rodeo: IWC Schaffhausen Opens A Shop
Emily Ratajkowski, Emily Moss and Patrick Stewart were among the stars who partied at the Dec. 1 debut of the Rodeo Drive boutique for timepiece company IWC Schaffhausen.
Growing Economy Will Lead to Rising Interest Rates Soon
UCLA Anderson Forecast
The long-awaited moment may be here. The U.S. government is expected to boost federal interest rates this month.
Tuesday, December 1
NPR Covers the LA Fashion District
NPR visited Los Angeles's Fashion District for a story about made-in-America manufacturing.
American Apparel Rejects Million-Dollar Offer to Buy Oak Stores
No Sale
The founders of the high-end Oak stores, acquired by American Apparel two years ago, really want their stores back.
Black Friday Weekend: E-Commerce Up, In-Store Sales Down
Holiday 2015
The first major shopping event for the 2015 holiday retail season is over and analysts say business was great for e-commerce, however it declined for bricks-and-mortar retail.
Sweaty Betty To Abbot Kinney
UK fitness brand Sweaty Betty recently opened its first West Coast boutique on Venice Beach's Abbot Kinney Boulevard.
