California Apparel News

If the retail sector continues to show weakness, then developers should brace themselves for some shopping mall wars between three closely situated centers in Los Angeles.

Developer Rick Caruso is putting the finishing touches on his $115 million open-air center called the Grove, which is set to open March 15. Anchored by a Nordstrom department store, an FAO Schwarz toy store and a Barnes & Noble bookstore, the center counts the Gap, Banana Republic, Crate & Barrel and Anthropologie among its 60 tenants as well as five sit-down restaurants and a 14-screen Pacific Theatres multiplex.

The good news is the Grove hopes to attract 25 million shoppers a year, capitalizing on its adjacency to one of Los Angeles’ top tourist spots, Farmers Market.

The daunting news is that it’s also about one mile east of the Beverly Center, a retail powerhouse, which includes Bloomingdale’s and Macy’s. It also sits about 3.5 miles south of the newly opened Hollywood & Highland shopping complex that boasts a Gap, Tommy Hilfiger and DFS Galleria.Caruso, who previously developed the Commons at Calabasas and the Promenade at Westlake, says competition is good and that the addition of new retail has only begun to scratch the surface of the shopping needs of local residents.

Too, Caruso, who is founder and president of Santa Monica, Calif.-based Caruso Affiliated Holdings, said that based on the success of his other centers, he isn’t worried about the timing of the Grove’s opening.

“They’ve remained very strong. In fact, with fears of going into malls, it seems that there’s a greater need than before for open-air centers,” he said.

He’s bullish on first-year sales projections hitting around $300 million, or roughly $520 a square foot, in line with his other developments.

For their part, the neighboring shopping centers say they need to stay on their toes but do not think the Grove will succeed at their expense.

“There’s plenty of room for both of us,” said Laurel Crary, general manager of the Beverly Center. “The Beverly Center is seen as a hip locale, attracting people from the music and film industries and the single shopper. The Grove is beautiful and seems to lean more [toward being a] family environment.”

Open-Air Center Boasts Art Deco Feel

The architecture at the Grove replicates the Art Deco atmosphere of Los Angeles in the 1930s and 1940s with curved windows, projecting canopies, copper fluting and other design elements.

The central feature of the center is a town square landscaped with a curved limestone balustrade, a pond, a pedestrian bridge and water fountains. The mall’s main walkway, lined with streetlamps, limestone pavers and a towering angel sculpture, connects to Farmers Market. Trolleys will run along the walkway, shuttling customers between the venues.

In addition to adding four signals to the shopping center’s entrances, Caruso has turned Stanley Avenue into a four-lane road that connects Beverly Boulevard and Third Avenue.

Caruso said the center will open with about 80 percent of the stores built out. The balance of the stores will open later this year, including Tommy Bahama in May, Apple Computer in July and Crate & Barrel in October.

The project is banking on the allure of anchor Nordstrom and the appeal of its new street-front format.

To accommodate the Grove store’s space of 122,000 square feet, somewhat small for a Nordstrom location, the company has expanded the fashion component at the store in lieu of a gift gallery. In addition to carrying men’s, women’s and kids’ apparel and shoes, cosmetics and fashion accessories, the store will add a designer division, selling Sonia Rykiel, Armani Collezioni, Blumarine, Missoni and Burberry, which will be exclusive to the store.

Spokesperson Kylie Allensoworth declined to provide sales projections for the store but noted that a typical Nordstrom store brings in about $324 in sales per square foot. Given its location and the center’s strong demographics, industry observers expect the store to generate an even higher figure.

Allensworth said that the store is not against changing its hours should the center’s pedestrian traffic warrant it.

“We’ll evaluate these hours as we move forward,” she said.

Retailers Bow in Los Angeles

NikeGoddess, Hawk Skate Shop, Quiksilver Boardriders Club and Sak Elliott Lucca are among the handful of stores making their Los Angeles debut at the Grove.

Nike is opening its second NikeGoddess store, a 6,000-square-foot shop devoted to women’s apparel and sports equipment on the first floor and footwear on the second level.

To date, sales at the concept’s first location at Fashion Island in Newport Beach, Calif., have “gone way beyond expectations,” said Mary Therese Kraft, Nike’s women’s marketing manager for retail.

Kraft said the store’s implementation of trunk shows and its consumer feedback forms have created a strong connection with customers. Such feedback has already led to the addition of two sizes—extra-small and extra-large—to the Nike apparel collections.

Along with yoga, fitness, tennis, and running apparel and gear, the store will introduce its Liz Lange for Nike maternity line of clothing ranging from $36 to $90. A women’s golfwear and swimwear collection are in the pipeline for a future debut, Kraft said.

Nike plans to jumpstart the shopping experience by bringing in company-sponsored athletes Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Lisa Leslie and Lindsay Davenport to serve as sales representatives on opening weekend.

Hawk Skate Shop, a division of Huntington Beach, Calif.-based Quiksilver and inspired by skater Tony Hawk, is debuting its third store nationwide and first one in Los Angeles. It will offer 1,300 square feet of Hawk Clothing as well as Quiksilver Boys, Volcom and other brands. Hard goods will include skateboards, decks, wheels and trucks.

“We expect this center to post the strongest opening to date,” said Gregg Solomon, senior vice president of retail at Quiksilver.

Solomon said there are no plans currently to open more Hawk stores. So far, the year-old New Jersey store is performing well, but the newer Salt Lake City store is having a slower start out of the gate. “We didn’t have a spectacular Olympics so we’ll see how this store goes and take it from there,” said Solomon.