CMC Sees Stock in Cal Mart Name

The new managers of the California Mart—now known as the California Market Center (CMC)—don’t intend to do away with the Cal Mart name for now, despite an ongoing influx of gift and home accessory vendors and obvious re-branding taking place at the 3-million-square-foot complex.

During a meeting with tenants this week, Bill Winsor, president of Market Center Management Co., told apparel industry representatives that “there’s a lot of currency attached to the California Mart name and we don’t want it thrown out.”

In the meantime, most of the signage around the three-building complex has been changed to reflect the new direction the center is taking. CMC logos now adorn entrances as well as the prominent bridge to the center on Olympic Boulevard. While the physical changes are continuing, CMC managers will be weighing how much stock the Cal Mart name carries to determine how and if it will be used going forward.

“The plan is to do some type of branding study or research to determine the best way to use the Cal Mart name,” said Winsor.

While the new management team is heavily linked to the gift and home accessory business as it is affiliated with the gift show producer George Little Management and the United Kingdom-based Daily Mail Group, Winsor said the CMC won’t ignore apparel tenants despite the group’s intention to exercise an option for close to half of the entire complex.

“Apparel’s not going anywhere—it’s been here since Persia [was an empire],” he said.

Management stressed the cross-marketing opportunities at the CMC between apparel and gift/home, and Winsor said his team is exploring new ventures for both sides of the complex.

“We’re working with several producers to bring things like personal care events to the center for the gift and home side, not just the four markets each year,” said Winsor. “We’re looking at doing the same for apparel.”

CMC managers are also looking at controlling access to the complex’s gift floors, and Winsor said that his team will be surveying apparel tenants to see whether the same can be done for the entire complex and, if it can’t be, how to implement controlled access to the center for just the gift and home sector.

“We want to hear what you have to say about it before we figure out if and how we implement controlled access on the apparel side,” said Cindy Morris, executive vice president of marketing.

Winsor also clarified that the CMC will be looking at how to use the existing management team’s personnel, and he set aside any notions of mass firings.

As for apparel industry tenants, Winsor said most of the CMC’s “restacking” plan will be complete in 18 months and will result in most apparel vendors being grouped by category throughout the complex.

He also said floor common areas that need upgrades will be renovated after the re-merchandising is complete.

The next step in the center’s plan is to open another three gift floors by July, with the ultimate goal of housing more than 150 gift and home companies in the building within the next 18 months. —Robert McAllister