Champions Go Shopping
Inglewood, Calif.’s nickname is “The City of Champions.” Soon this South Los Angeles County town may earn another moniker: “The City of Boutiques.”
Several specialty apparel retailers opened for business in Inglewood in mid-2004, and their presence is something new for this city of 112,580. Residents’ shopping choices had been confined to shopping malls such as the nearby Fox Hills Mall in Culver City. Or Inglewooders had trekked north of Interstate 10 to Melrose Avenue or West Los Angeles.
Inglewood’s new boutique owners, in an effort to give residents fashion alternatives south of I-10, have set down stakes on the corner of La Brea and Centinela avenues, the neighborhood where Ike and Tina Turner recorded some of their 1960s hits. Local businesses hope the boutiques, and a few recently opened restaurants, will jolt this quiet area into a lively pedestrian shopping district.
“People would come to this street to have their hair done and leave,” said Lawrence La Drew, owner of A Cultural Affair Coffee House & Things, a La Brea Avenue coffee house and gift shop. “Nothing was going on. Now people are starting to walk around and bring their families.”
The retailers also hope to import some of the action. La Brea is a popular side street for Los Angeles– bound travelers avoiding congested Interstate 405.
“Anyone who lives in the South Bay will pass through this spot,” said Kerry Newsome, owner of NewStyleWeb.com, an elegant accessories store in Inglewood. “We get people from Culver City, Loyola Marymount University and Redondo Beach.”
Low commercial real estate prices—which range from $1 to $2.50 per square foot, according to Newsome—also helped these retailers start their ventures.
Bridget Willis is one of these novices. The former events planner transformed a nondescript office into her first boutique, B.Chic, in April. She painted the front room red, hung a mirrored disco ball in back, and dedicated her 900- square-foot space to up-and-coming designers.
Price points range from $18 to $200 at this high-end contemporary casual womenswear boutique. Popular items include rhinestonelaced T-shirts with silk-screens of classic movies, such as “Foxy Brown” and “Stormy Weather.” The shirts are manufactured by Los Angeles designer Eclectic Tees and retail for $45.
Los Angeles–based Miguel Torres’ layered chiffon skirts in bright shades of blue and pink retail for $60. As for unique items, Willis sells “skants,” designed by Michelle Garcia of Los Angeles. The skirt/pant hybrids, which retail for $98, have leg warmer–like leggings or pants that end in flamenco flares. Eveningwear by Parisbased Maje retails for $169.
Willis also specializes in jeans made in Brazil from manufacturers such as Gang Rio ($65 to $95) and McKay ($45 to $68). She said her customers like the denim because it is not as stiff as the fabric found in North American jeans.
Willis’ shop is next door to New- StyleWeb.com. Newsome opened the bricksand- mortar store in mid-2004 after starting an online business in 2002. His splash into specialty retailing followed a 17-year career managing women’s shoe departments at stores such as Bloomingdale’s in Beverly Hills and Robinsons-May in Santa Monica, Calif.
Newsome sticks to his strengths at the 800-square-foot store. Fashionable shoes from Los Angeles–based designers, such as Michael Antonio and Chinese Laundry, range from $12 to $35. Purses from Satilde;o Paulo, Brazil–based Arrivare and the designer’s Los Angeles–based private label, Marie Elle, range from $29 to $89.
Newsome also experiments by selling women’s apparel from Canton and Zealot, both based in Los Angles. Some of his top sellers are Pucci-inspired dresses by Los Angeles– based In Style that sell for $24.95.
Across the street is the well-named A Big Fan, one of the few independent stores retailing licensed WNBA products and clothes for the female basketball player. Owner Jane Landwair said she started the store on the grounds of her sign-making business after being unable to find a wide variety of WNBA products at concession stands during games.
Landwair sells WNBA jerseys for $39.95, T-shirts from Irving, Texas–based Sista Hoops for $15, and hoodies from Los Angeles– based Love And Basketball for $25. She said ribbed tank tops are selling well.
Colors of this season are red, light blue and pink. “It used to be you couldn’t get a girl basketball player in pink. They were bad to the bone,” Landwair mused.
