New Boutiques Signal Fashion Future in Los Feliz

In the past, Los Feliz Village may have been best known for its famous nightclubs such as The Derby.

The future of the Los Angeles neighborhood, however, may be in fashion.

Just east of Hollywood, Los Feliz is the site of Griffith Park and its famous observatory, as well as many multimillion-dollar homes in the Los Feliz Hills section.

Several fashion boutiques with a design pedigree have opened in recent months on Hillhurst Avenue, one of Los Feliz’s main streets. And one shop is set to open there this month.

In December, fashion design house Goretti On Hillhurst opened a 900-square-foot boutique at 1937 1/2 Hillhurst. On May 20, Keep, a footwear and fashion company, opened a 700-square-foot boutique at 1757 Hillhurst. And on June 4, up-and-coming design team Bon & Ging will open a 200-square-foot boutique at their studios at 1755 Hillhurst. The new businesses join established Hillhurst fashion stores Eccentric Art Gallery & Boutique, My Closet, Notsouh Bleu, The Little Boutique and White Trash Charms.

The burgeoning fashion scene on Hillhurst has good pedestrian traffic and a neighborhood interest in the arts, according to Monica Behan, designer for Goretti On Hillhurst. “People are more willing to take a risk here,” she said, referring to the neighborhood’s middle- and upper-class residents. “They’re more willing to take a risk with fashion and culture.”

Hillhurst also receives more fashion interest because retail vacancies are low on Vermont Avenue, an adjacent fashion street, said Keep co-founder Una Kim.

Commercial leasing rates on Hillhurst range from $3.25 to $3.50 per square foot, said Kim, who earned an MBA at Stanford University before venturing into retail.

Such rates are average for a Los Angeles retail street with a growing cachet, said Robb Bader, a sales associate for Beverly Hills–based Sachse Real Estate. Rates in more established retail neighborhoods in Los Angeles such as Melrose Avenue/Crescent Heights Boulevard range from $6 to $7 per square foot, he said.

Hillhurst forged its unique character with a mix of Eastside irreverence and grit, captured in the 1996 film “Swingers,” which was filmed at some familiar Los Feliz haunts. The neighborhood also bustles with daytime traffic from upscale restaurants such as Alcove, Home and Tropicalia Brazilian Grill.

The mix of grit and high living should work well for Keep. The company manufactures limited edition canvas shoes in Brazil’s Bahia state. The shoes are accented with swatches of men’s shirting and graphics of grass and animals from new artists such as Uuml;lrika Louml;fgren. Price points are $89 for the shoes, $68 for sweaters and $40 for T-shirts.

The street’s well-heeled section is also a good fit for Goretti. Its custom-made cocktail and red carpet clothes range from $150 to $2,500. Yet the boutique made space for a bit of Eastside whimsy. It includes a tiny stage, where designer Behan and store guests occasionally perform rock and jazz songs. —Andrew Asch