Friday, January 25
Gramicci Makes New Hires
Gramicci, the outdoor-apparel company known for its tough climbing shorts and shirts, is boosting its sales staff....
Rate Relief
The Federal Reserve unexpectedly cut the federal funds rate by three-quarters of a percentage point to 3.5 percent, the biggest reduction since 1994. The Fed’s drastic rate cut was meant to bolster the...
Uni-Form
Military style is refined with a clean, tailored menswear aesthetic for a look that commands attention. Look for these key styles Feb. 12–15 at the MAGIC Marketplace, Project Global Trade Show, Pooltra...
Imprinted Sportswear Show Takes on a Green Focus
There was a green tint to business at the Jan. 18–21 run of the Imprinted Sportswear Show, held at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, Calif. ...
Whatever Lola Wants
As a stylist and set costumer, it was Lola Elmo’s job to sweat the details of an ensemble. Her new boutique, named Whatever Lola Wants at 834 N. La Brea Ave. in Los Angeles, shines a spotlight on the...
Cohesive: Turning Prep on Its Head
Founder David Appel didn’t have to look far for inspiration for Cohesive, his new contemporary men’s line, which shipped its first collection in November. “I’m a guy who likes fashion,” he...
Centric Names New EVP
Technology executive Ray Hein has joined San Jose, Calif.–based Centric Software as its new executive vice president of market strategy and business development....
Hong Kong Fashion Week Sends Up a Bright Flair
HONG KONG—Bright colors were all the rage on the runways during the 18
Kohl's Partners with Liz
Menomonee Falls, Wis.–based Kohl’s Corp. struck a licensing deal with Liz Claiborne Inc. to be the exclusive retailer of Liz’s Dana Buchman brand for women’s apparel, intimate apparel, accessories and footwear. The new p...
Corel, Wilcom Join Forces for Embroidery System
Two heads are better than one when it comes to designing garments, and that’s the driving force behind DecoStudio, a new embroidery application recently unveiled by Canadian ...
Talking CAD With PAD's Kristine Gloviak
Computerized pattern-making and design (CAD) has played a large part in the speed-to-market game as designers and companies are pressured to roll out collections more quickly. CAD companies have advan...
Michael Kors Gets PLM From MatrixOne
Michael Kors is jumping on the PLM bandwagon. The American design house has contracted Enovia MatrixOne to install its Apparel Accelerator design and development PLM (product lifecycle manag...
Cook in at Nike
Nike’s international general manager for its Jordan brand, Garry Cook, has been promoted to president of the brand, a division of Nike’s global basketball unit. Cook has been with the athleticfootwear and apparel giant...
E-Commerce Gets Collaborative
Collaboration has been the buzz in B2B software applications such as PLM (product lifecycle management) and ERP (enterprise resource planning). Now it’s becoming more important in B2C applications. Two Bay Are...
Nick Graham and Goodwill Partner for William Good
Eight million pounds of donated clothing pass through Goodwill Industries’ Northern California distribution center each year, according to Deborah Alvarez-Rodriguez, president and chief execut...
Retailers Eye Mobile Marketing at National Retail Federation
Retailers will have to invest in technology to tap into trends forged by tech-happy consumers, but getting the money to support those initiatives will be challenging, said retail executives ...
Talbots Taps Kindler
Lizanne Kindler was named senior vice president of merchandising, general merchandise manager for Hingman, Mass.–based The Talbots Brand. A former Ann Taylor executive, Kindler was previously senior vi...
Retail Expert Rosenblum at Tech Conference
Retail consultant Paula Rosenblum of Miami-based Retail Systems Research LLC will deliver a keynote address on PLM technology at the first Apparel Tech Conference West, on A...
Economic Woes Dampen Spirit of Hong Kong Fashion Week
HONG KONG—Up and down the aisles and booths filled with glitzy cocktail dresses, finely knit cashmere sweaters and crayon-colored childrenswear, the feeling inside the Hong Kong Convention and...
Antik Denim and Yanuk Sign New Licenses
Commerce, Calif.–based premium-denim maker Blue Holdings has announced new licensing agreements for its Yanuk and Antik Denim brands. The move is part of the publicly traded company...
Gallery Asha Lands Business Grant from American Express
Los Angeles–based textile importer Julie Ward was one of the recipients of a Micro to Millions award, which provides funds and business assistance to women-owned companies in a variety of fiel...
M...The Movement: An Artisanal Approach to Street Fashion
Designer Michael Herrera mined his heritage and lifestyle to create Mhellip;The Movement and MVMT, two new contemporary men’s lines that reflect his eclectic, street-inspired aestheti...
Wonderbrand: Nick Graham's New Venture
For Nick Graham, being a maker of loungewear and underwear is synonymous with building a lifestyle brand....
St. John CEO Charts Luxury Label's Future Growth
In many ways, not much has changed at St. John since it was founded in 1962 by Marie and Robert Gray....
Pfeifle Parts with J. Crew
New York–based J. Crew Group Inc. announced its president, Jeffrey Pfeifle, will leave the company at the end of January. His responsibilities will be assumed by other J. Crew executives with no plans ...
Lectra to Exhibit at New WSA Shoe Event
Lectra will show its range of software and hardware products at the Feb. 19–21 run of the Materials at WSA show, a new sourcing and components event run in conjunction with t...
Hosted Service Available for Gerber WebPDM
Product-development software has become a hot category for back-office operations. The shift of manufacturing offshore has dispersed operations to all parts of the globe, making it cheaper to manufact...
Zachariah Bryant: Contemporary Take on Luxe Classics
Designer Zachariah Bryant came back to Los Angeles after living in New York and Australia with the urge to create a line of casually luxe classics. The result, his self-named contemporary line debutin...
New Analytics Tool for Retailers
Irvine, Calif.–based software company The Retail Equation (formerly the Return Exchange) has released a dashboard tool that gives retailers instant notification of key performance ind...
Celerant Launches Item-level RFID
New York–based Celerant Technology Corp. has released a point-of-sale–based RFID (radio-frequency identification) system aimed at speeding up sales transactions and improving inventory tracking...
Friday, January 18
Immediates and Items Keep L.A. Market Steady
Coming off a lackluster holiday season, buying was expected to be cautious at the Jan. 10–15 run of the Los Angeles Fashion Market, but retailers and manufacturer representatives were...
Fresh Pressed Ushers in the Return of the Custom T-Shirt, Screenprint-Style
More than 30 years ago, iron-on T-shirt shops seemed to be as prevalent on the retail landscape as McDonald’s or Starbucks are now. Entrepreneur Jonathan B. Sample plans to join the r...
Isaac Mizrahi Exits Target
Designer Isaac Mizrahi ended his five-year licensing agreement with Minneapolis-based Target Corp. The deal, struck in 2003, included apparel, accessories and shoes. Isaac Mizrahi for Target merchandi...
Pacific Sunwear Picks DJM for demo
Anaheim-based Pacific Sunwear Inc. appointed Melville, N.Y.–based DJM Realty to manage the national disposition of the retail-store leases for its demo stores. The retail chain announced early this mon...
California Financial Community Sees Challenges, Opportunities on the Horizon
There’s little question that 2008 will be a challenging year for apparel manufacturers and consumers alike.There were few bright spots in the 2007 holiday sales season, and many manufacturers will likely have signi...
Volcom Lowers 2008 Outlook, Acquires Electric Visual
It’s been a busy week for Costa Mesa, Calif.–based Volcom....
Brooklyn Projects' Streetwear Confidential
Brooklyn Projects is a streetwear aficionado’s skate shop. The walls are covered with skateboard decks. Bicycles designed for motocross hang from the ceiling. In the midst of the bikes and the...
Costume Guild Names Honorees
The Costume Designers Guild announced this year’s honorees and nominees for the group’s 10th annual Costume Designers Guild Awards, set for Feb. 19 at the Beverly Wilshire Hot...
Former Disney Executive Named MAGIC President
Former Disney executive Chris DeMoulin has been named president of Woodland Hills, Calif.–based MAGIC International and vice president of the fashion group for New York–based Advansta...
Bridal Store's California Rollout
In a world crazy about fast fashion, Alfred Angelo makes wedding dresses that take four to six weeks to complete. Brides must not mind the wait. The Philadelphia-based independent bridalwear ...
Denim Report: Blue World
Every pair of jeans has a story to tell. From how they were acquired—fresh on the shelves or vintage store?—to the adventures each owner has taken them on....
REI Goes Green in Texas
Seattle based outdoor apparel and equipment retailer Recreational Equipment Inc. will open its second prototype store in Round Rock, Texas, in fall 2008. The new two-story, 32,700-square-foot store is part of REI’s green-stor...
Anand Jon Seeks Help from Indian Government
Jailed designer Anand Jon, whose full name is Anand Jon Alexander, is reaching out to the government of his native India to help him in his sexual-assault case, in which he is facing 56 counts of vari...
Tsabag, Thaler to Be Honored at Textile Association of Los Angeles' 64th Inauguration
Moshe Tsabag, owner of Los Angeles– based juniors brand Hot Kiss, and Brian Thaler, owner of the Scott-ThalerAssociates executive-search firm, will be honored Jan. 24 at the Textile ...
Turkish Trade Mission Open to California Apparel Buyers
The Turkish Consulate of Los Angeles is seeking buyers from California companies to attend the 11th International Istanbul Fashion Fair, to be held Feb. 5–9. The Turkish fore...
Macy's Expands San Francisco Web Operations
Macy’s e-commerce division is expanding its San Francisco headquarters....
Liz Claiborne Taps Isaac Mizrahi and John Bartlett
New York–based manufacturing giant Liz Claiborne Inc. tapped two well-known designers to head up the women’s and men’s divisions of its Liz Claiborne brand. Isaac Mizrahi will oversee the women’s collection, with his first collections for apparel, accessories ...
Christian Weber to Split With U.S Backers, Moves to Italy
Christian Weber, the founder and creative director of Los Angeles– based designer label CW Christian Weber, has split withhis U.S. backers, Alliance Apparel Inc., a Korean-American co...
Eco Focus: Pure Product
Sworn Virgins is both green and vertical ...
Eco Focus: Fashion for a Cause
Former model and healthy-living entrepreneur Lizanne Falsetto of thinkProducts is putting a fashionable spin on the natural-products industry by bringing together 17 influential companies in a united ...
Denim Report: Natural Wonder
In the eco-trend timeline, 2005 seems like ages ago. But in the premium-denim market, 2005 is very late in the race, which makes Tierra Del Forte both a pioneer in the marketing of organic denim, and ...
Livin' on the Edge
Bold colors, graphic prints and ’80s silhouettes. Action sports and streetwear designers are definitely living on the edge this season. The two categories will merge their rebellious style at the upcoming Acti...
Online Apparel Shopping Strong in 2007
Although overall retail sales this past year were nearly flat, purportedly due to the housing finance debacle and rising energy costs, the view online—especially for apparel—remained rosy....
Eco Focus: Green Is in the Details
You want to become more environmentally friendly in your apparel production. You want to offer your customers an organic, fair-traded product that demonstrates your company’s commitment to bettering the world...
Sunny Styles Combat Sluggish Winter at Surf Expo
ORLANDO, FLA.—Fresh off a sluggish holiday season, buyers converged on Orlando, Fla., for the Jan. 10–13 run of Surf Expo to shop for Summer 2008 and, in some cases,Fall. The Orange Co...
California Ports Approve Second Round of Fees for Shippers
Decaying bridges, inefficient highway ramps and narrow roads are all projects the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach plan to attack with a new $15 per 20-foot container fee approved Jan. 14....
Tuesday, January 15
Intermix Enters the Mix in L.A.
Intermix, Robertson Boulevard, retail store, boutique, Khajak Keledjian, Haro Keledjian
Directives West: Light & Bright
Fashions ranged from frilly to tomboy at the Directives West buying office’s fashion shows Oct. 8 at the California Market Center, but the unifying themes o...
Surf Expo: Basics and Then Some
surf expo, swimwear, skate, streetwear, contemporary, ezekiel, billabong, paul frank, hurley
Fashion Focused at ASR and Agenda
ASR, action sports retailer expo, San Diego, agenda, trade show, fashion, retail, buyers, skate, surf, streetwear, apparel, fashion
Slo-Mo Is the Economic Prediction Through 2008
financial, forecast, apparel, industry, economy
Changes at the Top of VF
There’s an executive shuffle at the Greensboro, N.C.–based VF Corp. The manufacturing giant has promoted President and Chief Operating Officer Eric C. Wiseman to chief executive officer, succeeding Mackey J. Mc...
Factors: Inventory Control Is the Key to a Slow Economy
Local factors, who have their finger on the pulse of the apparel industry, give their outlook for the economy and advice about surviving a slowdown....
MyShape Names Potter to Merchandising Post
Former Directives West partner Sandy Potter has joined Pasadena, Calif.–based e-commerce start-up MyShape (www.myshape.com)...
Fabrics With an Eco Edge
With the current influx of eco-conscious fashion collections, the demand for sustainable and organic fabric is increasing. The recently opened Los Angeles–based textile compa...
Juicy Couture Finds Place on Rodeo
Irreverent California contemporary brand Juicy Couture will open a boutique on Oct. 12 on stately Rodeo Drive, but the casual brand will not turn Rodeo elegance upside down, according to the ...
Friday, January 11
Laundry, C&C Sold
New York– based apparel giant Liz Claiborne Inc. sold two of its West Coast brands, Laundry by Design and C&C California, to Perry Ellis International Inc. for about $37 million in cash. The sale is part of a stra...
L.A. Fashion Community Enlists City Support
Members of the Los Angeles fashion community met with representatives of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s office to enlist the city’s support in raising the visibility of Los Angeles as a world fashion capi...
Street Closures After Hours During Market
Filming of the upcoming DreamWorks movie “Eagle Eye,” starring Billy Bob Thornton, Michael Chiklis and Rosario Dawson, will close several streets around the Los Angeles...
Retail Container Traffic Will Rise Next Year
Retail container traffic at U.S. ports was down slightly during the second half of 2007. But things are expected to pick up by early next year....
New Lines: Cooper Design Space
The following are new lines carried by showrooms at the Cooper Design Space, located at 860 S. Los Angeles St., Los Angeles. The California Apparel News lists new tenants and lines e...
New L.A. Menswear Show to Bow
Ken Haruta, a rep for the
Beyond Basics
With luxe fabrications, innovative shapes and delicate details, the basic tee is anything but when offered by contemporary labels that specialize in spinning jersey into fashion gold. ...
'Desperate Housewives' Designer to License Her Collection
Cherokee Inc., the California king of brand building in the apparel and accessories world, has signed an agreement with designer Cate Adair to explore licensing opportunities for her...
December '07 Sales Weak for Department, Specialty Stores
December sales were weak for many retailers, according to the New York–based International Council of Shopping Centers Inc. December’s retail business increased only 0.9 percent compared with the same ...
Point Of Hue
Prepare for Summer with accessories in vibrant new hues. Violet, turquoise, citron and melon add new life to the season’s essentials.
Lady Liberty Debuts Fashion Restaurant
A fashion building must offer a unique cafeacute;, said Empera Arye, manager of The Lady Liberty Building, one of Los Angeles’ newest showroom buildings. A stylish e...
Community Service
Cooper Design SpaceSuite 1135(213) 624-0824...
Vintage Boutique Opens Pop-Up Store
The Way We Wore is one of Los Angeles’ leading vintage-fashion boutiques. When word spread about the high-end vintage after its 2004 debut, designers for labels such as Zac P...
Sky Lounge to Debut at DMC
Dallas Market Center’s contemporary-apparel section, known as TheD15TRICT, will get a bit cozier during the Jan. 24–27 apparel and accessories market with a new lounge and pat...
De La Hoya Pulls Out of MJW's East L.A. Project
A 22-acre parcel next to Sears, Roebuck & Co.’s East Los Angeles store is back on the market after a joint venture between boxer Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Enterprises LLC and t...
Skunkfunk
California Market CenterSuite C573(831) 277-1911...
Creative Recreation
Gerry BuildingSuite 704(213) 489-3320...
Connected Showroom
The New MartSuite 1201(213) 622-7750...
Tommy Buys Tommy Japan
New York–based The Tommy Hilfiger Group struck a deal to acquire majority control of Tommy Hilfiger Japan Corp. from Itochu Corp. for an undisclosed amount. THJC has been the exclusive licensee of Tommy Hilfig...
New Lines: The New Mart
The following are new lines carried by showrooms at The New Mart, located at 127 E Ninth St., Los Angeles. The California Apparel News lists new tenants and lines each market-week is...
New Lines: California Market Center
The following are new lines carried by showrooms at the California Market Center, located at 110 E. Ninth St., Los Angeles. The California Apparel News lists new tenants and lines ea...
Talbots Shutters Men's, Kids
Hingham, Mass.–based retail chain The Talbots Inc. announced plans to close its Talbots Kids and Talbots Mens concept stores by September 2008. According to the company, both store concepts failed to “d...
PacSun to Close demo
Pacific Sunwear will shutter the remaining 154 stores in its hip-hop–themed division demo....
Cone's New Prez
Thomas E. McKenna was promoted to president of Cone Denim, a division of Greensboro, N.C.–based International Textile Group Inc. McKenna, who has been with Cone since 1981, was previously president of ...
Kellwood's New VP
St. Louis–based Kellwood Co. named George Sokolowski vice president of strategy and chief marketing officer. Sokolowski comes to Kellwood with more than 30 years of experience in the retail and consumer packaged...
West Coast Port Workers Kick-Start Negotiations
The contract for more than 14,000 full-time dockworkers doesn’t expire for nearly five months, but already shippers are nervous that chaos may reign if negotiations go awry....
Organically Grown Returns to California
Put this one in the “What goes around comes around” file....
Kneen Joins Banana
San Francisco–based Gap Inc. named Simon Kneen executive vice president of design and creative director for Gap’s Banana Republic division. Kneen has more than 25 years of experience in the industry, mo...
Local Trim Cos. Band Together to Bolster Business
A group of trim suppliers in Los Angeles has joined forces to let California apparel makers know they’re tired of seeing their business go offshore....
Kill City Launches Women's
Kill City, the 2-year-old punk-inspired line from Los Angelesmanufacturer Original Cult, is letting girls in on the action come Spring 2008. Debuting with a capsule collection of minimalist...
Elwood Relaunches With Grander Focus
After a 1-1/2-year hiatus, Elwood, a Los Angeles–based streetwear brand with skate roots, is relaunching for Spring/Summer 2008...
L.A.'s Melrose Heights: Destination District Aspires to Be More
A wave of high-profile boutiques opened shop in Los Angeles’ Melrose Heights neighborhood in December, and to many, it looked like they made the best real estate choice....
Monday, January 7
Salt Swimwear: Salt of the Sea
For the woman who desires some fashion, luxury and value in her swimwear, Salt Swimwear may be an option...
Balboa Peninsula: Selling at The Wedge
When Donna and Greg Allen took over the 30-year-old Molly Brown’s swimwear shop in Newport Beach, Calif., in 2007, they kept the place’s landmark pink-andgreen neon sign. They also decided to heed the former ow...
Cabana Seven: Relaxing in a Resort
After decades of designing swimwear for several big Southern California companies, Kathleen Sampson decided to take the plunge and start her own swimwear line, Cabana Seven...
Room to Grow
L*Space’s Monica Wise is dreaming beyond the beach ...
Retail by Design: Swimwear Designers Open Shop
North Cahuenga Boulevard in Los Angeles’ Hollywood district is a 30-minute drive from the nearest beach, and until a few years ago, it was a world away from the California dream. But in 2002, Ashley Pa...
Lisa Lozano Swimwear: Back From a Break
For seven years, Los Angeles–based swimwear designer Lisa Lozano had a successful line of teeny-weeny bikinis that sold at small boutiques and high-end department stores....
Lost Girls: Swim for Women
After several strong years of selling juniors apparel, Irvine, Calif.–based surf/skate brand Lost Clothing has launched Lost Girls, women’s swimwear for 2008. “It just made sense to enh...
Quiksilver: Getting Technical
The most avid surfers swear all you need to live the dream is a board and a pair of trunks. Quiksilver, the Huntington Beach, Calif.–based surf giant, believes surfers deserve something better...
Tropi-Ties: Eco Friendly, Funky and Hip
Santa Ynez, Calif.–based Tropi-Ties Swimwear is getting earth-conscious. The suitmaker and catalog dealer is making friends with Mother Earth for its Spring/Summer ’08 collection...
Friday, January 4
Hot Air: Where the Skies Meet the Street
Bee Nguyen’s arms are marked by tattoos of rosaries and pistols, making him an unlikely purveyor of clothes inspired by the well-heeled millionaire’s sport of hot-air ballooning...
Textile/Apparel Search Engine Debuts
A new Web site offering access to a database of apparel, fabric, fiber, chemical and yarn resources has debuted at www.nctext...
L.A. Royalty
BASIC INSTINCT: In contrast to the allover prints and loud graphics that adorn men’s T-shirts, L.A. Royalty’s tees and basic jeans have a pared-down aesthetic “with a slight edg...
Runway Revelry
New Year’s revelers rang in the new year with a Bebe Sport runway show held at an exclusive party in Los Angeles’ Hollywood Hills. For more from the show,...
Jimmy Au Collection: Not Short on Style
Since the 1970s, Jimmy Au has been one of the secrets of a little-known category of red-carpet fashions. For the past year, Au claimed some of the spotlight for himself with the debut of the ...
The Last Hurrah for Chinese Apparel Quotas?
In the U.S. apparel business, all eyes are on Europe....
FIDM to Expand Downtown Campus
Administrators at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising’s downtown Los Angeles campus signed a 10-year lease for $2.3 million as part of a move to expand classroom facilities....
Gold Among the Influential 25
Designer Jared Gold, founder and senior designer of the Black Chandelier label and retail chain, was named among the top 25 “cultural power brokers” in Utah by the Salt Lake T...
Calvin's Licensed Performance
Phillips–Van Heusen Corp. has struck a strategic licensing agreement with G-III Apparel Group Ltd. for a new women’s performance apparel line under the Calvin Klein brand, a wholly owned subsidiary of PVH. The athletic- and performance-wear line is g...
Holiday 2007: E-Commerce and Menswear Sales Up
The 2007 holiday retail season was forecasted to be slow, but more consumers opened their wallets in the days leading up to Christmas, according to retail analysts....
Warnaco Sells Three Key Swim Brands
New York–based apparel giant The Warnaco Group has announced the sale of the Anne Cole, Cole of California and Catalina swim brands to the New Yo...
Nike Outfits the College Team
Beaverton, Ore.–based apparel and footwear giant Nike has struck a deal to outfit this season’s winners of the college football national championship game. This is the ninth consecutive year Nike has ou...
Macy's Shutters 9
Cincinnati-based department-store giant Macy’s Inc. will close nine underperforming stores in Indiana, Louisiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah. All nine stores were acquired by Macy’s when the company...
Organic Goes Home
Boca Raton, Fla.–based organic apparel brand Under the Canopy is launching a new home division called Canopy. The launch will include sheets, blankets, duvets, decorative pillows and towels made from 1...
Stocks Distributed to American Apparel Employees
Christmas comes a tad late for American Apparel Inc. employees this year, but it comes with a bang....
Texas Holdings Co. Acquires Footwear Labels
Richardson, Texas–based holding company Titan Global Holdings Inc. has purchased the majority of assets of Santa Barbara, Calif.–based Global Brand Marketing Inc. (GB...
Calvin Klein Opens First California Store at Beverly Center
Calvin Klein Inc. will be opening a string of stores in the United States in 2008, and Southern California was one of the first stops for the label. A 10,000-square-foot Calvin Klein...
StyleHive Acquires StyleDiary
San Francisco–based StyleHive (
QST Opens Facilities in Eastern Europe, North Africa
QST Industries, the Chicago-based interlining and apparel-component company, is opening two new European facilities in a bid to give its customers producing in Europe greater access to QST pr...
Le Sang des Betes: Bloody Beautiful
Like a mystic seeing heavenly visions, Trang Chau saw the human form in the vaulted ceilings of gothic cathedrals. Using just a compass and pad of paper, she began drawing arcs and circles, and soon t...
