California Apparel News

NEW YORK—The crowds turned out early for Capsule’s two-day run at a lofty space in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood. Retailers who turned out for opening day included Mark Wertz, owner of American Rag, and Ron Herman.

The Jan. 17–18 show featured three floors of exhibitors—showcasing contemporary men’s apparel, as well as footwear and accessories—connected by a steep staircase that ran from the lobby registration up to a fifth-floor cafeacute;.

“At 10:05 this morning, they’re standing at the booth. I’m thinking they had to have run up those stairs,” said Jonathan Paskoshy;witz, president of Lightning Bolt USA, based in Los Angeles’ Venice neighborhood. Despite the below-freezing temperature outside, Paskowitz was in full Lightning Bolt regalia—corduroy boardshorts, T-shirt with the brand’s lightning-bolt insignia and flip-flops.

Paskowitz said he’d just met with buyers from a store in Berlin who were interested in Lightning Bolt’s legacy as a heritage West Coast surf brand.

“They want the classic, California-made vintage surf look to mix with European outerwear,” he said. “I love hearing that. It’s a perfect combination for us.”

Lightning Bolt was originally founded in 1972. Paskowitz relaunched the brand in 2009.

Paskowitz is reviving many of the original designs, fabrics and detailing in the new collection, such as corduroy and cotton twill boardshorts and a woven cotton shirt inspired by a surf buddy’s army/navy-surplus style.

To duplicate the original styles, the company has sometimes had to get creative.

“We’re going to the local denim sewers and teaching them how to make boardshorts with double and triple stitching,” Paskowitz said.

The company expects that level of detail to appeal to a certain discerning customer who isn’t looking for mainstream, “cookie-cutter” clothing, Paskowitz said.

“We need the guy who wants to search for [the product],” he said. “So he becomes the guy who starts the trend—and lo and behold, it’s a trend from 40 years ago.”

New York–based Perfecto by Schott also got an early start on opening day of Capsule, according to Jason Schott, chief operating officer of parent company Schott NYC. “At 10, we had three customers in the booth, and it has been like that ever since,” Schott said on the opening day of the show. The company, which was showing its core Schott collection at Project’s New York edition, was showing its small upscale Perfecto collection at Capsule.

Designer Brandon Scott said he was seeing a mix of retailers including stores from both East and West coasts, as well as buyers from Canadian stores. “We set appointments, but they’re loose,” he said. “We know who’s coming.”

Scott’s B. Scott label is based in Los Angeles but is produced in China. The collection sells to retailers such as Oak, American Rag, RevolveClothing and Fred Segal Man.

This season, the company added more leather pieces, including several convertible pieces such as a leather bomber jacket with a zip-out lining that can be worn as a hoodie. “It’s like two jackets in one,” Scott said. The company also added a leather jacket with a full hood stashed in the collar, as well as sterling-silver and 14-karat-gold-plated jewelry, which is made in Los Angeles.

Rick Klotz, founder of Los Angeles–based Freshjive, was showing a new collection of T-shirts featuring photography and art, which is all done in-house. The company is also working on a magazine, set to bow this fall, which will feature the T-shirt images and information about the artwork.

In recent seasons, Freshjive has been repositioning the brand for a more-contemporary customer base. More than a year ago, Klotz opted to take the company name off the label.

“It’s hard to change the look of a brand,” he said, adding that removing the label separated the line from its streetwear roots. The move opened up a wider distribution channel for the company, Klotz said. But Freshjive’s core sensibility remains intact.

“We still have our edge; it’s still political,” he said.—Alison A. Nieder