California Apparel News

Jon Tubbs originally planned to open a single boutique in Long Beach, Calif., but when Feb. 11 rolled by, he found himself running a burgeoning boutique empire.

The soft-spoken Tubbs wanted his string of acquisitions to be a steady process, perhaps taken over a period of more than a year.  But when opportunity presented itself, it was too good to pass, he said. He found all of the deals through friends and, typically, over drinks.

Tubbs might open a fourth store, perhaps in Costa Mesa, Calif., in 2013. But he’s taking a breather after the recent debut of Long Beach Trading Co., located on Retro Row, Long Beach’s popular bohemian walking area. Formerly the site of independent boutique Shelter Surf, Long Beach Trading Co. offers women’s and men’s contemporary and casual fashions.

Long Beach Trading Co. is a 20-minute walk away from Tubbs’ original venture, Dixie. The 900-square shop, located in Long Beach’s East Village Arts District, opened in March 2011. Tubbs sells men’s streetwear and fashions for the biker set looking for something more than a Harley Davidson T-shirt.

With a 40-minute drive north from Dixie, a shopper could arrive at Tri Co, a co-op store on the 4600 block of Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles, where Tubbs curates one-third of the store with Dixie merchandise. The place debuted in September and shares space with London jeweler The Great Frog and a store for Dice, a motorcycle magazine.

Running three boutiques, especially during slow economic times, can turn into a major logistical and financial headache. But Tubbs believes that business will triple because of the extra real estate.

Wearing a moustache and a chin beard, the Alabama-born Tubbs does not seem like an entrepreneur in a rush. He’s more likely to make small talk about motorcycles or rock music than retail real estate. He defines his recent acquisitions as opportunities that fell in his lap. “But it came a lot sooner than I thought it would. I wanted to do it by late 2012.”

His boutique venture started in 2011 as he was winding down a career as a sales representative for Vans in the Southeast. He moved to California with the vision of opening a boutique that would sell unique workwear and motorcycle clothes, but he didn’t know where he was going to put it.

Over drinks at the House of Hayden bar in Long Beach’s East Village Arts district, Tubbs mentioned that he wanted to open a boutique in the area. The bartender told him he knew a landlord who wanted a boutique tenant. In weeks Tubbs took possession of a 900-square-foot space at 105 B. Linden Ave. in the Arts District, which is becoming a burgeoning boutique neighborhood.

Women’s contemporary boutique Anneise opened in December, and the place already was well established as a streetwear boutique neighborhood. The boutiques Seams and Proper have been making the street a destination neighborhood for more than seven years.

Tubbs’ plan to run a local workwear and biker hangout for guys was picking up steam when, over drinks at another bar—Hollywood’s Frolic Room—his friends on the staff of Dice asked for help.

Their landlords wanted to turn part of their editorial offices into retail space, and they asked if Tubbs would help them build a co-op.  By September 2011, he was curating a retail space and giving his know-how to these new retailers.  It has been a critical success, with actors Kiefer Sutherland and Robin Williams and rocker Lemmy Kilmister reportedly shopping the place.

Tubbs was planning to absorb the gains of a new store, but a third acquisition was on the horizon. Independent boutique Shelter Surf was going to close after a four-year run. Shelter co-owner Kim St. Pierre, another friend, asked Tubbs to help her out. Even if Tubbs didn’t feel ready, the opportunity was too good. Commercial space rarely opens up in Shelter’s Retro Row neighborhood. If he hadn’t acted, he may have never had another chance to set up a shop on the popular walking area.

Tubbs declined to state how much money he invested in the 2,500-square-foot space, which was renamed Long Beach Trading Co. St. Pierre will take up 1,000 square feet for women’s merchandise, and Tubbs will run 1,500 square feet for men’s merchandise.  Long Beach Trading Co. is a gamble for Tubbs; the store’s product differs from his expertise in biker looks.

“It’s for a mainstream, modern guy,” he said. “It’s an Urban Outfitters without trinkets.”

Tubbs said he finds himself working constantly. He is developing a workwear line that will be named Dixie, and his load was increased when he and girlfriend Kim Treslar became parents to a boy, Waylon, in October.  However, Tubbs said his life is not as busy as his former gig as a sales representative managing a region for a high-profile clothing line. He said that was a job with a lot of proverbial moving parts.

“I was a sales rep with 90 accounts. I have three stores now. It’s much simpler,” Tubbs said.