TRADE SHOWS
Domestic and International Mix at Sourcing at MAGIC
LAS VEGAS—Visitors to Sourcing at MAGIC at the Las Vegas Convention Center had access to a huge selection of overseas manufacturers and business resources, as well as a small coterie of domestic resources, including made-in-LA design development and contracting houses Trend Chasers and The Look Vision.
This was the first time at Sourcing at MAGIC for Akay Shiraze, chief executive officer of Beverly Hills–based The Look Vision, a company that helps develop designs from concept to finished production.
"Every company starts at zero,” Shiraze said. “They all have vision. They all have a concept, but they don’t know how to create the look.”
Among the services The Look provides are design development, presentation boards, lookbooks, imprinted T-shirts, cut-and-sew production, printing, dyeing and photography.
Shiraze said he keeps inventory of T-shirt and fabrics. He’s got an ownership stake in Sweet Apparel, the cut-and-sew operation, and Screen Culture, an L.A. printer that can handle printing, embroidery and embellishments such as nailheads.
He works closely with dyehouse Blue Creations, and for companies looking for larger production runs, there’s Sunlink, which handles big-volume, overseas production through Canadian company Amarella.
“Next time I’ll take a full booth [at Sourcing at MAGIC]” Shiraz said. “I don’t want to sell a collection. I want to sell service—it’s a service-driven company.”
Shiraz said large retailers were among the visitors to the booth. “Target, Saks—they all want to do made in USA," he said, adding, “You have to be able to execute it.”
Another newcomer to the show was White Star, a small-run manufacturing company in the Austin area. Founded last year, the company produces small runs and prototyping with a staff of 20 and can help source fabrics through a separate company, called TexStyles.
“People are very excited about U.S. manufacturing,” said Operations Director and designer Esther Bowen.
Returning to the show was American Apparel, which was highlighting its private-label capabilities.
“Everything you see in the booth, we make in the U.S.,” said Tabitha Vogelsong-Vargas. “We’re getting really good feedback for made in America. There’s a demand for it. It’s the new organic."
