Jerry Chen

Jerry Chen

SHOWROOM PROFILE

Zero Degrees Celsius

Zero Degrees Celsius

Gerry Building, Suite 707
(213) 265-7773

An abundance of light streams in through the south-facing windows of the new showroom for the Zero Degrees Celsius line.

It was the large windows that convinced designer Jerry Chen that this was the spot to showcase his contemporary women’s line, Zero Degrees Celsius. “My customers are contemporary women of all ages who want to dress trendy but not too crazy,” he said, standing in the middle of the new showroom, which was decorated like a cozy living room where people can drop by, have a coffee and talk fashion.

Chen is new to Los Angeles. Until recently, his showroom for his nearly 2-year-old line was located at 39th Street and Seventh Avenue in Manhattan. But the graduate of Parsons The New School of Design decided that after many years on the East Coast, he wanted a less hectic environment to raise his 4-year-old twins.

So he is putting down roots in Los Angeles, starting with a new showroom for his label, which has been selling at Nordstrom as well as Saks Fifth Avenue’s website and about 100 boutiques across the country. Eventually, he wants to open his own Zero Degrees Celsius store in Los Angeles and have a few seamstresses working there to do custom design.

Chen, who grew up in Taiwan, does a good deal of his manufacturing in China, especially for his sweaters and more intricate laser-cut tops. Some of his woven tops are cut and sewn in Los Angeles.

His designs are very delicate and feminine with wholesale prices ranging from $65 to $100 for Spring merchandise and a little higher for Winter.

When Chen finishes setting up his showroom, he wants to establish a design studio in one corner of the space, near those big windows that let in so much light. When he isn’t designing for his own label, he does private-label designing for Bebe, The Wet Seal and the Home Shopping Network. He also designs for the labels Shu Shu, Yu Li and Lu Lu, which have a showroom across the hall from him at the Gerry Building.

Also sharing his showroom is Gilbert Chen (no relation), whose contemporary menswear line is called Barque.