EURO VIBE: Smadar Elkayam holds a top from the La Stampa line.
SHOWROOM PROFILE
Showroom Profile: Tivoli Paris Collections
Gerry Building, Suite 804
(858) 452-7777
For her very first independent showroom, Smadar Elkayam chose to be in the Gerry Building, where other showrooms carrying European lines are located.
Elkayam is the U.S. distributor for two contemporary French lines—Deca and MC Planet—as well as one Greek line, called La Stampa.
The three womenswear lines are similar because they cater to the 30- to 60-year-old client who wants good fabric that travels well and sleek style that is sophisticated enough to wear to work during the day and elegant enough to carry over into the evening. They are all manufactured in Europe.
“A lot of my customers already come to this building to shop during market,” said Elkayam inside her 1,200-square-foot showroom, which was occupied by Renee Cohen until she retired. “We want to make this building known as a building that sells European lines.”
Elkayam, originally from Israel, has been the U.S. distributor of Deca since 2009. Until recently, the line was represented by Lesley McEntire at the Showroom Shift at The New Mart. But when Elkayam last summer became the U.S. distributor for MC Planet and La Stampa, she decided it would be nice for her buyers to have one place to visit all her lines and where she could spend more time advising clients about the various aspects of the collections.
Elkayam is not only in sales but likes to give her input on the collections before they are produced. She feels every line should have a tunic of some sort that zips up the front and is easy and versatile to wear.
Twice a year, she travels to Paris to see the collections and has visited La Stampa’s headquarters outside Athens, where much of the production is done.
Wholesale price points for Deca range from $50 to $225. La Stampa’s wholesale prices go from $39 to $164 while MC Planet has an average wholesale price of $150.
