Kitson to Mayor: Let’s Talk
Retail
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s website encourages people to share their ideas to create jobs and deliver better city services for the City of Angels, but Fraser Ross, founder of the Los Angeles–based boutique chain Kitson, said he has been unable to speak with the mayor about L.A. retail.
IBM Survey Says Online Shopping Activity Lags Behind Enthusiasm for the Channel
Technology | Retail
In a survey released during the National Retail Federation’s Big Show and annual conference in New York, the IBM Institute for Business Value found that consumers’ growing enthusiasm for online shopping and “digital interaction with retailers” is not matched by their actual behavior.
Sunny Skies & Busy Booths for East Coast Surf Trade Show
Surf Expo
While much of the Eastern Seaboard suffered under a cold snap Jan. 8–10, weather in Orlando, Fla. was a good backdrop to Surf Expo, the veteran trade show for surfing and other water sports.
I Love Ugly’s La Brea Bow
The black walls and tinted windows of the store on Los Angeles' La Brea Avenue look foreboding. The shop’s name only brings up more vexing questions. I Love Ugly
Ships Stack Up as Port Terminals Try to Clear Back-Logged Containers
Import & Export
As of Jan. 15, there were 13 cargo-container ships anchored beyond the breakwater that protects the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles.
B. Riley Expands Steve Reiner's Role
Finance
Los Angeles–based financial-services company B. Riley Financial Inc. named Steven H. Reiner to the newly created position of chief business development officer, asset dispositions, for the company’s Great American Group LLC subsidiary.
Holiday Sales Increase 4 Percent With Mixed Results
Retail
Sales for the winter holiday season increased 4 percent to $616.1 billion, according to the National Retail Federation, slightly missing forecasts.
Full Steam Ahead for 2015 as Economy Accelerates and Gas Prices Drop
Finance
Just about everyone agrees that 2015 is shaping up to be a good year for the U.S. economy.
Winky & Dutch: Novelty Metal Jewelry Made in the USA
Manufacturing
After nearly 30 years making novelty jewelry in America, New York–based Winky & Dutch is restructuring the company, streamlining its pop culture–inspired collection and updating its back-end operations.
Je Suis Charlie: After The Hashtag
Anguish and outrage over the assassinations of the editorial staff at Charlie Hebdo on Jan. 7 has become the cri de coeur for those who love freedom of expression.The hashtag Je Suis Charlie proclaiming solidarity with the assassinated journalists has covered Twitter and Facebook, and the statement has taken root beyond the online world, including T-shirts. Kitson's Fraser Ross talks about making a T that expresses solidarity with freedom of speech, but also avoids appearing that it is capitalizing on tragedy.
H&M Teams Up With Coachella Festival for Collection
Fashion
H&M joins forces with the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival to create an H&M Loves Coachella collection.
Nasty Gal Has New CEO
Executive Moves
Nasty Gal founder Sophia Amoruso named Sheree Waterston the new chief executive officer of the Los Angeles–headquartered retailer.
Donald Drawbertson, King of the Fashion Doodle, to Cooper
Donald Robertson has an alter-ego; Donald Drawbertson, a pop artist who makes whimsical, chic doodles, and brings them to the fashion masses.Drawbertson continues to make pop art, and a Cadillac bearing his art, and lipstick, will drive by Cooper Design Space building in L.A.’s Fashion District noon, Monday, Jan. 12.
Stars in Our Past
Costume Design
The pilot episode of Fox drama “Empire” got rave reviews and fantastic ratings when it debuted on Jan. 7, thanks in part to Taraji P. Henson’s performance
Fusing Sport and Street to Encompass an Active Lifestyle Brand
Garbe Luxe
Garbe Luxe is a contemporary activewear lifestyle brand headquartered, sourced and manufactured adjacent to downtown Los Angeles.
2015 Starts With Busy Trade Show
Agenda
A cold winter helped produce a hot show at Agenda, the first trade show of the 2015 trade-show season, which ran Jan. 5–6 at the Long Beach Convention Center in Long Beach, Calif.
December Seen as Modest
retail
December retail sales results were described by analysts as good but modest.
Showroom Profile: Necessitees
Showroom Profiles
When her CMC lease expired last year, Hallie Shano decided to move across the street to the seventh floor of The New Mart, opening a 1,200-square-foot space that is even brighter than her old space—if that is possible.
Showroom Profile: Frnch Label
Showroom Profiles
The B-wing of the California Market Center’s fifth floor just got a little more French with the opening of a new brand, Frnch Label, a young contemporary line designed in France and Los Angeles and produced in Asia.
