INDUSTRY ISSUES
The Desktop Revolution: How xTool is Democratizing Industrial-Grade Apparel Printing
| May 1, 2026
In the traditional apparel manufacturing landscape, the bridge between a creative concept and a finished garment has long been guarded by high entry barriers, complex industrial workflows, and prohibitive costs. However, a seismic shift is occurring. xTool, which has rapidly ascended to become the world’s second-largest DTF (Direct-to-Film) brand by GMV, is dismantling these barriers.
Carlos Alberini Named New CEO at Lucky Brand Jeans
Just days after Fifth & Pacific Companies announced it was selling Lucky Brand Jeans to a Los Angeles private-investment firm, Carlos Alberini has been tapped to be the new chief executive.
LA’s Alameda Square Adds E-commerce Site GoJane
Alameda Square—the business complex in downtown Los Angeles that houses American Apparel, Splendid and Ella Moss, Groceries Apparel, and HauteLook’s photo studio—has added another fashion tenant: Los Angeles–based e-tailer GoJane.
Economic Indicators for 2013 Show Signs of Recovery and Continued Struggle
The editors of California Apparel News look at the top indicators for the past year to distill the industry’s recovery by the numbers.
2013 RETROSPECTIVE Employment: Apparel and Textile Jobs Decline in 2013
California may be the apparel manufacturing center of the country, but the region continued to shed apparel manufacturing and textile jobs in 2013.
Not Your Daughter’s Jeans Fetches Top Price
Los Angeles blue-jeans company Not Your Daughter’s Jeans has been sold to a group of New York investors in a multi-million-dollar deal that closes in early January.
AAFA's Kevin Burke Stepping Down as President and CEO
The American Apparel & Footwear Association, the giant trade group in Arlington, Va., that represents apparel and footwear companies as well as retailers, announced on Monday that its president and chief executive, Kevin Burke, will be resigning on Jan. 21 to take a new job.
Carlos Alberini Named New CEO at Lucky Brand Jeans
Just days after Fifth & Pacific Companies announced it was selling Lucky Brand Jeans to a Los Angeles private-investment firm, Carlos Alberini has been tapped to be the new chief executive.
True Religion’s New Owners Lay Off Scores of Employees
Seven months after being bought by a private-equity firm, True Religion has laid off at least 70 people—many of them department heads and production people.
Early-Morning Fire in the LA Fashion District
Some 135 firefighters from the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to an early-morning blaze Friday that started in the second floor of a small commercial building across from the California Market Center in the downtown Los Angeles fashion district.
Serge Azria Names CFO and COO at Dutch LLC
Los Angeles–based Dutch LLC named Jennifer Adams chief financial officer and Michael Saunders chief operating officer of the company, owner of the Joie, Equipment and Current/Elliott brands.
2013 Newsmaker: Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti
In October, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti was on hand at the California Market Center to address the Los Angeles apparel industry on the opening day of Los Angeles Fashion Market, much like his predecessor, Antonio Villaraigosa, who also helped kick off market weeks.
2013 Newsmaker: Ilse Metchek, President, CFA
There are thousands of apparel-related companies in California but not many nonprofit groups that serve as a go-to source informing the industry about new state laws and regulations, tariff and trade problems, and other fashion-centric issues.
2013 Newsmaker: Frances Harder, President, FBI
Former designer Frances Harder created Fashion Business Inc. in 1999 as a Los Angeles nonprofit group to help emerging fashion companies get off the ground. Currently, there are about 250 full-time FBI members, and 90 percent of the organization’s clients are minorities or women.
2013 Newsmaker: European Union Denim Tariff
At a time when the Obama administration has been trying to boost U.S. exports overseas, Europe this spring put a crimp in the president’s initiative.
2013 Newsmaker: The Battle for Billabong
The “annus horribilis” of surf giant Billabong International Ltd. might be coming to an end. For more than a year, the Australian-headquartered company was embroiled in bitter proxy fights and hobbled by plummeting stock value on the Australian Securities Exchange, all while running an international business without a permanent chief executive officer.
