Shopify’s Frenzy App Powers Sale at Capsule and Liberty Fairs in NY
Technology
Trade shows and runway shows have been looking to produce extra revenue streams for their vendors.
Agenda Juggles Trade and Consumer Days
Trade Shows
After 14 years of being a trade-only show, Agenda unveiled a consumer day at the recent run of its Long Beach, Calif., event.
1 Man’s Ring Around the Collar, 1 Woman’s Art
Fashion designers argue that clothing is art. Lun*na Menoh gives the argument surreal support with her show A Ring Around the Collar, currently at Art Exchange Gallery near downtown Long Beach.
Waraire Boswell's Refined from the Raw Challenge
Waraire Boswell has been cutting up Los Angeles’ custom clothing scene for some time. The NBA-sized clothier made a splash at the ESPY awards show July 12 when D’Angelo Russel l of the Brooklyn Nets came to the ESPYS in Los Angeles wearing a suit Boswell made as part of a challenge.
HollyRod’s DesignCare Gala
The non-profit HollyRod foundation is devoted to giving care to those living with autism and Parkinson’s Disease. On July 15, the foundation spread the word on its mission in a stylish way.
Vuori’s Performance Clothes Are made with Versatility and Comfort
Vuori
Football, lacrosse, yoga. Joe Kudla was game for almost any sport and fitness regimen.
Edgemine Goes Premium with Evidnt Los Angeles
Edgemine
After more than 20 years in fashion, the Edgemine company launched its first denim line intended for a women’s premium-denim market.
Back-to-School Spending Forecast to Increase
Retail
Retailers might give the 2017 Back-to-School season an “A.”
Arts District; L.A.’s Next Big Retail Area?
Arts District
Every major city has an “anti-downtown,” said Sam Brownell, principal and partner of property developers Blatteis & Schnur Inc.
Witchsy’s 1st!
Since pen touched paper and paint touched canvas, artists have groused about censorship. Artistic online community/ e-boutique Witchsy aims to take the muzzle off of artists, all while selling T-shirts, hats, fashions, jewelry, pins, prints and you-name-it. They celebrated it with a first year party shindig.
Vans Unveils New HQ
Vans Moves In
Footwear and apparel titan Vans recently unveiled a new headquarters in Costa Mesa, Calif.
Late-Night Crowd Closes Louis Vuitton Pop-up in DTLA
Retail
A pop-up shop for a highly anticipated Louis Vuitton X Supreme capsule collection has shuttered after Los Angeles Police dispersed a large crowd in front of the pop-up shop at 4:30 a.m. on July 7.
Swimming in a New Direction
Tori Praver
Tori Praver modeled for the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition in far-flung locales such as the Canary Islands off of Spain, her home island of Maui, and Turks and Caicos in the Caribbean. This year she is going to be modeling for her own brand.
Old Bull Lee: After Walk Shorts, Try Surf
Swim/Surf
Rent a Manhattan Beach address, and it might only be a matter of time before you are in the surf business.
Raj & Sports Illustrated Team for Swim Brand
Manufacturing
For more than 50 years, the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue has been making headlines with its pictorials of supermodels posing in fashion’s most stylish swimwear in exotic locales.
June Sales Sunny for Some Retailers
Retail
Some retailers saw June gloom. Some experienced a positively sunny June.
Action Sports Vet Smith Joins Boardriders
Manufacturing
Nate Smith was named president of the Americas region for Boardriders Inc., the Huntington Beach, Calif., parent company of Quiksilver, Roxy and DC Shoes.
Vuori Pops at Malibu Country Mart
The Vuori brand makes performance apparel for yoga, CrossFit and other activities. It recently opened a pop-up at Malibu Country Mart.
Latitude 10 Finds ‘In Between’ Niche
Latitude 10
There is a time in a woman’s life where she wants to wear juniors styles and trends but she is looking for silhouettes and clothes that an adult woman would wear, said Leslie Gardner, a career designer.
Aussie Brand Gorman Opens in West Hollywood
Retail
After 18 years selling contemporary women’s fashion in Australia and New Zealand, the Gorman brand opened its first U.S. store in West Hollywood, Calif., recently.
Cross Colours X MeUndies
Pioneering brand Cross Colours is going way beyond basics. On July 6, it will launch an underwear line with MeUndies.
Streetwear: The Movie
Bobby Hundreds leads a tour through the rise, fall and subsequent rise of streetwear in new documentary Built To Fail
Louis Vuitton X Supreme Skates in DTLA
Around the turn of the century, skate/streetwear brand Supreme made a skateboard deck design that mixed its logo with the gilded tag of Louis Vuitton. A cease and desist order later, the collaboration became part of fashion legend. Until now.
LTH JKT Takes a Bow
Meet LTH JKT, a Venice, Calif. headquartered brand which says that it found a way to offer leather jackets one-third off of typical retail prices.
ThirdLove Seeks Best Bra Fit with FitFinder 2.0
Manufacturing
Tech-enabled bra company ThirdLove recently introduced its Fit Finder 2.0 program, a new version of the San Francisco’s company proprietary sizing program.
The Hundreds.com’s Tech Revamp With Shopify Plus
Technology
Bobby Kim built a community with blogs featuring a running commentary on the state of streetwear, hip-hop, rock, politics, travel, food and whatever else grabbed his attention.
Handcrafted LA to Open at The Bloc
Retail
After a career of producing outdoor markets and festivals, the husband-and-wife team of Phillip and Shelly Dane will be opening their first permanent boutique in downtown Los Angeles.
TenOverSix to Move to Miami
Retail
After a nine-year run in Southern California, the TenOverSix boutique will be closing its multi-brand, independent Melrose Avenue store and reopening in Miami, said Kristen Lee, the boutique’s co-owner and creative director.
B.James Tells L.A. Story With Emerging Label
B.James
In Brandon James’ tough South Los Angeles neighborhood in the 1990s, the people who dressed well and had money were known as hustlers according to James, now a designer.
Puma X Minions…at Bait
Yes, Despicable Me 3 is on its way to being a blockbuster movie. But did you know that it’s a clothing line too?
Charney’s Los Angeles Apparel Factory Staffs Up, Looks for Growth
Manufacturing
With little fanfare, Dov Charney, perhaps the basics industry’s most flamboyant entrepreneur, unveiled his latest project.
Alternative Founder Returns with M/f people Brand
Manufacturing
Greg Alterman founded blank-T-shirt company Alternative Apparel in 1996, and he had grown it into a $74 million enterprise when he left it in early 2013. His latest venture brings him back to the apparel industry. His new lifestyle brand, M/f people, is scheduled to take a bow June 23.
Maggie Barry, Kunst NYC and Band of Gypsies Take The Runway
Brigade LA
Downtown Los Angeles’ Brigade LA boutique turned itself into a runway on June 18 with a fashion show that served as a platform for an emerging brand with a performance-art angle, a new line meant for the international music-festival circuit and a contemporary brand with looks inspired by the 1960s.
Talking Costumes With Mindy Kaling at Beverly Center
For a celebration to mark the completion of Phase One of an extensive remodel, Beverly Center hosted a talk on costuming with actress/producer/creative hyphenate Mindy Kaling and costumer Salvador Perez.
After Standing Rock Protest, B. Yellowtail Brings Style With Indigenous Angle to L.A.
Shailene Woodley is a fan of B. Yellowtail, a Los Angeles-headquartered label inspired by Native American art, that has made clothes at the Standing Rock protest, and in an area the label calls Occupied Tongva Territory.
Fashion Robot Company Gets $4.5 Million Investment
Technology
SoftWear Automation Inc. is an Atlanta-based company that forecasts a future where apparel is going to be sewn by machines or “sewbots,” robots that sew.
Shopify’s Frenzy Makes 1st L.A. Drop Zone
There have been plenty of forecasts on the merger between physical and online retail, Toronto’s Shopify may have found a merger between the sometimes exclusive realms with its Frenzy mobile app.
Made LA Festival Takes the Runway With Opening Ceremony, Snoop Dogg
Made LA
The runways featured brands such as Opening Ceremony, the soundtrack was mostly hip-hop, and the backdrop was a market of trade show–like booths selling everything from T-shirts to expensive footwear.
Sears to Cut 400 Jobs
Retail
Sears Holding Corp. announced this week that it would eliminate 400 jobs in its corporate headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Ill., located in the suburbs of Chicago.
Made LA, Others Try New Fashion Show Format
Retail
The Made LA festival mixed runway shows, music performances and fashion vendors selling everything from boots to T-shirts when the event held its sophomore run over the weekend of June 10.
Boutiques Try Co-Retailing
Retail
Independent boutiques in popular retail neighborhoods are embracing a new revenue model, said Syama Meagher, chief executive officer of the consultancy Scaling Retail.
Faherty’s 1st Malibu Anniversary
Faherty surfed into Malibu about a year ago. No wipe out dude! The Malibu Faherty boutique celebrated its first anniversary.
New Hotel & Retail in Once Tough DTLA Neighborhood
The Freehand Los Angeles hotel and Flowerboy Project boutique will open in the once tough intersection of 8th and Olive streets in downtown Los Angeles.
Lauren Moshi to Malibu Lumber Yard
After more than eight years on Los Angeles' Robertson Boulevard, the Lauren Moshi brand opened a second boutique, this one across the street from the Pacific Ocean.
Thread Haus Co's Crew Caps to the Rescue
The wool beanie is so…winter! Fortunately, designer and stylist Manuel Jackson is coming to the fashion rescue.
Bernstein & Ryan Raise $500,000 for Nat’l Jewish Health
Events
The backdrop was the elegant Langham Huntington Hotel in Pasadena, Calif. Required dress was black suits and gowns. Martin Chalifour, the principal concertmaster of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, dropped by to give a short performance on his violin.
Hobie X Katin: Surf OGs Mix It Up
Hobie and Katin started making surfboards, boardshorts and opening surf shops when Eisenhower was in the White House and Elvis Presley was considered a threat to society. Decades later, these innovative labels partnered for limited edition Hobie X Katin Surf Collection.
Premium Denim Line Works With Skingraft Brand to Knock Homeless Crisis
Skid Row Denim
Los Angeles County’s homeless crisis has skyrocketed in the past year, with 57,794 individuals counted as homeless by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority. It’s an almost 23 percent increase over 2016.
Quiet June Market Draws Focused Buyers Ready to Spend
LA Fashion Market
June market in Los Angeles is typically a quiet affair with buyers arriving to wrap up Fall orders and start looking at Holiday goods. Sandwiched between the larger Fall markets in March and the massive Las Vegas trade shows in August, June tends to draw lighter traffic comprised of mostly regional buyers.
