english edge - California Apparel News

For influential fashion buyer Randy
Brewer, eco-friendly styles are the new premium
denim.
As a buyer for high-profile San Francisco
boutique chain Villains, Brewer helped spread
the popularity of premium fashions when he
managed the chain from 1997 until September
2009, at which point, he said, he resigned
amicably from the store. In late February,
Brewer will debut eco-boutique Convert in
Berkeley, Calif. He believes this retail project
will get consumers and clothing manufacturers
to support the cause of eco-fashion.
The 1,800-square-foot store will open at
1809 B. Fourth St. in the stylish neighborhood
of North Berkeley, which is located
more than one mile away from the University
of California, Berkeley. It will offer
stylish and contemporary looks from ecofashion
labels Nau and Stewart & Brown
Factoring Made Simple.
2 CALIFORNIA APPAREL NEWS JANUARY 29–FEBRUARY 4, 2010
NEWS
Influential Villains Buyer Debuts Eco-Store
as well as environmentally friendly items
from clothing labels Obey and Hurley.
Denim pants will retail for $200. Shirts will
retail under $150.
Along with making more stylish ecofashions
available to consumers, Brewer
said he is using the store to convince more
labels to make eco-fashions. He said he has
approached the former labels he worked
with at Villains and gave them this pitch: “I
know you aren’t eco, but I want to carry your
line. What can you do to help me?” he said.
Convert also will carry lines that are manufactured
in America and constructed in factories
where workers are well-compensated
and labor under good conditions.
He reported receiving many positive responses
to the brash proposition. He plans
to build a chain of Convert boutiques, which
would give him more clout with manufac-
Long-Time CMC Jewelry Store Closes
After more than 10 years of occupying
a prime location in the California Market
Center lobby, Eclipse Jewelry Designs Co.
is closing up shop at the end of February.
Many CMC tenants were saddened by the
news. Lisa Owers is the West Coast showroom
manager for Swarovski. Alazraki designed her
wedding ring in 2004. “They had fair prices.
Their business was based on customer service,
and they were friendly,” Owers said.
After closing Eclipse, the Alazrakis will
embark on a six-month trip to Asia and Europe
to buy materials for Raquel’s jewelry
line, called Raquel B. Designs.
When they return to Los Angeles, they
will expand the e-commerce boutique for
www.raquelbdesigns.com and decide whether
they want to open another store.
Owners Raquel and Raphael Alazraki
first opened their CMC store in 1996 on the
CMC’s second floor. They moved in 1999
when a space opened up on the main floor.
The Alazrakis have spent their careers
in jewelry sales and design. They emigrated
from Argentina to the United States in
1971. For many years, Raphael helped run
a jewelry wholesale business in Beverly
Hills.
Raphael said he regretted leaving the
CMC. “The building was like a big family.
We feel like we are leaving our family,” he
said.—A.A.
The concept
of factoring
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We Give You the Money.
You Pay Your Bills.
No bells, unnecessary, really. No whistles, not
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At Goodman Factors, we simply offer smart,
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Please call 877-4-GOODMAN
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turers. Currently he is the founder and sole
employee of the company. He intends to
partner with investors if and when he opens
more stores.
Brewer’s mission might give eco-fashion
a great boost, according to Isaac Nichelson,
the founder and chief executive of eco-fashion
brand Livity. “He has been an influential
retailer on the West Coast. If he can bring
that same eye to the product mix in the ecoworld
and make a presentation for the kids
looking for a contemporary, street fashion,
it would be great for everyone,” said Nichelson,
who will be debuting a Livity store in
Santa Monica, Calif., in early March.
Eco-fashion stores were among the hardest
hit during the Great Recession and many
went out of business, Nichelson said.
However, businesses serving an environmentally
friendly lifestyle have dramatically
increased, according to Greenopia, a Santa
Barbara, Calif.–based publishing company
that compiles a list of green businesses—
from restaurants and boutiques to burial services.
In 2006, there were 800 green businesses
in Los Angeles County. In 2009, that
number grew to 2,000 businesses.
Brewer said eco-fashion will follow the
same growth trajectory as the market for
organic foods, which has steadily grown in
the past decade. He tested the store concept
with a Convert pop-up store in Berkeley,
which he ran from Nov. 31 to Jan. 1. When
the store debuts, it will offer a minimal store
design, featuring a counter made out of laborers’
work benches.—Andrew Asch
Manhattan
Beachwear Sells
Majority Stake
Cypress, Calif.–based women’s swimwear
maker Manhattan Beachwear sold an
80 percent stake to Linsalata Capital Partners,
a Cleveland-based private equity firm.
Manhattan Beachwear—which licenses the
Kenneth Cole, Hermanny by Vix, Sofia
by Vix, Hobie and Split labels—has annual
sales of $65 million, according to Linsalata.
Founder and Chief Executive Allan Colvin
and his management team “invested alongside
[Linsalata] and will continue in their
current roles,” a release from the investment
firm said.
In the past, Linsalata has invested in
niche apparel, including Alpha Shirt Co.
and Augusta Sportswear Group. Linsalata
said the goal of the acquisition is to build
on Manhattan Beachwear’s success with its
retail partners—which include large national
department stores, mass merchants and
specialty swimwear outlets—and become
the leading supplier of women’s swimwear
by providing unique design capability and
high-quality products supported by consistent
execution and a low-cost global supply
chain. Growing Manhattan Beachwear’s
portfolio is another goal. The company will
seek add-on acquisitions that provide the
opportunity to add new brands, licenses or
customer relationships, Linsalata said.
“We are pleased to be partnering with
[Linsalata] as we enter a period of aggressive
expansion. Their experience in the sector
will undoubtedly be helpful as we manage
our growth going forward,” Colvin said
in a statement.
Eric Bacon, senior managing director at
Linsalata, said, “We are excited to be working
with this team and in this space coming off
strong performance despite the weak economy.
Women’s swimwear has proved recessionresistant,
and the company, in particular, has
strong momentum.”—Erin Barajas
WEEK
IN REVIEW
California
It gets Juicy. The two California women
who founded Juicy Couture and then
sold it to Liz Claiborne Inc. in 2003 reportedly
have left the company. In a
New York Post story, Gela Nash-Taylor
and Pamela Skaist-Levy said they
wanted to work on other projects now
that they have been with Liz Claiborne
for seven years. They stepped down as
co-presidents in 2008 to become creative
directors until their decision to
leave the New York apparel behemoth,
whose other labels include Kate Spade,
Lucky Brand Jeans and Mexx. Liz Claiborne
announced internally on Jan. 4
that the California duo was leaving but
would be retained as consultants. Juicy
Couture has long been considered Liz’s
star brand and had several licensing
deals for such things as perfume, shoes
and handbags. Like the other labels in
the Liz Claiborne stable, Juicy’s revenues
were down in 2009. For the nine
months ended Oct. 3, the label’s net
sales were $376 million, a 13 percent
decrease compared with 2008.
National
Abboud in at HMX. Menswear designer
Joseph Abboud was named president and
chief creative officer of HMX LLC, the
company formerly known as Hartmarx
Inc. In his new position, Abboud will
oversee HMX’s brands—Hickey Freeman,
Hart Schaffner Marx, Coppley,
Bobby Jones, Exclusively Misook, Simply
Blue (which includes Christopher
Blue Denim and Worn Men’s and Women’s)
and Monarchy Collection—beginning
with the Spring 2011 collections.
The award-winning Abboud got his start
at Ralph Lauren and went on to launch
his eponymous collection in 1986. He
was named “Best Menswear Designer”
by the Council of Fashion Designers of
America for two years in a row.
Kohl’s is all green. Menomonee Falls,
Wis.–based retailer Kohl’s Department
Stores has purchased nearly 1.4 billion
kilowatt hours of green-energy power—
enough to meet 100 percent of the retailer’s
annual purchased electricity use. The
green-energy purchase moved Kohl’s up
to the No. 2 spot on the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency’s list of Fortune
500 companies purchasing green power.
Green power is generated from renewable
resources, such as wind and solar.
Quote of the Week
You’re always treading lightly.
I’ve had actresses who are a
size 2 stand in front of me and
weep. I’ve had young girls who
want to cover their arms and
older women who want to cover
their arms. But at the end of the
day, it’s always really about the
client.
—Los Angeles–based designer Kevan Hall,
who dressed actresses Gabourey Sidibe and
Jaime Pressly for the recent Golden Globe
Awards, discussing designing for a range of
sizes in a story in The Washington Post