California: Aug. 17, 2001
Costa Mesa-based Paul Frank Industries will produce a limited-edition series of accessories titled “Paul Frank’s Hello Kitty Collection” for Japan-based accessories and apparel manufacturer Sanrio, owners of the Hello Kitty brand; the collection will feature Paul Frank’s Julius character and Sanrio’s Hello Kitty character on T-shirts, wallets and bags; the line will launch for Spring 2002 and will be carried in department stores, Paul Frank stores and Sanrio boutiques...Los Angeles-based designer Carole Little and business partner Leonard Rabinowitz have set up a small design studio called StudioCL with an eye on retailers’ private-label programs...Woodland Hills-based MAGIC International named Gaspare Asaro director of international marketing, a new position created to bring in more international buyers and exhibitors to the trade show...Foothill Ranch-based specialty retailer Wet Seal launched an in-store promotion in which customers are asked to embellish a pair of jeans; consumers can purchase a Be-Dazzler, a tool for affixing studs and rhinestones to fabric, and a pair of Blue Asphalt Jeans, the retailer’s private-label brand, at any Wet Seal location; the embellished jeans are sent to the company’s headquarters, and the grand-prize winner will receive a trip to Hawaii to see pop band 3LW perform on MTV’s “Total Request Live.”
