Friday, November 29
Fashion District Expanding Eastward
The Los Angeles Fashion District is expanding....
Port Negotiations Near Closure
Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) reached a tentative agreement in a late-night session on Nov. 23, which include...
Sorrento Workers Resume Lawsuit Against UNITE
The former employees of Sorrento Coats Inc., a now-shuttered outerwear manufacturer in San Bernardino, are continuing their civil action against Union of Needletrades, Industrial an...
New Label Gives Contemporary Lingerie a Novelty Twist
Micky Sills is on a roll. The Los Angeles–based designer and retailer is constantly on the lookout for new niche markets....
Holiday Mixer Focuses on Labor Law
Members of the garment industry are invited to a Holiday Mixer and a labor law presentation, with special guest Miles Locker, an attorney for the Departmen...
Hutton, Bening Honorees at Divine Design
Lauren Hutton and Annette Bening will take the top honors at the Divine Design 2002 opening night ceremony Dec. 5, which kicks off the four-day fashion and retail fu...
Veltex Expands Tuck Fleet
Diamond Bar–based Veltex Corp. announced plans to expand its fleet of trucks by 20 by the end of November and by another 40 by the end of the year. The trucking company will have a total of 106 trucks by the e...
Showroom Owner Opens French Quarter Boutique
The owner of the Los Angeles–based June Moda showroom in the California Market Center has opened her first retail store....
Ashworth's D.C. Plans
Carlsbad-based golf apparel manufacturer Ashworth Inc. announced plans to build a $15 million U.S. distribution center on a 15.5-acre side in the Ocean Ranch Corporate Center in Oceanside. The new D.C., which...
L.A. Reps Take Caravan Concept On the Road
Tough economic times call for aggressive and divergent action, a fact of business that prompted Sue Gershon of Lifestyle Clothiers in the California Market Center (CMC) to round up ...
Third Street Promenade Continues to Draw Retailers
Leasing activity has heated up at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, Calif. Like other local shopping destinations, the three-block thoroughfare has seen its share of retail closures...
DKNY's Anti-Drug Message
New York–based DKNY Jeans is joining the White House’s anti-drug efforts with the release of a calendar that asks celebrities what their anti-drug is. Fourteen celebrities, including m...
CMC Extends Fall Market Dates
The California Market Center (CMC), which houses the California Mart and the Gift & Home Accessories Market, announced extended dates for the Fall 2003...
Standing Room Only
Guests were packed into the new 1,200-square-foot Volcom store on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles at the Nov. 23 opening party. The creative energy spilled over into the party that took over part o...
Holiday Shopping Destinations
Department stores are the first choice for holiday shopping and Target Stores are the second. That’s the news according to Desi...
Friday, November 22
Jewelry Designer Petesch Dies
Angela Petesch, Los Angeles jewelry designer and member of the Fashion Group International of Los Angeles, passed away on Oct. 18 at the age of 95....
Positivity Design & Marketing
As the mother of two, Lori Brookes desired something that could counteract the overwhelming negativity she saw bombarding her kids. Taking matters into her own hands, she c...
Quiksilver Expands Global Control
In a deal worth $93 million, Huntington Beach, Calif.-based Quiksilver, Inc. recently announced plans to buy out its Australian and Japanese licensees to expand global control over its brand. The buyout of the licensees—Austr...
Workers' Comp Hikes Planned for New Year
California apparel business owners can expect to see workers’ compensation rate increases over the next three years, with some observers saying increases may be as high as 50 percent over the next two ...
Discounters Boosting California Stores
With the direction of the economy a crapshoot for most industry observers, saving money has never been a better idea. And, discount retailers, who often weather the fiscal storm better than their high...
Billabong Taps Peterson
Kim Peterson has been named group communications director of Australia-based surfwear company Billabong and will join the marketing team at Billabong USA headquarters in Irvine, Cali...
Modern Amusement Steps Up Growth
With the opening of its sixth store, at Fashion Island in Newport Beach, Calif., Modern Amusement plans to ramp up its expansion over the next five years....
Infini
Infini is a new bottoms-driven, young contemporary, denimbased Los Angeles line that, though only six months old, already has a cross-continental design team and overseas manufacturing....
Real Gap Customers
The Gap is looking to get real. The San Francisco-based retailer is hosting a nationwide casting call for men, women and children to audition for a chance to appear in a Gap print ad in 2003. Applicants can submit an...
Splinter Trade Show to Debut During January '03 ASR
Agenda, a Los Angeles–based organization dedicated to art, music and fashion, recently announced plans to launch a trade show for smaller streetwear lines to run concurrently with the...
Port Normal
The long lines are gone at the West Coast ports and turn times have returned to normal, according to port officials. There had been a backlog of merchandise waiting to be received following a nearly two-week shutdown...
The Howe Collection
Noticing a void in men’s highend denim, Jade Howe launched the Howe Collection in the Fall of 2001, describing the line as “Cowboy punk meets English country gentleman rock star.”...
Lacey J
Gina Hall and Kelly Kaneda’s entrance into the fashion industry was similar to how an artist with fabulous works tucked away in the closet is suddenly discovered. They had designs that were too extraor...
Rockabilly Looks Checking at Santa Monica's Brat Store
A location across the street from a cemetery, as well as pink walls and a velvet Elvis painting, sets the mood at the Brat store on 14th Street in Santa Monica, Calif., where rockab...
FBI Hosts Financial Incentives Conference
Fashion Business, Inc. (FBI) presented “Financial Incentives for Garment Companies to Grow in Los Angeles” on Nov. 12 in the fashion theater of the New Mart to a crowd ...
Nzania Concept Studio
Nzania Concept Studio (NCS) is an Irvine, Calif.–based company launched in 2001 as the licensing division of 10-year-old Nzania Manufacturing. The first licensed app...
Esquivel Shoes Bow at Fred Segal Feet
You’d think Jimmy Choos were half off considering the number of people attending the debut party of Esquivel shoes at Fred Segal Feet on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles. The Nov. 7 ...
Golf Tournament Benefits City of Hope
On Oct. 28, Apparel Industries Group, a 69-year-old fund-raising organization for the City of Hope, hosted the 15th Annual Norm Crosby Golf Tournament at the North ...
Madison Bids Adieu to Emma Gold
The Los Angeles-based retail store formerly known as Emma Gold on Melrose Avenue celebrated its new moniker, Madison, on Nov. 7. Owner Mark Goldstein said it was time for ...
Everyone Into the POOL Party
More than 100 POOL trade show exhibitors, buyers and guests, lounged on the Downtown Standard Hotel’s rooftop waterbeds and club chairs or just stood around to reflect on two days of hect...
David Tupaz's Old Hollywood
It may be clicheacute;d—but “elegance and glamour is what this town should be about,” says David Tupaz. And, on Nov. 9, the Los Angeles–based designer applied that theory when he...
Tyler's Fashion Week Mixer
“Better late than never” is how Los Angeles designer Richard Tyler described L.A.’s growing street cred with the announcement that Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week is coming to his home turf ...
Friday, November 15
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Goretti
There’s always a song behind a Goretti collection, the sleek 2-year-old line designed by Los Angeles’ Desiree Kohan and Monica Behan. What kind of song depends on how Behan is feeling at the mo...
Suss Launches Knitting Primer
Hand-knit cellphone cases, neck warmers and bridal evening bags are among the 30 design projects highlighted in Suss Cousins’ new book, “Hollywood Knits.” Publi...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Jared Gold
It was a perfectly delightful evening of magic tricks, musical performances and cake at Jared Gold’s carnival cabaret showing of the designer’s Black Chandelier and Jared Gold Couture ...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: San Paredes and Andraegonzalo
Forget It, Jake, a former supply store turned hip boutique near the heart of Chinatown, was the setting for a...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Petro Zillia
Against the concrete starkness of the Valuta Building in downtown Los Angeles on Nov. 3, the Petro Zillia collection was a contrast of colors, shapes and textures for Spring...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Susana Mercedes
Susana Mercedes, designer and president of the company that bears her name, debuted her Spring 2003 colle...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Starchild
Crowd support was strong for the debut of Starchild, a
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Jennifer Nicholson
Father Jack was absent, rehearsing for a play, but the Los Angeles debut of Jennifer Nicholson’s “Love L...
Great Escape Hires Executive Staff
Los Angeles-based childrenswear manufacturer Great Escape announced it has hired George Morris as Bottoms Merchandiser and Andrew Stein as Director of Imports for both Great...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Elena La Bua and Shawn
The fashion shows started late, but no one seemed to mind as they indulged i...
Retailers Benefit from Sweeter October '02 Sales
Economic uncertainty wasn’t enough to spook shoppers, who contributed to better October retail sales, even at beleaguered Gap, which snapped a two-year streak of sales declines....
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Eduardo Lucero
Two words could sum up designer Eduardo Lucero’s collection: All woman. The designer showed his Spring 200...
Gen Art's Fabulous Four
They weren’t on the runway, but they were definitely there. “They” are Gen Art’s Fresh Faces in Fashion 2002 picks in the accessories category....
Judy's Founder Pens Memoir, Encouraging Others to Follow Their Passion
For legions of fashion-conscious women over the past half-century, the Judy’s store was a key venue for building their wardrobes. Founder and designer Marcia Israel-Curley, now in her 70s, has...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Anja Flint
Designer Anja Flint showed highlights from her Spring 2003 collection at the fifth installment of Gen Art and Chrysler’s “PT Studio...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: David Cardona
Designer David Cardona was surprisingly calm as he mingled with guests prior to the start of his...
AB633 Sends Many Scurrying to Comply
On Oct. 9, the newly revised Assembly Bill 633 (AB633), which places tighter controls on the state’s apparel industry, became effective throughout California. Not much more than a month later, many Sou...
Cherokee, Mossimo Dispute Settled
Cherokee Inc. was issued an interim award on Nov. 11 following arbitration to settle a dispute between the Van Nuys, Calif.-based apparel manufacturer and Santa Monica, Calif.-based ...
New Book Chronicles California Fashion History
Fashion veterans Marian Hall, Marjorie Carne and Sylvia Sheppard, like many in the industry, have long been disappointed in the lack of recognition that California’s apparel designe...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Alicia Lawhon
Alicia Lawhon went back to school for her
Job Growth Struggles
Sixty percent of 150 chief executives surveyed by the Business Roundtable, an association of corporate leaders, said their company’s workforce would probably shrink next year, while only 11 percent exp...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: L.A. Independent Designers
Los Angeles Independent Designers (LAID) presented its fashion exhibition Nov. 3 at the Inshallah Gallery on Main Street in downtown Los Angeles. The...
Painterly Fashions Distinguish 'Frida'
The movie: “Frida”...
Holiday Sales Forecast Not So Gloomy
The economic grinch may not steal retailers’ Christmas cheer just yet....
DuPont Unveils New Polymer
Wilmington, Del.–- based fiber and chemical company DuPont has a new polymer that can be made into a fiber with the attributes of a synthetic and the hand of a natural fiber. And the company h...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: martinMARTIN
The husband and wife design team of Eric and Diane Moss Martin offered buyers and the fashion press a view into the yin and yang of their...
Frederick's of Hollywood
President Linda LoRe called it a coming- out party of sorts for Frederick’s of Hollywood. Indeed, more than 300 celebs—David Spade, Tara Reid, ’N Sync’s Joey Fatone and J.C. Chasez,...
Owens and Lamy Spotlighted in Home Design Book
Influential Los Angeles duo, restaurateur Michele Lamy and designer Rick Owens, who are among the 15 couples profiled in a new how-to book on home design, hosted a book signing at Lamy’s trend...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Ya-Ya
About 200 fashion editors and fans of fashion gathered on the second floor of the Cooper Building on Nov. 4 to check out the...
Coogi Rights Sold
A joint venture between two as-yet-unnamed U.S.-based clothing companies has bought the worldwide intellectual property rights and trademarks of troubled fashion group Coogi of Australia. Administrato...
Venus Style
Tennis pro Venus Williams announced the launch of V Starr Interior, a full-service interior design and decorating company based in Palm Beach, Fla., where Williams lives with sister Serena. Williams, ...
Bebe Sport
Rain put a slight kink in the Nov. 7 party celebrating the
Tarrant Gets Waiver
Los Angeles–based private label denim producer Tarrant Apparel, which technically defaulted on certain covenants with lenders following its third-quarter results released this week, has received a waiv...
Strong Report Card for Kohl's
The Menomonee Falls, Wisc., retailer, which this week announced plans for 28 stores in Southern California next spring, scored an A with consumer research group J.D. Powers & Associates. Consumers rated Kohl...
Friday, November 8
Multiple Venues Draw Buyers to L.A. Spring '03 Market
Buyers had a lot of ground to cover during Los Angeles Fashion Week, Nov. 1–5, with exhibitors at the California Market Center (CMC), New Mart, G...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Gen Art
It was a packed house Nov. 3 when Gen Art presented its annual
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Jessica Moss
The mood was downright euphoric inside a large downtown loft converted into an art space called Welcome to the Plastic Factory, where vintage revivalist Jessica Moss presented...
Guess? Inc. Cuts Back, Closes Stores
Los Angeles-based Guess? Inc. announced plans to make job cutbacks and close some stores as the result of a weak retail environment....
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Atoosa
Techno was the vibe at the
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Jeremy Scott
“Everyone is someone in L.A.” That was the song playing during
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Nikolaki
Nick Verreos and David Paul know how to make a woman look sexy. And for
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Tree Studio
The earth’s glories, whether they be liquid sunsets or brilliant cloud breaks, were the impetus for Beverly Klein and Theresa McAllen’s...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: FBI
Fashion Business inc. (FBI) presented its
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Marithe+Francois Girbaud
After stepping out of the spotlight for nearly two decades, Marithe+Francois Girbaud is quietly reentering the fashion forum with a new collection of denim and contemporary sportswear for women. The compa...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: CLAD
The Coalition of Los Angeles Designers (CLAD) switched gears
Volcom on La Brea
Costa Mesa-based apparel maker Volcom will open a 1,200-square-foot store on La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles later this month. This will be the first U.S. store for Volcom, which operates stores in Euro...
Port Talks Pause Following Compromise
Negotiations between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) will break for a one-week recess, following an agreement on on...
Labeling Lawsuit
The U.S. Supreme Court has upheld a lower court ruling that Harveacute; Benard suits carried by Saks Fifth Avenue were falsely advertised as “fine cashmere” when they were made from recycled woo...
Factory Orders Down
In another indication of a stalled economy, factory orders fell 2.3 percent to $318.1 billion in September, following a scant 0.4 percent decrease in August, according to the Department of Commerce. O...
The Other Side of the Tracks
The former downtown headquarters of Los Angeles’ trolley line is slated to become an upscale apartment building if a $20 million renovation project is approved. ICO Investment Group has proposed turnin...
Long Beach Retail Grows With DDR
Downtown Long Beach’s renaissance continues to unfold these days with two ventures by Developers Diversified Realty (DDR): the Nov. 8 grand opening of CityPlace, and the futu...
Two Beiges May Be Too Much
To paraphrase The Bard, would Beige by any other name alter fashion sales?...
7th on Sixth Announces Plans for L.A. Event
Organizers of New York’s Mercedes- Benz Fashion Week on Nov. 1 announced at a rooftop press conference at the Downtown Standard Hotel in Los Angeles their plans to s...
Jewelry Designers Give Vintage Pieces a New Twist
Costume jewelry and accessories are on the rise again, with up-and-coming designers paving the way with new looks and turning one-of-a-kind vintage pieces into high-end fashion ornaments. Here’s a look at two ...
Levi's En Masse
San Franciscobased denim giant Levi Strauss & Co. has launched a line for the mass market retail channel. The new line, called Signature, will be sold at Bentonville, Ark.-based retail giant Wal-Mart starting July 2003. The company is t...
S.F. Academy of Art Taps Maze
Former Harper’s Bazaar fashion editor Gwen Mazer has joined the fashion department faculty of San Francisco’s Academy of Art College as lifestyle coordinator/advocate for the ...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Private by Freddi Rojas
Los Angeles-based sportswear company Private, which recently shortened its name from Private Circle, presented its...
Novelty and Brands Drive Sales at the Grove
Shiny newness is keeping the Grove shopping center in Los Angeles—home to Nordstrom, Gap, Banana Republic and a 14-screen cineplex—bustling with shoppers. The $160 mi...
Lucky Launches New Ad Campaign
Los Angeles-based denim maker and retailer Lucky Brand Dungarees is going full force with its marketing plans for the holiday season....
Webby Awards Honor Fashion; New Horizons for Amazon
Entering its seventh year, the Webby Awards [
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: California Market Center
California’s past, present and future were on display during the California Market Center...
Aria Expands Deal With Juliana
Aria Systems, which markets enterprise resourcing planning (ERP) software, has expanded its relationship with apparel line Juliana Collezione, which will use Aria...
L.A. Fashion Week Spring '03: Pacific Coast Travelers
About 300 guests viewed missy, contemporary, moderate ...
Friday, November 1
Fashion District Heads Into a New Design Age
Los Angeles is hosting one of its largest fashion weeks ever, and the landscape of the city’s fashion core is taking a similarly promising turn....
PNB Nation
California Market Center Suite C-448 (213) 489-0508 ...
Panacea
Panacea is a young contemporary designer collection made byhellip;well, young designers....
Fashion Museum Eyes Temporary Home
Plans for a new fashion industry museum in downtown Los Angeles appear to be advancing as Museum of Fashion Designers and Creators (MODAC) founder Irene Kasmer said she has reached an agreeme...
BCN-Barcelona Showroom
Gerry Building Suite 405 (213) 622-2787 ...
Tech Conference Coming to Orange County
Intentia America will host two technology conferences for apparel companies on Dec. 4 and 10, in New York and Costa Mesa, Calif., respectively....
Africa at ASAP
Pasadena-based Cyber Merchants Exchange, organizers of the ASAP Global Sourcing Show, have struck a partnership with the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA), which will bring a trade group of exhibitors...
Local Recognition
Los Angeles designer Kevan Hall recently received top honors at the 47th Annual Gold Coast Fashion Award Show at the Chicago Hilton and Towers International Ballroom. Hall was up against designers Michael Akers, Yigal Azrouel, Julie Chaiken...
Kreisler Sees Changes in Apparel Exec Searches
Finding good talent is getting tricky during a time when job integrity is becoming an issue in board rooms across America following the debacles involving Enron Corp. and Wo...
Mr. Blackwell, R.L. Spencer Honored
Designer Norman Blackwell (aka Mr. Blackwell), creator of Hollywood’s annual tongue-and-cheek “Worst Dressed List,” and his partner, R.L. Spencer, were honored by St. Mary Medical Center (SMMC) in Long Beach, C...
Mocha Lounge Showroom
Gerry Building Suite 403 (213) 239-8833 ...
Lack of Confidence
The Consumer Confidence Index dropped sharply in October to 79.4 from 93.7 in September, according to the Conference Board, a New York-based research firm. This marks the fifth drop in the Index and t...
Material World Numbers
Textile and sourcing trade show Material World Miami Beach drew more than 3,200 attendees during an Oct. 7–9 run at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Atlanta-based Urban Expositions, organizers of Material Wo...
Keeping Independents Alive
Popular shopping thoroughfares such as Santa Monica’s Third Street Promenade and Colorado Boulevard in Old Pasadena hope to come full circle....
American Eagle Signs on Intentia
American Eagle Outfitters (AE) has contracted Intentia Americas and its Movex Fashion collaboration software to help streamline sourcing, production, finance and distributio...
Local Lines Take Dallas
Eletra Casadei and Nally & Millie were among several local designers to pick up an award at the 27th annual Dallas Fashion Awards held Oct. 26 at the D...
Ahneva Ahneva-QAA Collections
Queen Ahneva Ahneva has been creating cultural couture in the Leimert Park area of Los Angeles for more than 10 years. After traveling around the globe, gathering inspiration from a ...
Carl Copeland
California Market CenterSuite C-446 (213) 623-3215 ...
S.A.M. Showroom
New Mart Suite 407 (213) 489-5265 ...
The Next Americans
Los Angeles-based T-shirt maker American Apparel is expanding its infants’ and kids’ line in response to increased demand for children’s imprintable T-shirts. The expanded Classic Baby collection will bow during...
Circle 5 Showroom
California Market CenterSuite B-536 (213) 622-6922 ...
Mike and Millie Showroom
California Market Center Suite A-525 (213) 228-0435 ...
Fashion Interest From Russian Delegation
The California Market Center (CMC), California Fashion Association (CFA) and California Apparel News joined forces to promote the Los Angeles apparel indus...
Tarrant Expands Joint Venture With Azteca
The Guez family, which owns two of Southern California’s largest private label denim manufacturing companies, is consolidating a portion of their operations....
Leakwear
California Market Center Suite A-421 (213) 244-1458 ...
Lix Jeans
As a family-owned business—Sue Yang-Eaves serves as the company’s chief executive officer and designer; husband Patrick M. Eaves is in charge of the daily operations; and Yang-Eaves’ sister, Jennifer Yang, hand...
Urban Apparel Association
California Market Center Suite C-433 (213) 688-1182 ...
ACA Joe Back at Retail
Los Angeles-based young men’s sportswear line ACA Joe has opened a retail store at the Beverly Center shopping mall. This marks the first new U.S. store since the closure of nearly 100 ACA Joe stores i...
H&M Founder Dies
Erling Persson, founder of Swedish retailer H&M died on Oct. 28 following a brief illness. He was 85. Persson founded the Hennes store in Sweden in 1947; in 1968 he acquired the Mauritz Widforss h...
Mission Street Gears Up
While some shopping districts are trying to deal with the strains of their success, others are just getting off the ground. One area in Southern California that is sprucing up in ant...
