New Look in Store for Lab
It was nine years ago when retail developer Shaheen Sadeghi revolutionized shopping in Southern California’s Orange County with the opening of the Lab in Costa Mesa. Known as the “anti-mall,” the outdoor complex’s mix of hip stores—from Urban Outfitters to the Electric Chair—and crumbling-rock aesthetic appealed to disenfranchised members of Generation X, and the center racked up $450 to $600 in sales per square foot.
Now that his customers have grown up and attained more disposable income, Sadeghi thinks the time’s ripe to upgrade the center located along Bristol Street, in the shadow of South Coast Plaza, with new tenants and a more polished look.
“We don’t want to wipe off the personality of the place, just upgrade the product,” said Sadeghi, a former executive with Gotcha Sportswear and Quiksilver who this year also opened the Camp, a retail complex across the street from the Lab geared to the outdoor enthusiast.
Along with recruiting Jody Gabbard and Darrell Rae, known for their boutiques Blonde and Black and Blue on Santa Monica’s Main Street, and Dr. Freecloud’s dance music store, Sadeghi said the Lab will expand its Crew hair salon by 2,100 square feet to include spa facilities, and another restaurant featuring upscale Mexican fusion cuisine is in the works.
Sadeghi also plans to spend under $1 million retooling the look of the center. For starters, he plans to fill in the scaffolding along the street with multicolored lightblocks, or industrially fabricated plastic, to transmit more light into the center.
“Light is a symbol of character, aspiration and transparencyhellip; it’s more discernible and that’s what this group is looking for,” said Ron Pompei, the New Yorkbased architect spearheading the project, whose credits include designing Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie stores.
The oil drums at the fountain in the rear of the Lab will be painted in high-gloss finishes as will the steel canopy in the center of the complex. Sadeghi also plans to redo the store facades using the lightblocks. Construction should be completed by November, he said.
Analysts say change and evolution should be a top priority for retailers and developers.
“The Lab is a great shopping experience, but it’s always wise for a retailer to look inward and redress itself to make sure the environment presented is meeting shopper expectations,” said David Unter, senior manager of retail at Deloitte & Touche LLP.
For the Lab’s new retailers, the timing was right. Gabbard said he was approached by Sadeghi and saw the potential in the Orange County market.
“Our concept doesn’t exist under one roof in the area—you have to go to different locations to buy what we sell,” he said.
Ted Baker, Theory, Diesel, Buffalo, Adriano Goldschmied and Arnold Zimberg are among the lines Gabbard plans to carry in his men’s and women’s store, with items ranging from $20 private-label Tshirts and $125 jeans to $200 shirts and jackets. He said he hopes to generate at least $1 million in sales the first year. Scheduled to open Oct. 15, the 3,100-square-foot store takes the place of another music store and will feature polished concrete floors, midnight blue and gray walls, and laminated dark wood fixtures.
Next on Sadeghi’s to-do list is renovating the 10,000-square-foot retail complex fronting the Camp that he purchased late last year. He’s also looking at creating artists’ lofts in a 4,500-square-foot building on nearby Randolph Avenue, where his new offices are located.
