Smashbox Exec Named to Innovo Board
Dean Factor of Smashbox Enterprises was recently named to the board of the Innovo Group Inc., a Los Angeles apparel maker whose labels include Joe’s Jeans and Fetish by Eve.
Factor is the chairman of the board and the chief executive at Smashbox Enterprises in Culver City, Calif. His company includes Smashbox Studios, the venue of the recent Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios, and Smashbox Cosmetics. He runs the company with his brother, Davis Factor.
The announcement was made by Jay Furrow, Innovo’s chief executive officer, who transformed the small accessories business into an $83 million jeans maker and casualwear designer.
“I met Jay by talking about doing a Smashbox license and brainstorming,” Factor said. “We became friends, and I actually asked him if he knew of any companies that needed an outside director. It turned out that they needed someone.”
The licensing deal has not come about yet, but a board appointment has. Factor fills a board vacancy left by the resignation of Daniel Page, who had been a director since 1997. Page served as Innovo’s chief operating officer between August 1997 and April 1999.
Joe’s Jeans had a runway show at the recent Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios, but Factor said his appointment to the board probably will not give Innovo any special deals on runway shows. “It’s not up to me,” he said.
In 2002, Innovo moved its headquarters from Tennessee to Southern California after striking up a partnership with Paul and Hubert Guez, owners of denim producer Azteca Production International in Commerce, Calif. Azteca and the Guezes are major shareholders of Innovo stock. They share their company headquarters with Innovo, which uses Azteca’s denim factories in Mexico to fill many of its orders. —Deborah Belgum
