What's Next for Ku
The sign is still up, but Ku USA Inc. closed its flagship store on Melrose and Curson avenues in January to concentrate on developing its wholesale business. But Los Angeles may not have seen the last of the Ku boutique.
President Steven Hoel said he is in talks with a retailer who might open a store on the western end of Melrose. The shop, he said, would predominantly sell Ku T-shirts and hoodies, which also retail in boutiques such as Black Market, Black & Blue and Metropark.
If talks are successful, the store might open in late 2005. Hoel said he would also like to see more than 10 Ku stores open across the United States in the future. The company currently licenses products to six Ku stores in Japan.
Ku has manufactured everything from shoes to jeans in its more than 10 years of business. Hoel, who wholesales the brand mostly in Japan, introduced it in the United States in November 2003. He said U.S. revenues for the brand grew tenfold in 2004.
—Andrew Asch
