California Apparel News

SAN FRANCISCO—For more than 20 years, Roxanne Tritica has set up a booth inside the barn-like structure that houses the Fashion Market of San Francisco, an event that happens five times a year.

And every season, business has been brisk for Tritica, whose Betty Bottom Showroom is on the third floor of the California Market Center. This past market was no different. Taking two booths on either side of the aisle at the Concourse Exhibition Center, she attracted a steady stream of buyers with the colorful array of lines she represents.

“It is going very well,” she said, as a couple representing a Mt. Shasta, Calif.–based boutique inspected the showroom’s silk scarves from India. “We have customers from all over the place.”

Turnout for the Fashion Market of San Francisco, held Jan. 8–11, was consistent with that of last year despite a deluge of rain that fell on the Bay Area on Saturday and Monday. Dianne Travalini, executive director of the Golden Gate Apparel Association, which organizes the event, said 1,300 buyers showed up this January, about as many as turned out last year.

There were 230 exhibitors taking 435 booths, up slightly from the 220 exhibitors that were at the January 2004 show.

“This is a cookie-cutter show,” Travalini said. “It never changes that much.... Some people do well. Some don’t.”

Traditionally, she said, the strongest shows are in April and October, when the market is sold out with more than 290 exhibitors.

Most of the buyers who attend represent specialty stores in the San Francisco region and other areas of Northern California. Buyers from Oregon, Washington and Nevada also trickle in. All are in search of that special item that will act like a magnet to keep regular customers dropping by.

Uniqueness was on the mind of Carolyn Jansen, whose Skeeter’s Gallery sells clothes, glass and pottery in downtown Santa Rosa, Calif. “If I find one new thing, I’m happy,” said the store owner, who has a handful of regular customers who like to see something new on the shelves.

Jansen, who goes to every San Francisco market week, found three new lines at the show: Loco Lindo, Irridium and Nina. She placed orders for cotton summer hats and handmade scarves that were only 3 inches wide. “We did some pretty substantial orders,” she said.

Also on the prowl for new items was Betsy Dee, who opened her Betsy Dee–SF boutique last June in the Haight- Ashbury district of San Francisco. “Scarcity is my strategy. I will bring in one or two designs. Once it is gone, it’s gone,” said Dee, who carries styles ranging from denim to eveningwear.

Dee said she visits her tried-and-true sales reps but is always in search of a new line or two.

That’s why sales representatives said they like the show— they know that specialty boutiques rely on freshness and are not afraid to try new items. Most reps said they did well at the show even though the drafty exhibition hall, with its mixture of wood and metal roofing, is criticized for being too cold during the winter and too hot during the summer. Rain that turned into hail on Saturday was so noisy and distracting that several sales people and buyers dropped what they were doing to rush to the front doors and watch the storm.

Mary Minser, whose Mary Minser Sales showroom is located on the third floor of the CMC, had a booth near the front of the exhibition hall and was bundled up in a coat to keep warm. Despite the blustery weather on Saturday, business turned out to be good, she said.

“I love doing this show. It draws from the surrounding areas,” she said, noting she used to go to the Dallas market but dropped Dallas two years ago for San Francisco. “The buyers are very faithful and loyal.”

She said buyers were looking for items rather than collections. Popular pieces at her booth included shrugs, tweed jackets, lace camisoles and tops with brooches.

Sales were brisk for Tianello Inc., the 12-year-old Los Angeles company that offers tops and bottoms made primarily of Tencel. “We’ve had a great reaction to the new things we’ve introduced this season, primarily our prints,” said Kate Baslow, a Tianello sales representative.

She said the company always has strong orders for its “Suzy” blouse, a fitted Tencel shirt with three-quarter sleeves. The newly introduced tri-colored Tencel knit T-shirt also got a good reaction.

“We are going to double last year’s business,” said Steve Barraza, the owner, president and chief executive officer of the $10 million Los Angeles company. “We ship $2 million into California, and the lion’s share is in Northern California, where there are more specialty boutiques than in Southern California.”

Across the street at the San Francisco Fashion Collective, where a handful of permanent contemporary showrooms opened last fall at the Sobel Building, business was particularly brisk.

“I had 15 stores visit the first day,” said Gabriela Shultz, who represents several lines, including Kookla, a Los Angeles company that does tops, and Two Dog Island, a Seattle venture that makes fleece and cotton casualwear. “I beat my numbers from last year by $4,000.”

Rande Cohen, a Los Angeles sales representative who has a showroom on the fifth floor of the CMC, rented temporary space at the San Francisco Fashion Collective after exhibiting at the Concourse Exhibition Center for several seasons.

“It has been great so far,” said Cohen, who represents eight lines, including P.J. Salvage, an Irvine, Calif.–based company that designs loungewear, and Fickle, a Los Angeles company that makes skirts with coordinating tops. “People are looking for things that have fresh looks, fresh colors and good price points. Something we have.”