Rogiani Announces Store Closure
Sportswear’s gain could be retail’s loss when it comes to the latest career moves of Los Angeles designer Elisabetta Rogiani.
She recently announced that she is closing her store at 7466 Beverly Blvd. on Jan. 20 to concentrate on increasing demand for athletic line Rogiani Sport. The Pete’s Sport Shop boutiques located inside the Los Angeles– and Irvine, Calif.–based The Sports Club/L.A. luxury gyms carry the sportswear collection, as does the H. Sport boutique, a division of the H. Lorenzo boutiques in Los Angeles.
Rogiani said she also plans to work on a denim line and to do some consulting.
“The store was open for five years. It takes away time, and time is money,” she said, noting that she will keep a smaller store in the back of her studio open for appointment-only clients.
The store closing is another turn in the eventful career of this Italian-born designer. In 1992, Rogiani worked as one of the first designers for the BCBG Max Azria label. She also was the fashion editor for LA Style magazine from 1986 to 1989. She continues to design the Rogiani City line, which has been worn by celebrities ranging from Paris Hilton to Isabella Rossellini.
Rogiani’s Beverly Boulevard store was originally her showroom. In 1995, she added the smaller appointment-only store. By 1999, she had opened the 1,000-square-foot store.
Red, a popular neighboring restaurant, had helped drive customers to her boutique, but that changed when the restaurant shut down 18 months ago. Also, some of the area’s foot traffic went to The Grove shopping center, located a few blocks away.
The designer said she has not gotten retail out of her system, however. A future goal is to open another Rogiani store, perhaps a few miles west in Beverly Hills. —Andrew Asch
