Erica Dee's Street Life
With top-rate shopping centers a stone’s throw away in Newport Beach, Calif., it would have been a natural for Erica D. Thomas to dream about opening her Erica Dee boutique at the local malls Fashion Island, Crystal Cove Promenade or Corona del Mar Plaza. Instead, she chose the street.
“I didn’t want to be in a mall,” Thomas said of her once risky, now smart choice to open her boutique at a storefront on East Coast Highway in Newport Beach’s wealthy Corona del Mar section. “You can get lost in the mix of things at malls.”
But south Orange County consumers are used to shopping in malls. Thomas felt that if she jumped into that already crowded pool, she would encounter too much competition for exclusive rights for brands.
“We are able to carry pretty much any collection we want,” she said. “Customers love us because we are able to offer so much.”
By August, Thomas will have more than doubled her success. She’ll open two more stores in Corona del Mar. She also will expand the size of her original boutique from 1,500 square feet to 4,500 square feet. The stores—Erica Dee, Erica Dee Men and Erica Dee Kids—will be located a few storefronts away from one another on East Coast Highway.
The clothes sold at this trio of boutiques are contemporary brands typically popular in more-urban areas. The stores will sell brands such as Chip & Pepper, Oligo Tissew, James Perse, Splendid and Juicy Couture.
Thomas said the south Orange County customer likes to keep luxury simple. “The customers live in casual, but they like their trendy items.”
Price points will be $25–$350. Store designer Roger Russell said he kept the look of the trio of Erica Dee stores warm but plain. “The look of the store is nothing but a Tiffany box for the diamond ring,” he said of its focus on the product.
—Andrew Asch
