California Apparel News

LAS VEGAS—Somehow the trade show scene in Las Vegas managed to expand even as it consolidated.

February marked the first season after Advanstar Communications, parent company of Woodland Hills, Calif.–based MAGIC International, which produces the MAGIC Marketplace, purchased the Pool show and the Project Global Trade Show. And yet MAGIC and its satellite shows all appeared to expand within the last season—and several announced plans to grow even more in the coming years.

This season did feature a somewhat consolidated roster of venues for buyers to visit, including the Las Vegas Convention Center, which housed MAGIC, WWDMAGIC, MAGICKids and the Sourcing Zone. Next door to the Convention Center, the Las Vegas Hilton housed MAGIC’s accessories exhibitors, as well as its joint effort MODEurope Jewelry Marketplace by JCK show, coproduced by jewelry trade show producer JCK. At the Sands Expo and Convention Center, Project shared the venue with the Off-Price Specialist Show, The Exclusive and the ASAP Global Sourcing Show. The Women’s Wear in Nevada show and its accompanying Kidshow returned to the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, Pool returned to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center and New York–based Accessories The Show returned to the Venetian hotel.

By and large, exhibitors and retailers were encouraged by the traffic navigating within and between the shows, which kicked off Feb. 19 with the opening of The Exclusive and Off-Price Specialist shows, followed by Pool, ASAP and WWIN, which opened Feb. 20. Project hosted a special preview day for the media and key retailers on Feb. 20. MAGIC began its four-day run Feb. 21.

More, more, more at MAGIC

For the third year in a row, MAGIC Marketplace saw exhibitor numbers grow at the February market. February is the smaller of the biannual shows produced by MAGIC International, and the Feb. 21–24 run featured more than 3,300 exhibitors—up from 3,200 at last February’s market.

Traffic reports were mixed, but exhibitors reported promising sales. Los Angeles–based junior brand 213 Industry’s booth drew steady traffic at WWDMAGIC. “MAGIC has been a good show for us,” said Heather Osborn, the brand’s sales representative. “We’ve gotten some new accounts,” she said. The brand, which showed Immediates through early Fall styles, plans to expand the size of its booth for the next market to alleviate crowding and reflect its more sophisticated direction. “Our price points are getting a little bit higher. We’ve always used quality fabrics,” said sales representative Kirsten Lee.

Darryl Johnson of Los Angeles–based junior brand Crown of Hearts reported good sales even though he sells exclusively to majors, including Charlotte Russe and Wet Seal. “People are booking orders. It’s mostly repeat business,” Johnson said.

Buyers shopped for Immediates at the Hot Kiss booth, which this market included outerwear, accessories and swimwear under one roof. “We’ve been extremely busy,” said Hallie Tsabag, Hot Kiss’ director of public relations. “There’s been an influx of new stores stopping in,” she said. The flow of visitors was fueled by having the brand’s licensees also exhibit within the booth, Tsabag said, and their proximity helped generate sales.

Some exhibitors doubled their exposure by hosting booths at both MAGIC and the Pool show or the Project Global Trade Show. Fledgling Los Angeles denim brand Monarchy showed at both Project and MAGIC, as did Original Penguin and Ocean Pacific. T-shirt makers Mighty Fine, Ambiguous and Junkfood Clothing juggled booths at Project and MAGIC. So did denim makers !It Jeans, 7 Diamonds, 575 Denim and AG Jeans.

Premium-denim maker J & Co. has showed in MAGIC’s contemporary showcase, Platform, in the past and this year the brand made the move to show at Project as well. Haley Gottlieb, the brand’s owner and co-designer, said the two shows draw different attendees.

“There are more international buyers at MAGIC, but Project is a good place for new buyers,” she said, noting that the booth at Project seemed the busier of the two.

For some brands, the draw of Pool and Project is strong—but not strong enough to demand two booths. “It’s hard because you want to be cool and new and big and established at the same time,” said Tonny Sorensen, chief executive of Los Angeles– based Von Dutch, which opted to have just one large booth in MAGIC’s Premium Contemporary section.

Showcases and start-ups

New and up-and-coming brands had a variety of showcase options at MAGIC. On the men’s side, there was Platform for premium and contemporary lines and in WWDMAGIC, there was Window, the women’s better lounge. In the streetwearheavy South Hall, there was the High 5 Campground for streetwear labels and the Myspace Lounge for emerging lines.

New to this market was the Pedestal Lounge at WWDMAGIC for women’s contemporary apparel. With a mix of exhibitors, from buzz brand Project Alabama to new lines such as San Francisco-based Saffron, the showcase didn’t lack variety.

But some exhibitors said the showcase was lacking in appropriate buyers. “We haven’t seen the sort of buyers here that you see at Platform,” said one exhibitor who declined to be named. And yet others were pleased with the turnout. Jessie May, a Canadian contemporary knit line, came to Pedestal looking for quality American buyers, not quantity. “It’s been a little slow, but we just opened Fred Segal—that alone makes the show worthwhile,” said owner/designer Jessie May.

Some new and small brands opted to brave the sea of exhibitors outside of MAGIC’s showcases. “There I would have too much competition,” said Stephan Benamou, owner of L.A. Vintage, a new line of tattoo-inspired women’s active wear that launched at MAGIC alongside the Guess Inc. and Von Dutch booths. “Out here I’m surrounded by the big brands and I stand out. There’s no competition for me here.”

Heartbeat Clothing, a new line of high-end T-shirts based in Vista, Calif., launched its brand at WWDMAGIC amid a variety of competitors. Erica Micheloni, the brand’s vice president of sales, wasn’t daunted by the scale of the show or the competition. “Exciting, is what it is. It’s a great launching point for us. There’s a lot of foot traffic,” she said. The line, which features a collection Life magazine cover images, stood out among the deluge of food- and nostalgia-themed T-shirts.

Growth at Project

Is more necessarily better? Sam Ben- Avraham might find out in six months.

The director of Project said he hoped to double the number of show vendors to 1,000 when the market specializing in premium denim opens for business in Las Vegas again in August. Ben-Avraham was encouraged by the turnout at its most recent run Feb. 21–23 at the Sands.

The show welcomed 16,600 attendees to browse the wares of 500 vendors that included some of the most popular premium labels such as Antik Denim and Chip & Pepper as well as high-profile fashion labels such as Hugo Boss and Joseph Abboud. Ben-Avraham said he hoped the range of labels at the show would serve as a one-stop shop for premium boutiques. But he admitted that growth would pose challenges to even the most knowledgeable buyer. “It’s getting harder to know the collections,” said Ben-Avraham, who owns the Atrium boutique in New York.

In August, buyers will find more footwear and children’s apparel at Project. Some buyers thought the choices could be too much of a good thing. “It’s as big as it should be,” said Lane Saunders, buyer for Newport Beach, Calif.–based boutique chain The Closet. “There are only so many buying dollars. There are only so many progressive brands.”

Fred Levine, co-owner of Agoura Hills, Calif.–based boutique chain M. Fredric, thought that a larger Project could dominate the majority of buyers’ shopping time. “I don’t see how it could get much better. He nailed it,” Levine said of the February show. “But the growth might gobble up the best contemporary from men’s and women’s from MAGIC.”

Vendors said business was excellent. Bada Kim, founder of Torrance, Calif.–based label Drifter, said orders for his company’s contemporary clothes doubled compared with Drifter’s business at Project in August 2005. “We see all of our customers here. We bring in most of our dollars here,” Kim said. Kim and other vendors said retailers wrote orders for deliveries ranging from 3/15 to 7/30.

Niche marketing at Pool

Pool might designate an area specifically for new designers at its next Las Vegas market in August, according to show director Ronda Walker. The new zone might add more muscle to one of Pool’s strengths: delivering a market for young, independent designers.

The show’s reputation compelled Neely Shearer, co-owner of Los Angeles–based boutique Xin, to fly to Las Vegas for one day on Feb. 23 to shop for her store, which is located across the street from Fred Segal Melrose. Shearer said she wrote orders for 30 different brands at Pool’s recent Feb. 20–23 run at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. “You can’t find [these labels] anywhere else,” Shearer said. “I don’t think there’s room for them at bigger shows.”

Yet Pool strives to be a big show for small, growing labels. This edition hosted 500 vendors. Walker said the number of attendees grew slightly compared with the previous Pool show in August 2005. She declined to state how many attendees visited the February show.

Pool’s attendees mostly hailed from the specialty store sector. Retailers visiting the show included RAW and The Assembly, both based in San Diego; Lisa Kline, based in Los Angeles; and Beach Bums, based in Anaheim, Calif.

Vendors said retailers wrote orders that ranged from 3/30 to 6/30 deliveries. Many vendors said business on the first day of the show was brisk, then slowed down for the show’s remaining days. Todd Kellogg, senior buyer for Beach Bums, said Pool could have done a better job editing the range of vendors. Yet the quality of the retailers often outweighed the quantity, said vendor Mark Tourgeman, principal of Los Angeles– based denim label REO Starr. “There were a lot of mom-and-pop shops. A lot of them seemed to come from the middle of nowhere. I was surprised when they could sell a $200 pair of jeans,” Tourgeman said.

In Stock at WWIN

Strong demand for immediate goods set the pace for the WWIN show, held at the Rio Feb. 20–23.

The show, which caters to misses and updated buyers, was a sellout for exhibition space, drawing about 850 companies, which showed more than 2,000 lines. About 6,000 buyers turned out, said show co-producer Jeff Yunis.

“It was one hell of a show.We’ve now sold out our past five shows,” said Yunis, who added that clothing appeared to be outpacing accessories trading at a faster rate at this show, a trend that had been the opposite at the last show.

“The buyers seem to be more positive and upbeat,” said Marci Montoya of Santa Barbara–based Mission Canyon Clothing Co., a specialist in batik-layered dresses from Bali. One reason, she said, was that stores are coming off a strong Holiday and are eager to purchase following the January lull.

Buyer Kim Dixon of Collections on Pollock in Beaufort, N.C., was one of many buyers looking for in-stock goods.

“It’s a short season. We’re in a resort market, so we’re looking for smart-looking clothes. We heard that the embellishments have been cleaned up, but we’re still seeing a lot of it here.”

Indeed, bells and whistles—be it Swarovski crystal–detailed shirts or shelled and beaded denim and tops—were still prevalent at least for Spring/Summer items and fueling a lot of purchases.

Lynne Andresevic of Los Angeles–based Crayola Sisters said most of her business was coming from Spring/Summer goods such as tanks from Fresh Teas, which feature rhinestone spade, Chinese dragon and butterfly designs from $16 to $39. She also reported strong business with Dean Allen peasant shirts in soft whites with eyelet detailing from $21 to $48.

Zak Javdan of Los Angeles–based Dolce Cabo showed his Immediate goods at WWIN and his Fall goods at MAGIC. At WWIN, crocheted tops and other knitwear were picking up interest in his booth. “This is our first time at WWIN. It’s been good enough to come back,” he said.

Aside from embellished clothing, another area picking up steam at WWIN was organic-based products or anything made with natural fibers. Vendors such as Garberville, Calif.–based Blue Canoe, which makes yoga-inspired clothing from organic cotton, were among the growing list of companies offering such items.

“This is the first show where buyers are actually asking for organic clothing,” said company President Laurie Dunlap. “Yet we’ve been doing it for 11 years.”

Los Angeles–based showroom owner Neetu Malik was highlighting natural looks with linen and gauze sets from Cynthia Ashby while Sarah Reed of Los Angeles–based Architecture USA was honing in on sportswear with dip-dyed tops and French terry gauchos in nautical colors.

“You have to have a look,” she said.

New Venue for The Exclusive

Innovations in fabric and constructions grabbed most of the buyer interest at The Exclusive held Feb. 19–21 at the Sands.

The show, which features mostly upscale menswear, shifted to the Sands/Venetian hotel complex following several runs at the Mandalay Bay. The move facilitated navigation for buyers since the same venue also hosted four other shows.

“Retailers loved the idea of having everything under one roof,” said show co-founder Larry Hymes.

Hymes said the move helped boost attendance over the previous show, though the exact attendance count was still being tallied.

Innovation in product is helping to revive the menswear market. Most of it was seen in The Exclusive’s Synergy section geared for more youthful- inspired clothing.

“It’s not just about premium denim anymore,” noted Hymes.

Exhibitors like Sunland, Calif.–based Kaptain Bubble Leather rolled out a line of leather goods featuring a bubble wrap–type texture.

“People have stamped leather, dyed it and done everything you can think of except bubble it,” said company representative Jen Ketner. The company has been doing custom designing outfitting bubble jackets for the Rolling Stones, Earth Wind & Fire and Paris Hilton but decided it was the right time to release it to the general trade. Wholesale prices run from $225 to $650 and colors range from black and cognac to metallics. The company is working on handbag, pants and shoe lines for the future. “We have an international patent on this [technology],” said Ketner.

Also scoring hits were retro velvet blazers from Chula Vista, Calif.–based JC Mac. “Velvet’s been around, but nobody has taken it to the next level,” said company principal Michael Cohen, who was a retailer on the King’s Road in Chelsea, London, the birthplace of Mod. “We have 31 colors.

It’s British-inspired but American-made. Men today are looking for an edge. They want to be looked at.”

Klause Peter Saltzmann, who was showing Italian knit lines British Khaki and Andipull for the first time, agreed.

“We’re trying to provide a younger look for the older guy,” he said. British Khaki features washed lambswool with silkscreen prints. Andipull features high-gauge blended sweaters and shirts made from cashmere, wool and viscose.

Even in The Exclusive’s main section catering to more conservative looks, companies like Reading, Pa.–based Bills Khakis were offering forward items such as thick corduroys in red plaid and paisley as well as khakis in mattress-patch prints. Golf brands like Callaway and Greg Norman were bringing more performance features into casual lines and vice versa.

“I see this whole market adding performance fabrics to their collections over the next couple of years,” said Mark J. Stettner, regional account manager for Greg Norman Collection, which debuted the Greg Norman Signature series, a new category of golf shirts, slacks and sweaters featuring moisture wicking, performance waistbands and stretch properties.

“We’re even adding stretch fabrics into cashmere because cashmere loses shape. It’s all about luxury, performance and style.”

Even Carlsbad, Calif.–based Callaway, a core golf line, is delving further into the mainstream market with a line of Egyptian cotton shirts that do away with the logos and solid colorations found in its golf-wear. It has added its X-series to address that end of the market.

“Lifestyles cross over, so you can wear the same brand on the course and on picnics or at work now,” said Callaway’s Lane Walcott.

Added Kelli Freeman, director of client relations for the show: “It’s nice to see so much creativity here. I think people are getting tired of seeing men in the same T-shirts and baggy pants look, especially in L.A.”

St. Louis–based retailer Craig Willis put it all in perspective. “There’s lots of great product here but business comes by how hard you grind.”

Design focus at Off-Price Show

Business was not only brisk at the Off-Price Specialist Show, the market for discount and surplus clothes held at the Sands Feb. 19–23, but there was also an increased appetite for designer apparel at the show.

Long Beach, Calif.–based Carlen Enterprises debuted better contemporary, premium denim and Levi Strauss divisions. The show hosted 450 vendors, which was estimated to be the same as the trade show’s August 2005 market. However, the number of attendees grew 15 percent compared with Off-Price’s February 2005 market, according to Rob Nordstrom, a representative for the show. Nordstrom declined to state how many attendees visited the most recent show.

Buyers wanted a higher caliber of clothing, said Tony Peters, vice president of sales at Bermo Enterprises, based in Schoolcraft, Mich. “It’s not a price-driven market,” Peters said. “The buyers are not looking for fodder. They believe that consumers will not buy clothes just because of the price. It’s getting harder to liquidate clothes.”

Bermo’s sales increased 10 percent compared with its performance at Off-Price’s August 2005 show. Swimwear and hiphop looks were popular at Bermo for this market. Vendors said that retailers such as Ross Stores Inc. and Value City Department Stores also browsed the show.

Sourcing Zone expands

Attendees at MAGIC’s Sourcing Zone had a chance to browse among 700 companies, including international contractors, fabric and trim manufacturers and service providers from more than 30 countries.

Among the visitors was Bill Wenkman, owner of Middleton, Wis.–based BW Designs LLC, a company that designs and produces private label apparel for the biker and hot-rod market. This was Wenkman’s second time at the Sourcing Zone and he was on the hunt for apparel blank styles and appliqueacute;s. In addition to the Sourcing Zone, he was checking out MAGIC’s Streetwear section to consider whether to exhibit his designs at a future show.

“We do private label, but our name goes on all our clothing, so we are building our name as well,” he said.

Wenkman said he produces some apparel domestically, but all high-volume orders are produced overseas, primarily in China, Thailand and Taiwan. Wenkman said he had hoped to find some South American manufacturers at the Sourcing Zone, which included exhibitors from El Salvador, Peru and Mexico.

Also scouting for new offshore manufacturers was Cesar Arias, president of Los Angeles–based young contemporary label Beauty Fiend, which was also exhibiting in MAGIC’s streetwear section.

This is the second season Arias had come to the Sourcing Zone. Beauty Fiend produces about 25 percent of its collection offshore, primarily in Peru and China.

“I’ve found a couple of things here and there,” he said, noting that business at the Beauty Fiend booth was “pretty steady,” so he was ducking downstairs to the Sourcing Zone off and on during the show.

Among the show’s new exhibitors was Birendra Agarwal, whose Mumbai, India–based company, Creative Garments, has been finding new customers at Hong Kong Fashion Week, where it has been exhibiting for the past two years.

Creative Garments produces embellished garments and accessories for moderate to “up-market” retailers, primarily in Europe.

“Basics we don’t do,” he said.

For the second season in a row, denim manufacturer Somkiat Phlaphongphanit and jeans manufacturer and finisher Sanjay Madan teamed up to exhibit together at the Sourcing Zone.

Phlaphongphanit is the director of fouryear- old denim mill Atlantic Mills Thailand Ltd. and Madan’s company Trends Thailand L.P. has been producing and finishing jeans for the past 13 years. The two, based in Bangkok, Thailand, have worked together for the past nine years producing jeans for the premium-denim market in Europe.

The two met with a few prospective companies on the first day of the show, but said they planned to head up to the Project show later in the week to scout for potential clients.

ASAP heads to the source

ASAP drew crowds to its seminar series, which included an update of current freetrade agreements by Tom Travis, partner in Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., an international trade and customs law firm. There was also a panel discussion of ASAP’s upcoming participation in the Fashion International Trade Show in China. The June 29-July 2 show will be held at the Hangzhou Peace International Convention & Exhibition Center and will focus on helping international brands break into the Chinese market.

ASAP Chairman and CEO Frank Yuan said the response to the FITS show so far, has been “tremendous,” noting that of about 35 attendees at the seminar, about seven have already committed to participating in the show.

Show organizers said attendance was down slightly, although they declined to give hard numbers. Yuan cited the show’s location at the far end of the Sand’s second floor for the drop in traffic. Yuan said the show plans to relocate back to the nearby Venetian ballrooms for the next show in August.

Even so, Yuan said he was pleased with the show overall.

“Our attendees are more serious buyers and our exhibitors are happy because the buyers drop orders at the show,” he said, noting the many of the company’s showing at ASAP, particularly those from China and India, are repeat exhibitors.

Among the attendees walking the aisles at the ASAP Global Sourcing show at the Sands Expo & Convention Center was Gilbert Audet, president of Hot Rod, an apparel company based in Newport, Vt.

Audet was looking for manufacturers that could produce his collection, which he described as focused on classic cars and appealing to the NASCAR fan—but with a West Coast slant.

“It’s definitely an L.A. look,” he said.

This season, ASAP’s focus country was Bangladesh and the show featured 54 companies based in Bangladesh, including Step Three Apparels Ltd., which also maintains a small office in Los Angeles.

The Bangladesh focus convinced Step Three’s Shahid Reza to exhibit at ASAP for the first time.

“We wanted to show a few styles to promote our country,” he said. Step Three produces private label and branded apparel for men, women and children.

“Whatever you want, we can make for you,” Reza said, noting that he primarily met with buyers from the East Coast and Canada.

C&L Textiles was also a newcomer to the show. The Commerce, Calif.–based company imports fabric from Korea and China and produces women’s apparel in China.

Another newcomer to the show was Batsaihan Baatar, CEO of Goya Mongol Cashmere & Camel Wool Co., based in Ulaanbataar, Mongolia. Goya sells its high-end sweaters to manufacturers in Europe, primarily in Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom, Baatar said. The company also sells in Korea, Taiwan and Japan, as well as to a handful of companies in the United States.

“We want to develop our business in states,” he said, estimating about 5 percent of Goya’s business is with American firms.

Many of the show’s new exhibitors said they currently do little business in the United States and were hoping the show would provide a platform for building business with American companies. That was the case when Philomena Appiah first began showing at ASAP three seasons ago. Appiah is the managing director of Global Garments & Textiles Ltd., a producer of uniforms and workwear based in Accra, Ghana. When she first exhibited at ASAP, Global Garments’ customer base was primarily in Africa. Today, 5 percent of the customers are U.S. firms and Appiah was hoping to land more business at this season’s show.