Couture Designer to Debut L.A. Headquarters
In a sign that Los Angeles’ Beverly Boulevard should remain safe for couture, renowned French designer Lloyd Klein will be opening his headquarters in a few months on the venerable street.
The formerly Paris-based Klein—whose designs have been praised for their theatric, sometimes avant-garde looks—is scheduled to open his new space in a Gothic-style building on the street on Nov. 9. The headquarters will include a boutique, design studio and corporate offices.
Even before Klein’s arrival, the shopping thoroughfare’s fashion identity seemed cast in stone.
Designer Eduardo Lucero has owned a workshop and boutique on the street since 1997. Also, red-carpet designer Kevan Hall has been a staple on the upscale boulevard for years with a design studio.
In the past year, several fashion boutiques have opened for business, which gave Lloyd Klein President John Arguelles a sense of security about making the right decision to put down stakes on Beverly Boulevard.
“You don’t want to be the only dress store in the desert,” Arguelles said. “You want to be with the other stores. It’s a hot spot in L.A.”
Klein’s headquarters will be at 7415 Beverly Blvd. in a 1928 structure the designer is transforming on the inside with luxurious gray suede covering the walls and some ceiling areas.
Approximately 3,500 square feet of the 7,700-square-foot building will be used for Klein’s boutique, called the Lloyd Klein Couture Laboratory, which will feature a gold-painted Byzantine-style gateway. The store’s ceiling is a stately looking wood roof covered with medieval-like murals. The ceiling and murals are part of the original building.
Arguelles declined to state how much the company is spending to refurbish the building. It was most recently occupied by lawyers and accountants.
Klein’s gowns, suits, lingerie and handbags will be sold at the shop, with ready-to-wear gowns fetching up to $7,800 and cocktail dresses selling for $400–$1,100. The rest of the building will be reserved for offices, a production area, a design studio, and a showroom for stylists and press. The company will continue to maintain offices in New York and Paris.
The Lloyd Klein headquarters in Los Angeles will be the site where the label’s aspirations will blossom. The store will debut Lloyd Klein footwear in Spring 2007, and plans are being made for a fragrance brand, Arguelles said. The burgeoning collection of Lloyd Klein products will pave the way for the couture label to make a transformation into a lifestyle brand.
“Lloyd is not just a clothing designer,” Arguelles said. “He started as an architect. He has a vision for everything. It’s about lending aesthetic concept to an entire array of products.”
The move to Los Angeles should position Lloyd Klein well to claim more of the world media spotlight, said Ilse Metchek, executive director of the Los Angeles–based California Fashion Association. “If you’re looking for the red carpet and stylists, they’re here,” she said. “It is where the action is for stylists.”
With Hollywood stylists on a constant quest to find gowns and couture for the film industry’s packed calendar of red-carpet events, Metchek maintained that Los Angeles couturiers, such as Kevan Hall and Monique Lhuillier, have been in the right city to connect with stylists who shop for celebrities. The celebrity placement is typically expected to bring a windfall of press and attract the attention of wealthy people.
“Couture makes its money on private clients,” Metchek said. “It depends on press and wealthy people coming to [the designer’s] atelier.”
Hall, who has dressed celebrities such as Sharon Stone and Charlize Theron, welcomes Klein’s pending arrival. “[New York] has the powerful fashion magazines and newspapers, but it’s going to be good for our city just to have another couture designer,” Hall said. “It’s going to raise visibility of the industry here.”
The 39-year-old Klein, a native of Montreal, Canada, but now a French citizen, made his first splash in the world of high fashion far away from Los Angeles. He was appointed head designer for Paris-based couture house Maison Mme Greacute;s in 1995. In 1998, Klein started his own company, and soon he was gaining a lot of media attention. He has dressed stars such as Nicole Kidman, Renee Zellweger, Gwen Stefani and Angela Bassett.
Klein is no stranger to Los Angeles. He has shown at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios.
A Lloyd Klein fashion show early this year at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, Calif., showed models clad in menswear-inspired tailored suits. It also included 1950s-style debutante gowns colored in bright oranges, yellows and blues.
