CMC Brings Back Runway Shows
Runway shows will return to the California Market Center, although this time around, the wholesale apparel building will serve as venue, rather than as show producer.
During the March 23–28 run of the Los Angeles Fashion, Gift and Home Market, the CMC will be the site of three runway shows—two solo shows by Los Angeles designers Yana K. and Carilyn Vaile and a group show organized by retail consultancy Directives West.
The shows will be held in a tent in the CMC’s back patio, where there will be seating for 350 guests. Each show’s organizers will be responsible for producing and promoting each runway show.
Directives West will kick off the shows at 9:15 a.m. on March 23 with “California Chic,” a trend overview of contemporary and better brands. The show will include a special section devoted to Los Angeles contemporary label Single.
Yana K. will present her Fall 2007 collection on March 24 at 6:30 p.m., and Carilyn Vaile will host her Fall ’07 fashion show on March 25 at 6:30.
“I’m excited to be showing [at the CMC], and our stores are excited,” said designer Vaile, who also said she held a show for her line at the CMC years ago when the building, then called the CalMart, held “Press Week,” which featured runway shows in tents nearby.
“It’s convenient for buyers,” continued Vaile, whose line is carried in the Liza Stewart Showroom on the CMC’s fifth floor. “The buyer can do their buying and see a collection on the runway.
The CMC stopped producing runway shows shortly before the building was sold in 2005 to Jamison Properties. The last CMC show was held in October 2004.
A building spokesperson said the concept could grow in future seasons. The 3-millionsquare- foot building has several available areas where fashion shows could be held, including the lower-level Exhibition Hall and part of the 13th-floor Penthouse Pavilion.
—Alison A. Nieder
