B. Clothing Founders Leave, Relaunch Planned
B. Clothing vice president and merchandiser Sean Knight and Steven Kail, director of sales, have left the Los Angeles-based junior contemporary label, according to the company.
Both of their departures were amicable, said parent company Sun B. LCC’s chief operating officer, Sam Levy, who launched the label in October 2000 with Knight and Bisou Bisou chief executive officer Marc Bohbot.
One industry source said the company was undergoing financial problems prior to Knight and Kail’s departure, although as of press time neither Knight nor Kail could be reached for comment, and sources with the company did not want to comment further.
According to a letter obtained from the company’s attorney, Farhad Novian, a partner at Novian & Novian, “a few factors have contributed to dramatically reduce the company’s earnings” in recent quarters, with the economic outlook following Sept. 11 being a contributing factor in the decline in company sales.
Bohbot said executives are currently scouting for alternate sources for financing. “B. Clothing has undergone a temporary setback as a result of the reshuffling of its key players but it still plans to debut its Spring collection in a few weeks,” he added.
In the meantime, the label has moved from Bisou Bisou’s corporate offices to another Los Angeles location. —Claudia Figueroa
