Babakul Debuts First Flagship
From left, Babakul's Sophie Wizmann and Kym Gold
Kym Gold designed one of California’s most popular jeans lines of the last decade, True Religion. Her next fashion venture, Babakul, provided a stylish alternative to the dominant premium denim looks of the past 10 years. Babakul is a women’s line which offers twill pants, knit jumpsuits and cashmere sweaters, among other styles.
On Dec. 9, Gold and business partner Sophie Wizmann debuted their first boutique for Babakul. Gold and Wizmann’s store moved into the high-profile Fred Segal Santa Monica compound of boutiques. The permanent, 4,000-square-foot store is located in the space which formerly housed Fred Segal Fun.
Wizmann said the Babakul name will become even more prominent in the fashion world. “We’re planning on opening quite a few (boutiques),” she said. But no schedule was given to open more stores.
The Babakul store interior was designed by Cortney and Robert Novogratz, and the store’s look was inspired by the label’s bohemian style.
Shelving features natural wood looks, and dressing room door handles are shaped like the Babakul logo of a flower. At one edge of the store is a small library; for boyfriends and husbands to lounge while their significant others are shopping, according to Cortney Novogratz. But there’s no big screen TV playing sports here.
On the library shelves are images that could inspire anybody. There’s a picture of Faye Dunaway in her iconic gangster role as Bonnie Parker, Ali MacGraw in her 1970s heyday, there’s a big wall hanging depicting the face of rocker Debbie Harry. And in an alternative craftsy kinda way, the Harry wall hanging is made out of buttons.
