Expanded Offerings at ENK Vegas
ENK Vegas provided a snapshot of top men’s and women’s contemporary brands in clothing and denim during the Feb. 16–18 run at The Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.
ENK’s latest Las Vegas edition showcased 155 brands, up from 138 on display last season. The trade show is produced by ENK International, whose stable of trade shows include Coterie, Brighte Companies and Intermezzo Collections. Leading denim brands such as J Brand and Citizens of Humanity showed alongside hip clothing by What Goes Around Comes Around, Literature Noir and Society for Rational Dress.
This was the first time showing for new denim brand Naem Denim, which started shipping the line in December. Veteran denim sales rep Carol Scalisi said ENKVegas’ clean format, production value and quality of buyers was the “best fit for us.” Scalisi met with buyers from Bloomingdale’s, E Street Denim, National Jean Co. and Lisa Kline.
Naem Denim’s key styles interpreted women’s skinny jeans in three different versions made with Dupont elastane denim, which “doesn’t bag out or stretch out.” Wholesale prices average $59. A $75 men’s jean with selvedge details also garnered attention. “We wanted to be able to offer premium quality goods, made in L.A., but also at a price point as well,” Scalisi said.
Galina Sobolev, designer of Single, took a novelty and “embellished solids” approach to her Fall 2010 collection. Modal knit groups with hand-beaded details were inspired by 1950s cashmere sweaters belonging to Sobolev’s grandmother. Fitted “Sexy Secretary” dresses were “very strong for us with strong Majors notes and interest,” Sobolev said. Retail price points averaged in the $180 to $220 range. “It is predominantly driven by the whole Victoria Beckham look of sexy fitted dresses that work for day and move seamlessly into evening, becoming dinner- and date-appropriate.”
Jason Bates of the Derelicte showroom in Los Angeles said he has “traditionally done really well” at the ENKVegas show. Bates represented MG Black Label, Cheddar Pocket, Farah and Cold Method at ENK Vegas and WESC at the Project Global Trade Show. “I’ve seen a high quality of customer. I think that’s still the case,” Bates said of ENK Vegas, but many of his existing accounts didn’t make their appointments because they ran out of time traveling between venues. Buyers “don’t physically have the time to go to all these shows, especially across town. hellip; Maybe staggering dates is better for [the Las Vegas shows], or put them closer together.”
Morgan Perez-Rubio, men’s buyer and store manager of The Blues Jean Bar in San Francisco, agreed that traveling between the shows ate up a lot of time and tried to factor that into his appointment scheduling.
“I would say from a buyer standpoint, it makes it a lot easier hellip; if things could be better grouped proximity-wise,” said Perez-Rubio, who shopped ENK, Project and the MAGIC Marketplace. He spent more than a full day at ENK, where “all of [his] stronger vendors” exhibited and the “professional” atmosphere made it easy to focus.
“I like that ENK is a little more selective of who they let into that show,” said Perez-Rubio, who shopped Dylan George, DL1961 Premium Denim, Post’age and Life After Denim for all seven The Blues Jean Bar store locations.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer Gloria Brandes of BB Dakota and Jack BB Dakota reported slower traffic at ENK than the last time she showed, in part because she saw many of her customers at the company’s additional booths at WWDMAGIC.
Buyers were looking for “things that they can put into the stores now” such as leggings for $28–$38 wholesale and tunics for $28–$32. Anything with “peek-a-boo” details such as mesh inserts and shredded tops that revealed peeks of skin and the “exaggerated shoulder look” were well-received. “We did a huge amount of business in Summer. We wrote more Summer than we thought we would and a lot less Fall,” Brandes said.
The next edition of ENK Vegas is set to return to The Wynn for Aug. 17–19.—Rhea Cortado
