California Apparel News

San Fernando Boulevard in Burbank, Calif., just 13 miles north of downtown Los Angeles, is brimming with nightlife, but fashion stores haven’t saturated the busy street.

Yet, that was just the incentive retail pioneers Cheryl Cohen and her husband, Joe Swinney, needed last summer to debut their fourth Wasteland store, located at 325 N. San Fernando Blvd.

They noted there is plenty of foot traffic to keep a retailer happy. At night, crowds mill in and out of the nearby AMC Theatres. During the day, office workers from the media businesses in town—such as The Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. and NBC/Universal—frequent the street’s cafeacute;s.

That activity has kept retail chains such as Active and Urban Outfitters busy ever since they put down stakes five years ago. The Wasteland owners see Burbank as a place to sell clothing lines they don’t normally sell in their other stores, which compete in prime retail territory such as Santa Monica, Calif., and Los Angeles’ Melrose Avenue.

T-shirts seem to be captivating the people who shop at Wasteland, according to the store’s buyer/manager, Atom Whitman. Among the favorites are motorcycle-themed T-shirts designed by Bandit Brand of Freedom, Calif. The distressed shirts with biker graphics retail for $40. Another popular T-shirt brand is Compton, Calif.–based label Chaser, which prints graphics from classic-rock bands—such as Van Halen, Journey and Nirvana—on shirts with a burn-out treatment. The shirts retail from $32 to $40.

Wasteland’s male customers are buying fashions from Shades of Greige. The label’s perforated-leather jacket has been popular and retails for $180. Its “Ivy League” plaid oxford shirt also has been selling well for $84.

On the female side, Wasteland’s customers have been favoring styles from Huntington Beach, Calif.–based Quiksilver’s Spring/Summer 2010 collection. The label’s “Dover St.” cardigan has been hot, retailing for $88. Women have also been buying Quiksilver’s “Black Friars” tank-top shirt with pyramid-shaped studs and a V-neckline for $38.

Not far from Wasteland is Zamba at 331 N. San Fernando Blvd. This fashionable boutique also serves a discerning, young-minded crowd. Lately, Zamba’s male customers have been picking up Energie blue jeans, which sell for $119 to $169, said Zamba co-owner Patricia Huezo. They are also gravitating toward highly detailed jeans from XY that feature embellished stitching and studs and command a $69 to $98 price tag. Shirts by Los Angeles–based label English Laundry also have been doing well at $49 to $98.

Zamba’s female customers have been favoring jeans from Los Angeles–based Miss Me that retail for $100. Favorite silhouettes are the boot-cut and skinny jean. XOXO’s colorful “English Accent” dress, selling for $59, has also been popular.

While blue jeans and T-shirts are strong on San Fernando Boulevard, styles for nightclubbing and partying are in vogue at the nearby Burbank Town Center mall. Customers at Antourage prefer club fashions with a brand name. “It’s a brand store. Our customers ask for brands, and they buy,” said sales associate Hector Lopez.

The jean of choice at Antourage is True Religion. All of the denim label’s cuts and styles, priced at $200 to $300, have been selling well, Lopez said. Popular tops are Affliction T-shirts for $50 to $68. The “True Indulgence” shirt, selling for $169.95 from Garden Grove, Calif.–based Howe, also has been moving quickly.

Fashion with a social conscience is offered at Burbank Town Center’s American Boutiques LA store. The owner, Glow Rivera, runs nonprofit organization Immature out of the shop, training at-risk and low-income youth to design and screen-print graphics on T-shirts sold at the boutique.

Jose Vasquez said the nonprofit put him on the right track. He had dropped out of high school when he stopped by American Boutique asking for a job. Rivera encouraged him to get involved in her nonprofit and complete his education at Burbank Adult School. He earned a high-school degree and now helps other kids. “If I see kids doing graffiti, I tell them, ’You should screen-print that,’” he said.

His Fabrik Funk T-shirt line, retailing for $18 to $25, sells well at the boutique. Also doing well are T-shirts from Flesh, a fashion label designed by Rivera. The V-neck and crew-neck T-shirts, constructed of bamboo fabric, are priced from $15 to $25. Among other popular choices are T-shirt graphics from Brush Up Live. Owner and artist Steve Richards prints portraits and different designs on T-shirts and other clothing, with prices generally ranging from $5 to $25. But if Richards paints a portrait of Prince or Michael Jackson, that T-shirt will cost $250.