California Apparel News

Fewer buyers but more orders. That was the report by many of the showroom representatives at the Spring 2011 Los Angeles Fashion Market, held in downtown Los Angeles.

Buyers navigated the many wholesale showroom buildings, as well as temporary trade shows, to place orders for Immediate goods and Spring merchandise.

“Every season is booking,” said Lisa Fabian, national sales manager for Torrance, Calif.–based AStars and Alpinestars by Denise Focil, which were showing at the Designers and Agents show at The New Mart. “It’s a day-by-day business, and it is very price-point driven.”

Showroom owners and reps reported buyers coming to Los Angeles from as far as Japan, Mexico and Canada, as well as across the United States, including major retailers such as Macy’s, Holt Renfrew, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue Mexico, Amazon.com and Zappos.com. Cruising at the CMC

A certain buzz permeated the California Market Center during the five-day Los Angeles Fashion Market, which attracted buyers from points as far away as Japan, Mexico and Puerto Rico. While the CMC does not release figures for buyer attendance, building officials noted there were representatives from Nordstrom, the Marshall Retail Group, Metropark, Saks Fifth Avenue Mexico, Macy’s and Amazon.com.

The CMC organized a number of events, from free haircuts by Oliver Ifergan on the fifth floor to fashion shows.

While showroom owners felt there were fewer buyers than in the past, those who showed up were writing orders for Immediates as well as Spring merchandise.

“Traffic is as expected, meaning there are fewer specialty stores in the market today,” said Chris Meyers, who represents the XCVI brand and operates the company’s fifth-floor showroom. (XCVI is 96 in Roman numerals, a reference to the year the company was founded—1996.) “With all the new buildings and shows in the Fashion District, I think it has diluted the market,” he said.

But business for his collection of casualwear for women ages 35 to 65 was great. “I couldn’t have been happier, but I would like to see more cohesiveness in the market,” Meyers said.

About 40 percent of his showroom’s orders were placed for Immediates with an 11/30 delivery date, and the rest was for Spring. Meyers’ collection of knits and linen tops, bottoms, jackets and dresses had wholesale price points ranging from $34 to $79.

Nearby, representatives at the HaleMary Showroom also felt there were fewer buyers this season. “The people who were here wrote, but there were fewer people,” said Haley Miller, co-owner of the showroom.

Popular items from the showroom’s several lines of women’s apparel and accessories included furry sandals and knit hats with crystal pins, wholesaling for $22 to $32. Other popular items were State of Grace military and cargo pants made of stretch twill, which wholesaled for $45 to $57.

Buyers were definitely being cautious and carefully selecting their merchandise. Gerry Puhara, who launched her Tender Treasures store in Altadena, Calif., in 1982, said that over the past two years she has had to drop her higher-end lines for more moderate price ranges that appeal to her middle-aged customer. “It has taken every bit of creative energy I have to make it work,” she said, noting she has survived several downturns, but this has been the most sustained.

Linen clothing has been popular with her clientele, but at this market she was hunting for something artsy and out of the ordinary to entice more people into her store and to her online site.Attendance rebounding at The New Mart

The New Mart was “almost” back to normal, according to the showroom building’s general manager, Ethan Eller.

The “normal” that Eller was talking about was buyer attendance. For the October 2010 fashion market, 1,050 buyers registered at The New Mart before browsing the building’s showrooms as well as the Designers and Agents show, which rented space at the building.

The recent attendance numbers were in grasping distance of the robust attendance figures of the October market in 2007, when 1,195 buyers registered at The New Mart. (Attendance declined during the recession, with 988 registered buyers at the October 2008 market and 880 registered buyers at the October 2009 market, Eller said.)

“It’s only guesswork, but I believe we will see a slight uptick in Christmas spending,” he said. “I think things will remain well short of 2007 levels at the height of the boom and before all this economic woe took over.”

The New Mart showroom owners reported good business. Jackie Bartolo, owner of the Jackie Bartolo Showroom, said buyers seemed confident about the economy. “People were ready to buy. They gave me less notes than at the past couple of markets,” she said of buyers who were ordering, not taking notes, on her showroom lines Members Only, Costa Blanca, Velvet Heart and Urban Behavior.

Bartolo said price continued to be important; her lines’ price points all retail for under $200. Joel Gossman, co-owner of The New Mart’s The Gig showroom, said buyers were still looking for novelty and unique styles. During this market, his showroom, which focuses on fashion underwear and sleepwear, introduced Spanx for Men T-shirts, which offer men shaping and support.

Retailers shopping The New Mart, D&A and other shows in the Intersection said accessories have increasingly made a difference in a boutique’s bottom line. “Bags have always been fabulous,” said Diane Merrick, owner of the Los Angeles–based Diane Merrick boutique. “Belts are more important this year than they have been in a long time.”

She also ordered T-shirts from Los Angeles label Cotton Citizen during the show.

During this market, retailer Thora Dowdell emphasized ordering jewelry and accessories. “People are much more willing to invest in jewelry, which they can wear over and over again, rather than a high-end T-shirt that will go out of style in a season,” she said. She is co-owner of Club Tattoo, a Tempe, Ariz.–based chain of five stores. The flagship store is located in the Planet Hollywood hotel and casino in Las Vegas.Holiday soft at Cooper

Reports from showrooms were mixed at the Cooper Design Space, with some noting steady—and, others, slow—traffic. Many pointed to a lack of interest in Holiday Immediates as a reason for the sluggish market.

Meghan Kratochvil, owner of the Sabrina Showroom in the Cooper’s lobby, said she relies on walk-in traffic and had expected a strong Spring market. But buyers, she said, are still writing close to date, and Holiday simply isn’t a huge business for many West Coast buyers. “The March market, I think, will be decent.”

Diana Vilato, owner of The Style Assembly showroom, said Holiday goods aren’t checking on the West Coast in general right now. “I think it’s really tightly tied to the weather. Holiday is starting to check on the East Coast, where it is just beginning to get cold,” she said. Finances, too, continue to play a role in buys. “All of [retailers’] money is tied up in Fall clothing stock right now. I think there’ll be a last-minute rush in November for Holiday.” Still, she said, there were bright spots at Market. “Thank God for the Japanese [buyers]!” she said, noting that while her apparel brands didn’t do a lot of business, Japanese buyers kept her accessories business strong throughout the market. “They bought tons of jewelry—80 percent of our accessories business came from them.”

Ted Baker, which opened its first Los Angeles showroom and U.S. “Ted-quarters” at the Cooper this summer, reported a good market thanks to interest in its casual menswear and quirky feminine Spring offerings. “A lot of majors came through,” said Patrick Heitkam, Ted Baker’s executive vice president of wholesale and licensing for the United States. Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, Zappos and Amazon.com all made an appearance, he reported. “We did learn that this is an appointment-driven market. In the future, we will make more appointments.”Key buyers at Designers and Agents

Normally held in both The New Mart and the Cooper Design Space for Spring markets, this season, Designers and Agents’ organizers opted to limit the show to The New Mart’s third floor. “We could have gone bigger, but we decided to really focus the show in one area,” said Ed Mandelbaum, D&A’s co-founder. In all, 132 collections showed at D&A, with attendance shrinking by 3 percent compared with the market six months prior. Buyers from Len Druskin, Canada’s Holt Renfrew, Wendy Foster, Beams Japan, Pitkin Country Dry Goods, Scoop and Ron Herman shopped the advanced contemporary boutique trade show.

Exhibitors reported slowed traffic, with buyers’ attention divided between Fall/Holiday 2010 and Spring 2011.

According to Alpinestars’ Fabian, AStars, the company’s fashion T-shirts collection, wholesaling for $24 to $48, did well with a new category—oversized fleece cardigans for Fall. Alpinestars, which focuses on premium fabrications in silk and washed leather, earned interest in its fitted leather tuxedo jacket, but price-conscious buyers held off on placing orders, opting instead for slouchy silk tops.

Los Angeles–based designer Minden Chan used D&A as a platform to help reintroduce his eponymous brand to buyers. Formerly a full contemporary collection, Chan pared the line back to T-shirts made of linen and Tencel when the economy hit the skids. “It’s been mainly T-shirts for two years. Now I’m pushing it back into more of a contemporary collection,” he said. He’s optimistic that the contemporary market is strengthening, he said.

For Spring 2011, Chan added lightweight cashmere sweaters and shrunken blazers to the collection. Wholesaling for $130 to $145, the cashmere pieces outpaced the jackets, which wholesale for upwards of $265. “It’s a combination of the fact that the jackets may be too heavy [for West Coast stores] for Spring,” Chan said, but price resistance also played a role. “It was important to have them, though, because they pave the way for Fall, when layers become key,” he added. For Fall 2011, Chan will add more cashmere knits to the line, grow its jacket offerings and shrink its T-shirt offerings.Brighte shines

On the first floor of the CMC, nearly 50 vendors crowded into the Fashion Theater for the Oct. 15–18 Brighte show, organized by ENK International.

Some vendors felt there was very little business written while others were over the top about the recent show. Success hinged on reasonable prices and merchandise selection.

“We have had an amazing show, maybe the biggest show in 10 years,” said Bruce Moore, director of sales for the women’s shoe line Boutique 9, owned by the Jones Apparel Group. Vintage casual shoes are popular right now, which explained the popularity of the label’s oxfords, ankle boots and high-heeled sandals, wholesaling for $44 to $70. “If you have a trendy item that consumers are responding to, the buyers are attuned to that,” Moore said.

Not far away, Christa Lubeck was standing in the Dress to Kill booth, filled with flowy garments whose color range of blacks, beiges, grays and celery greens was modest but elegant. “We’ve had a very good market, one of our best shows,” said Lubeck, a design assistant with the Los Angeles–based label. The collection, made of cotton, was wholesaling for $59 to $390.

A few aisles over, Jamie Connolly was waiting for buyers to take a look at his collection of occasional dresses and evening gowns, which wholesale for $139 to $229 under the Issue label. He complained he had seen only 10 buyers in four days, yet he still was able to pick up one or two store accounts. “In the past, the shows, in general, have been okay, but this is the first one where traffic was not that heavy,” he observed.

More at Focus show

New brands found trade show exposure at Focus Apparel and Accessories Show, which is held during all five L.A. Fashion Markets at the CMC.

Held on the CMC’s 13th floor from Oct. 15 to 17, the show featured 40 brands, an increase from the 14 brands that exhibited at the August show. The show attracted crowds with special events such as seminars with retail consultant Mercedes Gonzalez of New York–based Global Purchasing Companies and fashion shows co-produced by Fashion Business Inc.

Newport Beach, Calif.–based label Annie and Jade by Annie Le made its trade show debut at Focus. Founder Annie Le said the show was a good vehicle for novices. “It’s an affordable show. If I get buyers to look at my clothes and some exposure, it’s okay,” Le said.

Jacksonville, Fla.–based retailer and wholesaler Emily Moody said the show was a good place to sell accessories. Her biggest orders were for belts and bracelets made by her company, Anomaly, with wholesale prices ranging from $10 to $13. She said apparel did not sell as much at the show.

Fashion-forward boutique Circular in Anchorage, Alaska; M. Claire Studio in Hilo, Hawaii; and distribution companies from Japan and Hong Kong shopped at the booth maintained by Reno Rose, another Jacksonville, Fla.–based label.

Novice entrepreneur Alan Lee Bunao Jr. said he placed an order for one apparel line for his downtown Los Angeles boutique, Sixhundred, but he wished the show took more risks. “It could use more edgy lines [and] more men’s fashions,” Bunao said.Buyers’ turnout strong across district

Buyers also trekked beyond the three largest showroom buildings to shop showrooms across the fashion district, including the Gerry Building, the Lady Liberty Building, the Academy Awards Building and the Primrose Building.

Paul Spoleti, owner of the Mimi Chica brand, which operates a showroom in the Gerry Building, said the market was “great” thanks to a good turnout from many of the brand’s existing retailers.

“We booked business for January to April; we didn’t book any Immediates,” he said. “Next year looks good for us, but we had a good year last year [as well].”

Spoleti said the brand has been performing well at retail, which he credited to the design, quality and on-time delivery. In addition, Mimi Chica designs its own prints, which keeps the product distinctive from other brands.

The Academy Awards building is one of the newest showroom buildings to open. Currently, there are showrooms on the building’s third and fourth floors, with plans to eventually renovate the second floor, as well.

Located on Los Angeles Street in the first block north of the intersection of Ninth and Los Angeles, the building is a few doors away from the more established Lady Liberty Building.

“Because of the Lady Liberty Building, they’re starting to walk [the distict],” said David Dietch, owner of Dietch PR, which operates out of the building’s penthouse showroom.

“It all comes back to customer service,” said Franco Nakagawa, owner of the Magnet Showroom in the Academy Awards Building. “It’s about educating your buyers.”

Nakagawa, who moved to the building from a space at the Cooper Design Space, said he was pleased with the buyer turnout at Academy Awards, which included retailers from Japan, Canada and Germany. He said he also saw several buyers for e-commerce sites at market.

Magnet’s collections include Los Angeles–based Rojas, Les Sang Des Betes and Peri; Furi, a cashmere collection from Montreal; and Amanda Christine, a women’s collection based in Minnesota.

Nakagawa said buyers liked the building’s warm and friendly atmosphere and shopped among the showrooms.