California Apparel News

A bride should get married in a castle.

It was Claire Pettibone’s inspiration when her self-named bridalwear-focused label, Claire Pettibone, took over the Heinsbergen Decorating Company Building, located at 7415 Beverly Blvd. in Los Angeles, which is by The Grove retail center. The Romanesque, castle-like building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and was formerly occupied by fashion house Lloyd Klein Couture.

“There is nothing more cool than for a bride to try on wedding dresses at a castle,” Pettibone said. “It’s very fairy-tale like.”

The space is now called Claire Pettibone Flagship Salon at the Castle and will feature a salon, a wedding-gown gallery, an atelier and offices. The salon will be located on the first floor. Behind the salon will be offices and an atelier where seamstresses will make Claire Pettibone dresses. Pettibone and her husband and business partner, Guy Toley, maintain offices on the compound’s top floor.

Pettibone’s bridalwear label received a blitz of attention last year when Priscilla Chan wore a Claire Pettibone gown in her wedding to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The Los Angeles–based Pettibone had previously operated her 19-year-old business from offices on La Brea Avenue and a salon on Robertson Boulevard. The Robertson salon closed in July.

She took possession of the 4,700-square-foot building in January and spent six months renovating it. A soft opening for the flagship and salon took place in July. Pettibone moved her office to the compound on Aug. 23. The first official trunk show at the castle will take place Sept. 20–21.

The salon is open from Tuesdays through Saturdays and runs mostly on an appointment basis. It offers Claire Pettibone bridal gowns and accessories. Eventually, it will offer other Pettibone items, such as lingerie. Core retail prices for Pettibone gowns range from $2,000 to $10,000. Customized gowns can run $35,000. They are sold at retailers such as Kleinfeld, the famed New York bridalwear shop, and 50 other bridal stores in the United States.

Pettibone has no current plans to open branded stores.

Lloyd Klein Couture left the Heinsbergen Decorating Company Building in June 2012 after spending eight years there, said John Arguelles, partner and director of media relations for the couturier.

The company moved out because its customer was not shopping in that neighborhood, Arguelles said. Klein will announce new offices and a showroom by the end of the year.

The couturier spent $750,000 restoring the 1928 building and bringing it up to Internet-era standards. Arguelles declined to say how much Klein paid in rent to the building, which is owned by the heirs of Anthony Heinsbergen, who built the castle-like compound 85 years ago.

“It was not inexpensive,” Arguelles said. “Lloyd Klein wanted to create a beautiful atmosphere. He wanted it to be of the same caliber as the garments he designs.”

Pettibone also declined to say how much she pays in rent for the building.