Thursday, August 31
Christopher David’s Debut Soiree at Ramos Carreon Salon
At the Ramos Carreon Salon, it’s a tradition for any assistant in the salon to do a final soiree of his/her own before becoming a full-time hairstylist on the salon floor.
Retail Healthier than Many Think, Research Group Says
Retail
IHL Group, a partner of National Retail Federation, the Washington, D.C.–based trade group, released a paper on Aug. 30 that said that tough times for retail have been greatly exaggerated.
Designing the Look of “This is Us”
Designing the Look
Members of the cast of “This Is Us” were on hand for an Aug. 28 event at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, amid the costumes of the 11th annual “Art of Television Costume Design” exhibition.
Westfield Shopping Centers Hook Up With Uber
Retail
Now there's a way to avoid the parking lot at Westfield shopping centers in style.
Textile Design Winner
Hank Pola Scholarship
Megan Weitz, a textile design student at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, received the Hank Pola Scholarship at an Aug. 28 reception at the design school’s FIDM Museum and Galleries in downtown Los Angeles.
Serious Retailers Turn Out to Write Orders at Fashion Market Northern California
FMNC
The August edition of the Fashion Market Northern California trade show is always the smallest of the event’s five annual shows because it is held just days after the humongous apparel trade shows wrap up in Las Vegas.
Who Will Be the Winners and Losers This Season in Holiday Shopping?
Retail
Back-to-School shopping is barely over, but retail gurus are already making predictions for the holiday shopping season.
OC Fashion Week Starts
Runway
Orange County Fashion Week will aim to balance trade, consumer and glitz when the biannual fashion event unveils a series of shows Sept. 5–9. OC Fashion Week’s Spring/Summer 2018 shows will be held in venues around Newport Beach, Calif.
Shafer Exits Agave
Manufacturing
Jeff Shafer, the founder of Agave, a premium-denim line that has been sold at retailers such as Nordstrom, recently announced that he was leaving the label after a 15-year run.
Kitson Founder Files New Lawsuit
Legal
Retailer Fraser Ross filed a lawsuit in July against its former executive Christopher Lee, lender Salus Capital Partners LLC, HGI Asset Management Holdings LLC and Spencer Spirit Holdings LLC.
Obituary: Paul Schnell, Designer for Don Loper, Ernst Strauss, Da-Rue of California, 90
Fashion
Designer Paul Schnell died earlier this year at the age of 90. Best known as the designer for Ernst Strauss, a Los Angeles–based manufacturer of high-end women’s apparel in the 1960s, ’70s and ’80s, Schnell’s last job in the industry was as designer at Da-Rue California Inc., the maker of upscale updated apparel.
FBI’s Harder Among the New Team at Yonduur
Technology
Frances Harder has a new gig. The founder and president of Fashion Business Inc., the fashion nonprofit that recently shuttered after nearly 20 years, has joined the board of advisors at Yonduur, an online marketplace for closeouts, overstock and excess inventory.
Nifty Genius: Menswear and Retail for All Seasons
Nifty Genius
The Nifty Genius menswear label takes the term “lifestyle brand” very seriously.
Groceries Apparel Looks to Build a Natural Dyehouse in Southern California
Manufacturing
In a rapidly changing fashion market, Matt Boelk and Rob Lohman basically want to build a new segment from the ground up.
Z Supply Taps Maui and Sons for Icons of Culture
Icons of Culture
After taking a look at classic surf heritage brands Ocean Pacific and Gotcha, Irvine, Calif.–based Z Supply LLC has unveiled the next brand in its Icons of Culture series: Maui and Sons.
Wednesday, August 30
Lucky Brand Expands Into Home Collection
Retail
Lucky Brand is offering a home collection that sells at Macy's.
Tuesday, August 29
AG Parties for its Fall 2017 Looks
At an Aug. 28 party for its Fall 2017 collection, the AG brand decamped to Skybar in West Hollywood.
ComplexCon Announces N.E.R.D & Gucci Mane in Concert
ComplexCon returns the weekend of Nov. 4 – 5 in Long Beach, festival goers will be treated to sounds from hitmakers such as Pharrell Williams' N.E.R.D and Gucci Mane.
Monday, August 28
Enze To Abbot Kinney
An independent boutique, Enze, recently opened on high end retail street Abbot Kinney.
Friday, August 25
Abercrombie & Fitch's New Concept Store
Abercrombie & Fitch's new concept store took a bow at Westfield Century City mall on Aug. 25. A&F promises that it will be more fashion in a smaller space.
Thursday, August 24
Pool Provides a Showcase for Up-and-Comers and Indies
Trade Shows
UBM’s Pooltradeshow has always been a venue for independent and up-and-coming apparel and accessories brands. The Aug. 14–16 show at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center returned to its prime location next to Project near the shuttle bus drop-off.
Sourcing at MAGIC: Focus on Vietnam
Trade Shows
At the vast Sourcing at MAGIC show, held at the Las Vegas Convention Center, it was around the world in more than 2,000 booths, not around the world in 80 days.
Offprice: Even Discount Retailers Feeling the Pinch
Trade Shows
Bargain hunters should feel right at home at the Offprice show in Las Vegas, held Aug. 12–15 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center.
WWDMAGIC: A Trade Show with a Party Ambience
Trade Shows
Attending WWDMAGIC, held Aug. 14–16 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, is much like going to a disco nightclub. The cacophonous vibes of various soundtracks emanate from booths displaying the latest in juniors and young-contemporary fashions.
WWIN: Retailers From Across the Country Crowd into the Show
Trade Shows
Visitors at the Women’sWear In Nevada Show at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino were greeted by a long hallway lined with displays of women’s fashions being represented at the biannual show.
Project: Big Show Drives Biz Through Small “Neighborhoods”
Trade Shows
During a time of great change for retail, Project continued to be a big show.
Liberty Expands Quest Section
Trade Shows
Change was on the mind of Sam Ben-Avraham, founder of Liberty Fashion & Lifestyle Fairs.
Capsule; New Styles, New Floor Layout
Trade Shows
High-end streetwear, fashion, denim and environmentally sustainable fashions for men and women were among the categories on display at the Aug. 14–16 run of Capsule at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas.
Agenda: Show Floor Debuts & With Look To Future
Trade Shows
The Aug. 14–16 run of Agenda at the Sands Expo and Convention Center featured debuts and some new fashion styles. There also was a promise of change, said Aaron Levant, the show founder.
Bustling at Stitch
Trade Shows
For the second season, Stitch, UBM Fashion’s show for upscale women’s apparel and accessories, was located next to Project Womens at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. The location proved to be ideal for many of the exhibitors at Stitch, who were steadily busy throughout the Aug. 14–16 show.
Curve Las Vegas Showcasing Swim, Lingerie
Trade Shows
The Manhattan Beachwear booth at Curve Las Vegas, held Aug. 14–16 within Project Womens at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center, was a flurry of activity with appointments and drop-by traffic for the company’s swim, activewear and resortwear collections.
Coeur x Project Debuts in Las Vegas
Trade Shows
This season introduced a new section at Project Womens, Coeur x Project, a partnership between Project owner UBM Fashion and Coeur, the 6-year-old trade show focused on lifestyle lines, accessories and gifts.
Spring Orders at Project Womens
Trade Shows
Buyers placing orders for Spring merchandise turned out at a steady pace at the Gentle Fawn booth at the Project Womens show, held Aug. 14–16 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center.
Signs of Spring in Las Vegas
Signs of Spring
The recent run of apparel and sourcing trade shows in Las Vegas offered a glimpse into an industry in transition. Many exhibitors at the nearly 20 trade shows running concurrently noted a lighter-than-usual buyer turnout.
Screen Style: FIDM Celebrates Emmy-Nominated Costume Design
Screen Style
Costume designers, fashion designers and other fashion-industry insiders turned out to celebrate the art of costume design at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, where the 11th annual Art of Television Costume Design exhibition recently bowed at the FIDM Museum & Galleries.
E-Com Exec to Run Macy’s Stores, 100 Jobs Cut
Retail
A desire to make Macy’s department stores even more tech-friendly led to the hire of its new chief.
Footwear Brand Sanuk Slides Into Apparel
Sanuk
After more than two decades of making flip-flops and footwear for the surf and beach crowd, the Sanuk brand is trying apparel.
Beverly Hills Tells Shops to Stay Open Late
Retail
The city of Beverly Hills has been encouraging boutiques to keep doors open after most stores call it quits for the night.
How Sourcing Managers Are Re-examining Vietnam After the Demise of a Free-Trade Agreement
Import/Export
Six or seven years ago, Steve DiBlasi of Lanier Clothes decided to shift a fair amount of his company’s apparel production from China to Vietnam.
COS Opening in DTLA
Retail
COS, launched by H&M 10 years ago, has few stores around the United States, but one is opening in downtown LA on Friday, Aug. 25.
Space Style for a New Age
The world got a first look at the new SpaceX uniform thanks to Elon Musk’s Instagram account.
Wednesday, August 23
Tuesday, August 22
Costume Designers Talk at Beverly Center
Red carpets are scheduled to be rolled out Sept. 17 for the 69th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. Beverly Center held a panel of nominated costume designers Aug. 16.
Monday, August 21
E-Com Exec to Run Macy’s Stores, 100 Jobs Cut
A desire to make Macy’s department stores even more tech-friendly informed the hire of its new chief.
Michael Costello’s Boutique Takes A Bow
After a career of dressing the likes of Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, and starring on Project Runway in 2010, Michael Costello put his name in concrete...with a L.A. Fashion District store.
Friday, August 18
Olivia Culpo’s PrettyLittleThing Party
UK brand PrettyLittleThing’s mission is to bring runway and celeb fashions to women at a low price. On Aug. 17, it produced a Los Angeles party for its capsule line PrettyLittleThing X Olivia Culpo.
Thursday, August 17
Z Supply for All
Contemporary basics line Z Supply is going to the dogs (and cats). The Irvine, Calif.–based company recently launched a pet line featuring many of the same fabrics from the Z Supply line.
Magic Kingdom Takes Best Fashion Picture at LJIFFF
La Jolla International Fashion Film Festival has maintained its independence since it was founded in 2010. Last month, more than 700 people attended the event’s parties and film festival. The Best Picture Award was handed to Magic Kingdom.
Zimberg Launches Luxe Men’s Leather Line
Zimberg
Designer Arnold Zimberg and his brother Bruce Zimberg debuted their new men’s leather jacket collection under the label Jakett/Arnold Zimberg at the recent run of Liberty in Las Vegas.
LA Swim Week Starts on Irreverent Note
LA Swim Week
For its second run at the Skirball Cultural Center in West LA, the Los Angeles Swim Week fashion shows started on an irreverent note.
Orders Despite Uncertainty at Las Vegas Trade Shows
LV Trade Shows
The apparel industry headed to Las Vegas on the hunt for new trends and new business at the many apparel and sourcing trade shows spread across the city.
Denim Defines the Clothing Trends for Back-to-School Apparel
Retail
Consumer spending on clothes and other items should definitely be in positive territory this fall as shoppers are feeling more confident about their economic condition and rising housing prices make people feel wealthier.
Retail Sales Show Solid Gains in July
Retail
Online sales took a giant 11.4 percent step forward from last year as shoppers let their fingers do the buying. Of all the categories broken out by the National Retail Federation, it was the winner in the NRF’s monthly tabulation of retail sales.
Price and Value Are Driving Retail Business
Retail
A recent survey by the International Council of Shopping Centers shows that the majority of U.S. adults are loyal to brands and retailers because of price and value.
Differential Brands Sees Sales Grow in the Second Quarter
Manufacturing
Differential Brands Group—the Los Angeles company whose labels include denim label Hudson, Robert Graham and SWIMS—reported net sales growth for its second quarter but a net loss.
Janie Bryant of "Mad Men" Creates Collection for Unique Vintage
Fashion
Costume designer Janie Bryant designs 12-piece collection for Unique Vintage.
Wednesday, August 16
Tuesday, August 15
Rodd & Gunn Takes a Bow at Westfield Century City
New Zealand’s Rodd & Gunn clothiers are taking a wider gamble on California. The third Rodd & Gunn store in California opened Aug. 10 at the Westfield Century City mall, which neighbors affluent enclaves such as Beverly Hills and West Los Angeles.
Monday, August 14
Debbie Harry X Obey Comes to Melrose
The Debbie Harry X Obey Collection lands in a pop-up shop on Los Angeles' Melrose Avenue.
Thursday, August 10
Get Your Game Shirt On
A Tokyo and Worcester, Mass.-based company has designed a sensor-enabled shirt to optimize your time spent in the virtual world—and the real one.
Bread Gets Money for E-commerce Payment Program
Technology
Bread is a New York–headquartered finance technology company that lets merchants give their customers the option to pay for items in several installments over time.
Denim Designers Debut First Collection With Pottery Barn
Design
Emily Current and Meritt Elliott debut first collection for Pottery Barn.
Apparel Decorating Solution Precise Software Joins Open Systems Business Solutions Software
Technology
Precise Software, a Minnesota-based company that provides software solutions to the decorated apparel market, has merged with Open Systems, a provider of business software solutions such as enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer-relationship management (CRM).
Billiam Jeans: Building High-End Denim One Jean at a Time
Manufacturing
On a recent weekday afternoon, denim loyalists trickle into a small store in a nondescript strip shopping center in Greenville, S.C. They’ve come to be measured and fitted for custom-made jeans or they are anxiously waiting to pick up their finished product.
Fair Trade Fashion Event Raises $31,000 for Anti-Trafficking Organization
Fair Trade Fashion
The Fair Trade Fashion Show, held July 29 at CTRL Collective in downtown Los Angeles, raised $31,000 for Free the Slaves, an international nonprofit organization that helps anti-trafficking efforts in Haiti, Ghana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, Nepal and India.
DSTLD Plans Second Round of Crowd-Funding, Pop-Ups and Other Events Planned
Retail
DSTLD, the direct-to-consumer contemporary brand for men and women, is preparing to open up its second round of crowdfunding.
CFA Breaks Down Intellectual Property Landscape
Legal
The California Fashion Association broke down an ever-widening field of intellectual-property issues for a group of apparel manufacturers and retailers at a recent strategy session featuring several legal and insurance experts.
New Non-profit Twice New Aims to Turn Event Waste Into Charitable Opportunity
Events
Crystal Ortiz and Christina Rosenberg spent years planning and producing large-scale, big-budget events such as corporate parties at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and South by Southwest. With their latest project,—the nonprofit organization Twice New—the two are focused on the less-glamorous side of event planning: what to do with all that food and other items left over after the guests have gone home.
Le Box Blanc’s Neighborhood Store in DTLA
Retail
For the past two years, Le Box Blanc has been delivering contemporary fashions to people all over America from its e-commerce shop .
Reef Founder Aguerre Brings Wild Style to Waterman’s
Waterman’s
Reef brand founder Fernando Aguerre ushered in the irreverent sartorial style of the annual Waterman’s when he arrived at the inaugural event in 1993 wearing a sarong and a 1920s-era vintage dinner jacket.
Agenda Festival to Return
Trade Shows
Agenda Festival, the consumer day of the streetwear-focused Agenda trade show, made an inaugural run last month.
Westfield Century City Announces New Stores
Retail
Westfield Century City recently announced another slate of retailers scheduled to join the sprawling mall, which is undergoing a $1 billion remodel.
Odain Brand Opens 1st Shop
Retail
Odain Watson relaunched his Odaingerous brand in 2016, and on Aug. 17 he is scheduled to open a shop, also called Odaingerous, at 719 S. Main St. in downtown Los Angeles. It will be the emerging brand’s first shop.
Japan’s Edwin Denim brand to Unveil Adriano Goldschmied Line for US
Edwin Denim
In its 70th anniversary year, Japanese denim powerhouse Edwin Co. Ltd. opened a U.S. creative studio and is bringing in jeans legend Adriano Goldschmied to design a collection for the U.S. market.
Patrick DiLascia Launches Patrick Brand
Patrick Brand
A new bricks-and-mortar store is the center of Patrick DiLascia’s new fashion venture.
Callaway Hopes for Hole-in-1 With TravisMathew
Manufacturing
Callaway Golf Co. recently announced that it had acquired Huntington Beach, Calif.–headquartered apparel brand TravisMathew, LLC for $125.5 million in an all-cash transaction.
Selectiv: Post-Corporate Business Casual
Selectiv
After spending years working in corporate environments, specifically digital departments for entertainment companies, Daniel Sakai and Calvin Lim came to a conclusion: Men’s office clothes had become a dull uniform, even in the era of business casual.
Wvs Brgde: Minimalistic Action Sports Aesthetic
Manufacturing
Pastels and neon colors might as well be white noise to Brian Boles.
New BCBG Owners Outline Their Plans for Moving the Brands Forward
Manufacturing
When Michael DeVirgilio and Cory Baker were figuring out whether they wanted to acquire the BCBGMaxAzria label and its sister brands, they quizzed retailers about whether they were still willing to carry the decades-old brands in their stores. They were happy to find that the labels weren’t on life support yet.
Prana Chief Executive Leaving in Mid-August
Manufacturing
After being with the company for nearly nine years, Scott Kerslake is leaving Prana as its chief executive to take another job.
Hollywood in Focus at WWDMAGIC’s Event Lineup in Las Vegas
Trade Shows
WWDMAGIC, the trade show for women’s apparel and accessories, has a big lineup of activities for its Aug. 14–16 event at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
ILWU Officially Votes to Extend Labor Contract by Three More Years
Import/Export
It’s official. Some 67 percent of the members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have approved a three-year extension to their five-year contract with the Pacific Maritime Association, which means their contract won’t expire until July 1, 2022.
Klarety: A Clear Vision for Womenswear
Klarety
Shortly after graduating from the University of Southern California, Tina Lo used her degree in economics and communications to immerse herself in the corporate world as a commercial insurance underwriter.
Bachrach Men’s Stores to Exit Bankruptcy Soon
Retail
Only four months after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Bachrach men’s stores is expected to emerge from bankruptcy by the end of August with 15 stores intact.
Menoh's Sewing Machine Music
Ask Lun*na Menoh, there’s a rock ‘n’ roll song in the sound of the sewing machine.
Wednesday, August 9
Wool & Thimble’s Summer Launch party
Made in Los Angeles, Wool & Thimble constructs high end T-shirts, wovens and sweats for men. Reggie Marshall, the brand’s founder and creative director, produced a launch party for its Summer ’17 collection on Aug. 8.
Monday, August 7
Bathing Ape to make a Los Angeles Comeback
High end Japanese streetwear brand Bathing Ape is making a return to Los Angeles after closing down an emporium near Melrose and Fairfax avenues in July 2010.
Thursday, August 3
Cruise 2018 in Miami Beach
Miami Cruise 2018
The Cruise 2018 collections bowed on the runways in Miami at events produced by Swim Miami, Funkshion and Art Hearts Fashion.
Bebe Launches New Campaign With New Direction
Fashion
The look still appeals to the girl who likes fancy clothes and likes to party.
J!nx for Gamers
J!nx is a San Diego-headquartered brand that makes clothes for gamers; the people who can’t be pried away from their video, Internet, X-Box, you name it-games.
Fred Segal Announces Flagship Shop-in-Shops
Retail
Fred Segal is moving along toward a fall 2017 opening—perhaps in mid-September—for its new flagship in West Hollywood, Calif., located near the Sunset Plaza high-end retail enclave.
69 Brand Pops
Gender neutral fashions are having a moment. Los Angeles brand 69 is making a statement for the look at a pop-up shop
July Sales Up, But Results Mixed
Retail
July sales beat forecasts, according to market-research firm Retail Metrics.
Cotton Prices Holding Stable as China Continues to Sell Off Its Reserves
Textiles
Cotton prices should remain on a level playing field and even decline a bit next year as farmers around the world plant more acreage.
YuniquePLM’s Latest Release Includes Added Functionality, Configurability
Technology
The latest release of YuniquePLM’s product lifecycle management software, YuniquePLM 7.1, includes new features and additions to streamline the design process.
Dress For Success S.F. Raises More Than $100,000 at Fashion Gala
Events
The recent gala hosted by Dress for Success San Francisco featured San Francisco brands Everlane and Margaret O’Leary on the runway, San Francisco chefs offering special tastings and a live auction as well as a silent one.
Quiet August Market in LA Yields Immediate Orders, Out-of-Town Business
Trade Shows
August market in Los Angeles is typically a quiet affair, with exhibitors and buyers navigating a crowded trade-show schedule that includes the massive Las Vegas trade shows later in the month.
NetSuite Takes Cloud On Road
Technology
Oracle NetSuite, the San Mateo, Calif.–based, cloud-based enterprise resource planning and omnichannel commerce software owned by tech giant Oracle, has been hitting a number of apparel trade shows this year. The most recent was Agenda in Long Beach, Calif., in July.
Reyn Spooner’s New Direction, New Leadership
Manufacturing
Heritage aloha brand Reyn Spooner has been traveling a steady course for decades, but its new creative and executive team plans to steer it toward bigger things.
South Coast Plaza Buys Sears Land
Retail
Sears has run a department store and an auto center at the northeast end of luxe retail center South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Calif., for 50 years.
Outdoor Retailer Hosts Last Show in Salt Lake City, Prepares for Move to Denver
Outdoor Retailer
There were mixed emotions at the July 26–29 run of Outdoor Retailer. For the past 20 years, Salt Lake City has been home to the biannual show, but in January 2018 Outdoor Retailer will move to Denver. Some were sad to be leaving Salt Lake City, while others were excited to head to Colorado next year to start a new chapter.
Tuesday, August 1
'Frida''s Quinceanera in DTLA
Style Inspiration
La Plaza de Cultura y Artes threw a fashionable quincenera to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the release of "Frida."
Fire in the LA Fashion District Near Santee Alley
Incendiary
Nearly 100 firefighters show up to put out a blaze in the LA Fashion District.
New Owners Take Over BCBGMaxAzria and Other Labels
Manufacturing
On Aug. 1, Marquee Brands announced it had acquired the entire portfolio of brands once owned by the BCBG Max Azria Group, the Los Angeles fashion house that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Feb. 28.
Lucky Brand X Tim McGraw and Faith Hill
Lucky Brand recently unveiled a collaboration line with country music performers Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. They’ve been really big deals in the world of country music for more than 20-years, and are currently in the midst of their long Soul2Soul tour.
