California Apparel News

CIT Commercial Services,a subsidiary of First Citizens Bank, has welcomed Mike Earnhart as senior vice president and regional sales manager, based in Los Angeles. Earnhart is responsible for leading a team of sales executives in overseeing and growing new business while introducing new products for commercial services in the Western region. “We are excited to bring onboard a person of Mike’s professional stature,” said Darrin Beer, managing director and Western regional manager for CIT. “He has the right skills, industry knowledge and relationships to accelerate growth for the region.” Earnhart comes to CIT from White Oak Commercial Finance, where he was managing director of originations. He previously worked as an executive director at JPMorgan Chase and as a senior vice president at Wells Fargo Capital Finance.

Curve is coming off two successful shows—July 24–25 in Los Angeles and July 31–Aug. 2 in New York— cementing its reputation as the leading trade show for intimate apparel and swimwear in North America. Curve Montreal will take place Sept. 18–19. Show partner NPD Group gave its forecast for the industry, saying it has increased by $1.9 billion since 2018. “Retail-store owners can’t do both events with larger open-to-buys,” said show producer Comexposium USA in a release. “Additionally, many were looking to add new designers after playing it safe for the last two years. Our focus at Curve is on value-added experiences and opportunities to support new design talent.”

PANGAIA has announced the opening of its first-ever physical experience in Los Angeles—an immersive pop-up focused on carbon neutrality, circularity and purpose. The pop-up opened Sept. 1 at The Grove shopping center and will be held through Sept. 27, celebrating the brand’s milestone of having planted, protected or restored 1 million trees to date through the Tomorrow Tree Fund. Designed to recreate a sensory experience of a lush forest, the immersive shopping environment was inspired by the coastal woodlands of Northern California. From evolving soundscapes to smells of greenery, the experience takes cues from the brand’s ethos and commitment to “high-tech naturalism.” The exterior is made from repurposed panels and is blanketed in an attention-drawing jade green to ignite dialogue around climate change.

The Apparel Impact Institute in San Francisco has welcomed Kay Bloomberg as chief of staff. In her new role, Bloomberg will be responsible for internal initiatives, working alongside Aii’s leadership team as well as managing stakeholder engagement, including major fashion-industry brands and manufacturers, NGOs and foundations. The newly created position is critical to Aii’s mission to help the apparel ecosystem address the climate crisis and other critical environmental impacts. Bloomberg has 10 years of experience at startups in the technology-education space. She graduated from the University of Connecticut School of Business and taught with Teach for America before transitioning into the tech sector. Since then she has worked with software companies, striving to close the educational-achievement gap and helping to build and scale them from their first few employees to their first few hundred.