California Apparel News

From the Oscars red carpet at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre to L.A.’s Fall market week—all roads led to fashion March 11–14.

Management at The New Mart, California Market Center, Cooper Design Space and Lady Liberty Building all worked in unison to create four days of style and luxury for the retail stars lucky enough to be in attendance.

Although the most elevated looks may have been on Academy Award nominees, Fall appears to be bringing glam to us with strong nostalgic references. The vibes ranged from a strong ’60s nod through Y2K, country-club chic to “The Sopranos” and Paris straight to Texas. Hold on, y’all.

Each building welcomed buyers with gourmet coffee, fabulous lunches, all-day happy hours and evening after-hours activities. The elevated car service Alto provided transport to five partner hotels.

For the first time ever, 10 Ukrainian designers, led by Ana Petrova, showcased their collections in a special project called Ukrainian Fashion Forward, making its debut in Los Angeles.

“We were thrilled to welcome the Ukrainian fashion brands Zilyova, Total White, Roar, RDNT, Overthesea, Must Have, L’eskizzo, Kseniaschnaider, 2Kolyory and Vivons,” said Tom Keefer, general manager of The New Mart. “All had very special, stand-out collections.”

“We are enjoying a robust March; between this show and Designers and Agents,” continued Keefer, “buyers were really pleased with the incremental brands at both shows as well as at our regular showrooms.”

Miss Me made its return to The New Mart, showing Immediates through Fall in the hottest trending stories such as Western, Navajo, patchwork and crochets.

At Eternelle, Euro-chic sweaters, priced at $52.50, were often accented with rhinestones and studs. This Fall’s perfect pairing was its printed tulle skirt at $49.50 in a classic palette of creams, camels and grays.

At Wooden Ships, cozy crew sweaters, handmade in Bali, were available in three sizes. Whimsical holiday themes were top sellers. Halloween included Good Witch, Trick or Treat, and Hocus Pocus, priced at $60, with a new zip-front body at $68.

Ed Mandelbaum, president of D&A, said, “We welcomed a number of new collections to the L.A. show for Fall. Many expressed positive feedback on both order writing and opening new accounts.”

Il Bisonte, a luxury leather-goods brand from Florence, Italy, was one. Carolyn Pittel, director of sales and business development USA, explained the history of the brand and the di Fillipo family’s concept of “timeless beauty” for over 50 years.

“We had an exciting week planned for buyers, which included a fresh range of new showrooms alongside regular favorites,” said Marketing Manager Yvette Beltran. “Donegar | Tobe reported on ‘What People Will Wear for Fall ’24’ following a fantastic breakfast spread,” added Beltran.

Among a prestigious group of retail owners and buyers was Sheila Campbell and her daughter of Sugar in Westlake Village, Calif. “The presentation was great! It gave me a lot of good information. Normally our vendors come to us, so it’s a treat to actually be at market; it’s been a while.”

Trends went from ’60s “Mod Squad” to ’80s maximalism, from country-club sport to quiet luxury. Above all else, denim dominated so far beyond the jean.

The breakneck speed with which country-western fashion has come on the scene, it only made sense that this was a major story for Fall ’24 and beyond. Between Pharrell bringing Cowboy to LV and Roseberry bringing his Texas roots to Schiaparelli, and Beyoncé’s new album on fire, no doubt we are embarking on a ride into a new era of Cowgirl Core.

Showing for her first time, Angeleno Fallon Foster, designer of her namesake label, was inspired by her move to Austin, Texas. Not her first rodeo in fashion, her line featured western detailing priced at $56–$119.

Also new was I Love Who I Am. These cool-girl styles included super bells, wide legs and denim/fleece mixes priced from $15 to $25.

L.A.-based Bailey Rose is a vintage-inspired season-less collection, which showed Immediates through Fall for the elevated junior consumer. Its strong print story was anchored by playful crewneck pullover sweaters priced at $21.

LuLus, known for its dresses and previously only available at Nordstrom, showed its “sweet” girl line with a Taylor Swift vibe. Florals were key, and all dresses were priced under $150.

Among the hottest brands were those making a big comeback from the past.

The rise of retro led by Gen Z’s love of nostalgia dominated the Brand Assembly show floor. CEO Hillary France was “really excited about all the old-school names relaunching at the show. So many of the greats are back, and nostalgia is performing.”

Lashonica Essex and Shara Campbell came from Houston to shop for the Golden Nugget casinos. “We are excited to see Brand Assembly. There are so many lines at this expanded L.A. show.”

At Esprit, the brand’s archival sweats and totes received a great reaction. Unisex hoodies and sweats were priced at $47–$51 and totes at $23. Fall will see a relaunch of the brand at Nordstrom.

At Sergio Tacchini, the sport and lifestyle brand that rose to fame in the ’70’s–‘80s, when hip-hop culture embraced the tennis-star tracksuit, straight outta the past came its iconic apparel.

The Nu Vintage collection green label, made in L.A., is the high-end creation of Jacques Kevorkian. His hand-done, patchwork, snap-front shirtings and utility pants all have a distinctly cool retro feel. The Very Bob Marley’s One Love looks were priced at $69–$135.

Good American was running with its hot items. Adding to its “better than leather” story in black, it’s added brown, priced at $60–$109. It’s No. 1 best-selling jumpsuit style continues in denim and is now also available in corduroy, priced at $87.

Presented in an informal fashion show were a few great lines such as Na Lei Boho by Sheena Goldhagen, who works with women artisans from Turkey to Tulum. Kimonos start at $90 and hats at $70.

Co-owners of the Pacific Trading Co. in Santa Cruz and Capitola, Calif., Rama Zoe Heinrich and Anandi Heinrich were in L.A. working the shows. “This gives us time to overview and see what stands out. There’s lots new and exciting.”

“This market we hosted a co-op showroom where we featured 20 brands and collections, and we saw a steady stream of appointments,” said CEO Empera Arye.

At Love The Label, the Fall collection was on point. Even though this ain’t Texas, the West got wild with a brown denim story highlighted with contrast white stitching priced at $90–$110.

Caballero expanded its top-selling pleated leather skirt to include this season’s addition with a double buckle priced at $103–$112.

A Shirt Thing played with great classic menswear striped shirtings, made in L.A. with Italian fabrics priced at $105–$150.

Love TanJane, a knitwear line created by hand-dyeing each piece to be unique, has garnered a cult following. The line starts at $88, with cashmeres at $254 and up.