Getting Back Into the Apparel Business After a 20-Year Hiatus
Fashion
Step into Trishia Grace’s compact atelier in West Hollywood and you will see her world of fashion influenced by delicate fabrics and femininity.
How Many More Laps Are Left for the Athleisure Trend?
Fashion
Financial gurus around the United States have started to ask whether the prosperous athleisure trend is on its last run around the track.
Westfield Shopping Centers Hook Up With Uber
Retail
Now there's a way to avoid the parking lot at Westfield shopping centers in style.
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.
Lucky Brand Expands Into Home Collection
Retail
Lucky Brand is offering a home collection that sells at Macy's.
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.
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.
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.
Denim Designers Debut First Collection With Pottery Barn
Design
Emily Current and Meritt Elliott debut first collection for Pottery Barn.
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.
Bebe Launches New Campaign With New Direction
Fashion
The look still appeals to the girl who likes fancy clothes and likes to party.
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.
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.
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.
Two New Contemporary Stores Opening in DTLA
Retail
The area near Broadway and Ninth street is heating up with contemporary stores.
West Coast Longshore Workers Approve Contract Extension to 2022
Import/Export
Members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union 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.
The Effect of Rising Interest Rates on the Apparel Business
Finance
For nearly a decade, interest rates have remained near zero, meaning it was very inexpensive for businesses to borrow money. But those sunny days may be over. Twice this year, the Federal Reserve has raised the prime rate, and it is expected to do so again later this year.
Bankruptcy Court Judge Denies Lubov Azria’s Latest Move to Receive $7 Million in Compensation
Manufacturing
In the latest saga in the bankruptcy case of BCBG Max Azria Group, a federal judge has denied Lubov Azria’s attempt to receive nearly $7 million in lost wages and a payout known as a golden parachute.
REI to Open Big Store in Burbank
Retail
REI is taking over a former Sports Authority store that has been closed since Sports Authority went bankrupt last year.
Trade Protectionism and E-Commerce Are Top Concerns for Chief U.S. Fashion Industry Executives
Retail
With a new president in the White House, U.S. fashion manufacturers and retailers said their biggest concerns this year are about new trade barriers going up that would restrict apparel imports.
How the Apparel Industry Is Coping With Higher Minimum Wages
Manufacturing
The introductory video on the Tianello website talks about how the Los Angeles clothing maker’s collection of Tencel and silk tops lovingly passes through 100 hands before ending up in someone’s closet.
The CMC Balloons With Fun
Events
For a couple of days, the lobby at the California Market Center looked like a big party.
Erewhon Market Coming to Building Near LA Fashion District
Retail
Erewhon Market is expected to open in the next few years in a hot spot in DTLA.
Nordstrom Rack Set Opening Date for DTLA
Retail
The unveiling of the Nordstrom Rack at Fig@7th will be this fall.
Henry Cherner, AIMS360 Managing Partner, 66
Technology
Henry Cherner, a Los Angeles pioneer in software programs for the fashion industry and an apparel industry veteran, passed away suddenly from a heart attack on Sunday. He was 66.
One-Piece Swimsuits a Popular Trend at Swim Collective
Swim Collective
Trim models swiveled from front to back to show off the newest bikinis and one-piece suits created by swimwear designers. Serious buyers on the hunt for the latest in poolside fashions crowded into booths as an explosion of colorful prints and solid colors ran across the ballroom that housed the latest Swim Collective in Huntington Beach, Calif.
Cargo Container Traffic Could Hit Record Numbers This Summer
Import/Export
Protectionist talk may be in the air, but imports are still arriving at our doors.
Trina Turk Adds Her Design Flair to the Poolside Cabanas at W Los Angeles
Resort Fashion
LA designer Trina Turk puts her touch on the cabanas surrounding the pool at the W Los Angeles.
Hundreds Get Final Pink Slips at BCBG Max Azria
Manufacturing
As operations wind down at the bankrupt BCBG Max Azria Group, nearly 500 layoff notices have gone out to employees of the contemporary brand founded in Los Angeles nearly 30 years ago.
Cargo Container Traffic Could Hit Record Numbers This Summer
Protectionist talk may be in the air, but imports are still arriving at our doors. With the U.S. economy in its eighth year of recovery, cargo container volumes at the nation’s ports are expected to be at an all-time high as retailers head into the Back-to-School season.
Horizon Swim: A Swimwear Label With a Personal Touch
Swim/Surf
By day, Jessi Taylor is an executive assistant at a Los Angeles advertising company. By night she is a swimwear designer who makes her own patterns and sews her own swimsuits—one by one—for her line called Horizon Swim.
Drupe: Around the World With an International Staff:
Swim/Surf
When Mireya de Andrés told her parents she was quitting her banking job in Geneva, Switzerland, to start a fashion line, they thought she was crazy. Fashion seemed to be on the flip side of the finance world.
