Up All Night in Brentwood
Many fashion boutiques outside the malls close at 7 every night, but not Metro, based in Los Angeles’ exclusive Brentwood neighborhood.
Store owners Elaine Culotti and Barbara Chacon are relative night owls in this quiet, wealthy enclave. The Metro owners said they are not trying to rewrite rules for business hours. They’re just trying to keep up with their neighbors.
Metro is located on the 11700 block of San Vicente Boulevard, adjacent to a Whole Foods Market and a fashionable sushi restaurant called Katsuya. Both venues attract big nighttime crowds. When Metro first opened for business on July 14, the 5,000-square-foot fashion, beauty and homeware boutique stayed up until 10 p.m., which happened to be closing time for Whole Foods.
Recently it scaled back hours to 8:30 p.m., but it might go back to a 10 p.m. closing time for the holidays. The mix of the late hours, the location and its fashions for men and women may have placed the store on the neighborhood map.
On Sept. 15, the boutique debuted its Metro Club, a 1,000-square-foot section reserved for people who spend $500 to $1,500 each visit. Culotti said 80 people have been accepted to this shoppers’ club, which offers a free bar, a separate store entrance, a personal shopper and special trunk shows.
Despite Brentwood’s wealth and its claim to residents such as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and movie director Steven Spielberg, Culotti found out that Brentwood shares California’s obsession with jeans.
The best-selling item at Metro is the Waysted jean, produced by Los Angeles–based label Serfontaine. The jean is defined by its straight leg and its stretchy material. It retails for $220.
Brentwood pride must be important to the women who shop at Metro. Other big sellers are shirts by Chicago-based Festa, which bear messages such as “Brentwood Girl” and “I’ll Never Move East of the 405.” (Brentwood is west of the San Diego (405) Freeway.) The T-shirt retails for $40.—Andrew Asch
