[BrighamYen]

^ Thanks for the retail update!

I would like to point out also that American Apparel closed down their shop at the Shy Barry Lofts. I don't think it made any money (although I did buy a jacket there).

I also was disappointed to see that the brand new windows for the Rite Aid across the street on Broadway already has tagging/etching. :( I guess I'm being overly picky since I saw a lot of that in Manhattan but you don't really seem to notice in NYC for some reason?

[bjornson]

^I think it was an outlet. They moved to Alameda I believe.
Great update, Colemonkee! I'm not too aware of retail in downtown. I like how independent retailers are setting up.

Hollywood Retail News:
Napoleon Dynamite

When hearing the name Napoleon, one might recall a certain vertically challenged French dictator or a certain liger-loving social pariah. In makeup artist Napoleon Perdis' case, he hopes his first name will also become synonymous with female empowerment via tubes of lipgloss. "We are a translation house," the Australian native tells us. "Our goal is to help women translate the looks they see on the runway and in magazines to reality. We allow them to be in charge."

With 52 stand-alone stores, global distribution of his eponymous cosmetic line and a stint as judge on his homeland's "Next Top Model," Perdis (pictured) now has LA on his mind. He recently opened shops in Topanga Plaza and Century City, and in March, Perdis will unveil his flagship on Hollywood Boulevard. The boutique will not only carry his full makeup line (the primer and lip lacquer are customer faves), it will also feature VIP memberships, which include the use of private rooms, a concierge and 24/7 makeover services. "I chose LA because it's very similar to Australia, from the climate to the people," explains Perdis. "Plus, this is where Hollywood glamour is. Women aren't afraid to embrace their beauty here."

Melrose News:
Theory is the next shop to open up. It's looking for sales associates right now.

[BrighamYen]

Great news! I love Theory!

I also am curious where Napoleon Perdis is going to open his flagship store? Any idea?

[BrighamYen]

STYLE NOTEBOOK


Eastern parade
The runways of New York offer California designers a chance to see and be seen.
By Booth Moore
Times Staff Writer

February 3, 2007

MORE Los Angeles designers than ever are migrating east for the fall runway shows, which get underway in New York this weekend. From contemporary sportswear to raucous denim to couture-level gowns, the array of locally grown talent showing in New York is a testament to how diverse the fashion community has become here. To say that L.A. fashion is just about jeans or worse, knockoffs, is just not true anymore.

Even casual wear designers, who have defined L.A.'s Fashion Week, are heeding the call of Seventh Avenue. Perhaps none is as surprising as Erik Hart, of the skull-and-Victoriana laden Morphine Generation — a label that so far has made its success on foil-printed T-shirts.

Other first-timers worth noting are Cynthia Vincent, who is showing her contemporary Twelfth Street line; stylist-turned-designer Pegah Anvarian, who built her name on jersey pieces but has chosen New York to debut her more sophisticated separates; and Geren Ford, who graduates this season from L.A.'s Gen Art, bringing her first full collection to New York's Gen Art.

It's a frequent flight pattern. Over the last five years, a growing number of L.A.'s most prominent labels continue to be designed here — but shown in New York, including Rodarte, BCBG Max Azria, Monique Lhuillier, Jenni Kayne, Jovovich-Hawk, Rock & Republic and Grey Ant, all of them seeking a bigger spotlight.

Last week, I caught up with four of the latest runway runaways to talk about their expectations and their inspirations.

Rodarte

Can you imagine spending months painstakingly cutting, stitching and fitting a garment only to trust it to the FedEx gods? That's exactly what Rodarte's Kate and Laura Mulleavy are doing. These sisters, who still live with their parents in Pasadena, have charmed editors and buyers with their outsider approach and their couture-level technique. They have dressed celebrities such as Cate Blanchett, landed in the pages of Harper's Bazaar and the world's most exclusive stores, including Colette in Paris and Joyce in Hong Kong, and recently had their garments requested for the permanent collection of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York — and all without any fashion training. (They studied at UC Berkeley, Laura majoring in English and Kate in art history.)

But opinions were split over last season's over-the-top presentation of beribboned-and-bowed pannier dresses dotted with hand-sewn roses. I thought their vision got the best of them, and the collection was romantic to the point of being cartoonish. Store buyers were more enthusiastic, and sales tripled from the season before, the Mulleavys say. Regardless, the stakes are high for this next collection. To achieve real staying power, and real relevance in the fashion industry, the designers need to strike more of a balance between the creative and the real world, and they need to show more than red carpet dresses.

Perhaps sensing the kind of pressure they are under, the Mulleavys didn't reveal much about next week's show as they were pinning pleats at their fashion district loft space last weekend. They did say they would take risks, even if that means poor reviews, because that's how they believe they can build a brand. That means continuing to push their design signatures — flowers, hand pleats and the gently undulating waves that ran down the front of a cream cocktail confection worn by Blanchett at the AFI Awards in December.

"It's important for us to have our clothes signify something," says Kate Mulleavy, 26, who does much of the work by hand with her sister, with occasional help from a pattern-maker or intern. "The reason Chanel is such a great model for us is that it signifies something — a pearl necklace or a camellia flower.

"We knew our last collection wasn't going to be crazily commercial and that we couldn't make 100 of those rose gowns. But the designers that we admire continuously go out on a limb. Down the line, there's room for diversification."

Incidentally, they did sell one of the rose gowns, priced at $35,000, to a private collector. Not that they are living the high life. While they are in New York, the Mulleavys will be working out of an unfurnished short-term rental apartment and sleeping on air mattresses.

Twelfth Street

While Rodarte is close to couture, the Twelfth Street line is more about ease, that buzzword that describes so much of what West Coast designers do best. Designer Cynthia Vincent built her business on separates that may not be instantly recognizable as hers but are indispensable wardrobe pieces, such as the velvet boudoir jacket and the kimono sleeve sweater. A 15-year veteran of the industry, she graduated from Otis Parsons, worked in fashion in London and then in 1998 became one of the founding members of CLAD, the Coalition of Los Angeles Designers, an organization created to support L.A.'s independent designers before there were so many successful ones.

She owned a retail store, Aero & Co., with her friend Alisa Loftin and worked under several other designers before launching her collection at L.A. Fashion Week in 2003. She has seen sales rise from $3 million her first year to $15 million last year. Twelfth Street is a mainstay at Shopbop.com and has its own section on the third floor at Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills, not far from Vince and Tory Burch.

And now Vincent is ready to be recognized for it. She wants people to know there is a face behind Twelfth Street, named after the street she grew up on in Laverne. New York, she says, is the place to get her name out.

At her studio on Broadway, her 7-month-old daughter, Fiona, is crying in the crib behind her. Although Vincent may be the picture of the modern working mom, her fall collection was inspired by 1950s shapes, particularly the watteau back. She brings the swingy shape up to date on cashmere sweaters and a marvelous caped hoodie. Dresses, such as a dusty rose design with copper thread shot through, are light as a feather but manage to have a formality to them. Instead of jeans, she's done flannel pants based on the skinny jean. There are some chic accessories too, including metallic short boots, a cross between a jazz shoe and an Oxford, and crinkled patent leather bags with doorknocker closures.

The appeal of her clothes doesn't often become apparent until you play with them. A top can be belted, worn open or closed, layered or not. Vincent says she's trying to translate that quality to the runway. "I work hard to make things look appealing, but I don't want to sacrifice ease. I'm not making design school clothes. For me, it's thrilling to know someone went out and spent money on one of my things and loves it."

Geren Ford

A few blocks away, Geren Ford is preparing to pack up her collection in suitcases and board the red-eye. She's hoping the Gen Art runway show in New York will give her the exposure she needs to expand her company internationally. The Northern California native worked in advertising for years before a pair of drawstring pants she made for herself started her new career. She wore the pants into the Beverly Boulevard boutique Beige and the owner offered to buy them on the spot. Ford officially launched her line four years ago with three pieces. Last fall Barneys picked it up, and soon Cameron Diaz came calling.

Still, Ford works hard at giving the impression that she is above the thrill of celebrity exposure. "I got a call from someone who said Jessica Simpson bought my kimono dress and I almost died. I don't want to be the girl who did the kimono dress that Jessica Simpson bought. It taints the perception of what you could be."

Diaz and Simpson aside, Ford is earning a reputation for her custom prints, like the swirling design on a tunic dress for fall, inspired by marbled paper. Striving also for ease, she designs skinny pants with elastic waists, T-shirts in cotton cashmere with subtle pleating as embellishment and a simple blouson jacket in silk jacquard.

Doing business in L.A. is easier than in New York, Ford says, noting that the hours commuting in her car keep her focused. Production is better and faster at the factories here too. But when it comes to showing, she says L.A. is not worth the trouble. "I just don't know if there is that much room to grow here."

Pegah Anvarian

Designer Pegah Anvarian says her fall line was inspired by a love of astrology (not as bad as it sounds), and she's hoping her New York turn will land it in a department store, preferably Barneys. Celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe created some buzz when she stole the cropped leather bubble jacket off Anvarian's back at a party, then ordered one in every color. But that does not a business make.

A former stylist whose proudest moment was making costumes for a B52s music video, Anvarian rose to the top of L.A. Fashion Week with her jersey creations. Eager not to be defined by one thing, she decided to take a break last year and make a fresh start with a more high-end collection. Local boutiques Curve and Des Kohan bought into her new, edgier look. Taking a break from shooting her fall look book at Quixote Studios, she points out a few of her key pieces for fall: tissue-thin washed wool turtlenecks in star prints, draped half-coats fastened with oversized safety pins, jersey dresses with half bodices, and biker jackets with circular seams and super fitted sleeves — all in autumnal hues of eggplant, olive, brown, gray and black.

"L.A. was the test to see if I could do it," Anvarian says. "But to me, New York is the real show."


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
booth.moore@latimes.com

[bjornson]

The party's over for gate-crashers
IMG and Smashbox are taking steps to cut down on 'lobby sleaze': less alcohol and more refined invitation lists.
By Caroline Ryder, Special to The Times
February 3, 2007

"There's something in the fashion world called a 'lobby sleaze,' " says Fern Mallis, vice president of IMG Fashion, the company that produces fashion weeks in L.A., New York, Miami and many other cities. "You get them everywhere — especially in L.A."

She's right — last season, the lushes and the nobodies were out in full force at Smashbox Studios in Culver City, the main venue for the Los Angeles Fashion Week runway shows. They gulped free Gran Centenario tequila cocktails, pilfered gift bags and slipped uninvited into front-row seats. Afterward, they swapped business cards and chitchatted with B-list soap stars, Paris Hilton look-alikes and gate-crashers who had congregated in the lobby.

Jenni Kayne, an L.A. designer who showed at Smashbox four times before moving her runway show to New York, says going to L.A. Fashion Week is "like going to a club — they don't even know what shows they are going to."

Well, it looks like the party's over.

IMG and Smashbox are planning a series of measures to make this season's L.A. Fashion Week, which kicks off March 18, a more exclusive event. Not only will lobby sleazes have a harder time getting in, even if they do squeeze past tightened security, they may be disappointed by what they find inside — less alcohol.

"We want less drinking in the lobby," said Mallis, who also plans to turn down the lobby music. "There's a plentiful amount of free alcohol, and that tends to create a certain kind of atmosphere."

As for the shows, designers will be asked to refine their invitation lists and refrain from "inviting 1,200 people to a 600-capacity show."

"We want audiences to be made up of people who are actually in the business of fashion," Mallis said. The VIP room, which will be located in what was formerly the writers' lounge, will be smaller and limited to celebrities and the media, with more of a "green room vibe," Mallis said.

And the former VIP room will house the design suites — the showrooms or booth spaces for designers not doing runway shows. In previous seasons, the suites were held at H.D. Buttercup in Culver City and at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Ultimately, L.A. Fashion Week may move out of Smashbox altogether.

"I actually thought it might happen next season," says Davis Factor. He and his brother Dean, co-founders of Smashbox, have been scouting alternative venues for 18 months, looking at movie studios, hotels and warehouses.

Mallis, however, is inclined to keep L.A. Fashion Week in Culver City for now: "We were downtown in the beginning, and all we heard was people complaining about how difficult it was to get there. I find Culver City much more accessible."

Nonetheless, a new location could help complete an image overhaul. When the event launched in September 2003, prominent labels such as Jeremy Scott and Ghost were on the schedule. Last season, Wal-Mart had a runway show for its cheap-chic Metro 7 line.

While some talented designers, including Louis Verdad and Kevan Hall, remain loyal to L.A., they are increasingly outnumbered by local luminaries who flee to the New York runways — or, like Juicy Couture and Chrome Hearts, who don't participate at all.

Will the changes be enough to attract more talent to L.A.?

It's too soon to tell. The March show schedule has not been released.

[ocman]

The party's over for gate-crashers
IMG and Smashbox are taking steps to cut down on 'lobby sleaze': less alcohol and more refined invitation lists.
By Caroline Ryder, Special to The Times
February 3, 2007

"There's something in the fashion world called a 'lobby sleaze,' " says Fern Mallis, vice president of IMG Fashion, the company that produces fashion weeks in L.A., New York, Miami and many other cities. "You get them everywhere — especially in L.A."

She's right — last season, the lushes and the nobodies were out in full force at Smashbox Studios in Culver City, the main venue for the Los Angeles Fashion Week runway shows. They gulped free Gran Centenario tequila cocktails, pilfered gift bags and slipped uninvited into front-row seats. Afterward, they swapped business cards and chitchatted with B-list soap stars, Paris Hilton look-alikes and gate-crashers who had congregated in the lobby.

Jenni Kayne, an L.A. designer who showed at Smashbox four times before moving her runway show to New York, says going to L.A. Fashion Week is "like going to a club — they don't even know what shows they are going to."

Well, it looks like the party's over.

IMG and Smashbox are planning a series of measures to make this season's L.A. Fashion Week, which kicks off March 18, a more exclusive event. Not only will lobby sleazes have a harder time getting in, even if they do squeeze past tightened security, they may be disappointed by what they find inside — less alcohol.

"We want less drinking in the lobby," said Mallis, who also plans to turn down the lobby music. "There's a plentiful amount of free alcohol, and that tends to create a certain kind of atmosphere."

As for the shows, designers will be asked to refine their invitation lists and refrain from "inviting 1,200 people to a 600-capacity show."

"We want audiences to be made up of people who are actually in the business of fashion," Mallis said. The VIP room, which will be located in what was formerly the writers' lounge, will be smaller and limited to celebrities and the media, with more of a "green room vibe," Mallis said.

And the former VIP room will house the design suites — the showrooms or booth spaces for designers not doing runway shows. In previous seasons, the suites were held at H.D. Buttercup in Culver City and at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Ultimately, L.A. Fashion Week may move out of Smashbox altogether.

"I actually thought it might happen next season," says Davis Factor. He and his brother Dean, co-founders of Smashbox, have been scouting alternative venues for 18 months, looking at movie studios, hotels and warehouses.

Mallis, however, is inclined to keep L.A. Fashion Week in Culver City for now: "We were downtown in the beginning, and all we heard was people complaining about how difficult it was to get there. I find Culver City much more accessible."

Nonetheless, a new location could help complete an image overhaul. When the event launched in September 2003, prominent labels such as Jeremy Scott and Ghost were on the schedule. Last season, Wal-Mart had a runway show for its cheap-chic Metro 7 line.

While some talented designers, including Louis Verdad and Kevan Hall, remain loyal to L.A., they are increasingly outnumbered by local luminaries who flee to the New York runways — or, like Juicy Couture and Chrome Hearts, who don't participate at all.

Will the changes be enough to attract more talent to L.A.?

It's too soon to tell. The March show schedule has not been released.



Finally. They should have done this last year. It should help bring atleast an ounce more of respectibility to the shows.

[edluva]

yeah, my FIT fashion friends say NY fashion types scoff at our fashion week. Too many B-list celebrities and too few socialites and fashion people.

[BrighamYen]

If they had the Purple and Green Line extended, perhaps our Downtown (supposed heart of the city) would be accessible to business. :rolleyes:

[bjornson]

Retail, Style Milestones for Versace

Published: Wednesday, February 07, 2007
By Emili Vesilind
BEVERLY HILLS — Versace has reason for a double celebration.

The company launched its renovated flagship here, unveiling a sleeker, more understated side of the decadent Versace style. In addition, creative director Donatella Versace will accept the Rodeo Drive Walk of Style award on Thursday night.

The 5,000-square-foot unit here was the first that the company overhauled from top to bottom.

"Everything is completely brand new, from the floors to the shelves to the ceiling," said Roberto Lorenzini, president and chief operating officer of Versace USA.

The black-and-white color scheme is accented with Italian crystal display units and glossy black terrazzo marble floors, juxtaposed with matte white walls and ceilings.

"This is a new concept defined by Milan," Lorenzini said. "For the U.S. market, the renovation is definitely an important step for us, because it's going to show what Versace is becoming.…The boutique is more sophisticated, elegant and modern."

The store maintains a Rodeo Drive address — 248 North Rodeo Drive — but is located in the open-air Two Rodeo shopping complex, which intersects the iconic shopping street. Tiffany & Co., Gianfranco Ferré, Badgley Mischka and Gucci Fine Jewelry are among Versace's neighbors in the center.

The revamp is part of a worldwide initiative to update all company stores that began in 2005 with the renovation of the company's Fifth Avenue boutique in New York. The boutiques in Milan, Brussels and London have been completed; the Beverly Hills store is the fifth to undergo renovation.

Handbags and accessories were relocated to the second floor from the first, displayed on built-in shelves of alternating black lacquered wood and white leather. The company's ready-to-wear collections moved from the first floor to the smaller, oval-shape second floor, accessible from a wide, winding staircase. "We dedicated the whole ground floor to the accessory business it has shown amazing growth in the last year," Lorenzini said.

Prices for apparel in the Gianni Versace collection, the top tier under the Versace umbrella, range from $500 for a sweatshirt to more than $150,000 for gowns. Handbags range from about $2,000 to $7,000.

The company hopes the overhaul will generate double-digit sales growth. After renovations are finished on the six remaining U.S. units, "we may potentially be opening new retail stores," Lorenzini said. (Does this mean good fortune for DT?)

Donatella Versace and her late brother, company founder Gianni Versace, will be honored at the annual Walk of Style event, which celebrates icons in the fashion and entertainment industries. Sharon Stone, Prince Rupert Everett and Elizabeth Hurley are among the guests expected to attend the festivities at City Hall in Beverly Hills.

"The award signifies worldwide recognition of the talent and genius of both Gianni Versace and Donatella Versace," said Giancarlo Di Risio, chief executive officer of Gianni Versace Spa. "The brand Versace has always been strongly connected to the world of cinema, celebrity and music, so this award is very fitting with the brand's history, present and future.…Celebrities understand that Versace embodies luxury and atelier expertise. They appreciate the cut above the norm that Versace offers."

Versace has been a go-to label in Hollywood since the Eighties, and has been responsible for some of the most discussed red-carpet looks in recent memory, including the diaphanous green dress worn by Jennifer Lopez at the 2000 Grammy Awards.

Stylist Daniel Caudill, who has dressed celebrities in Versace, said the fit, paired with glamorous, camera-ready looks, is why stylists turn to the label. "[Versace] dresses have a lot of detail, and it's easy for things to not look right when there's detail," Caudill said. "But when [the dress] goes on, everything falls in the right place. There are details inside and underneath the garment as well. They are dresses you know will stay put.''

Photographs from Versace's spring 2007 campaign, shot by Mario Testino, will be affixed to banners on main avenues in Beverly Hills until Feb. 25.

A plaque bearing the names of both designers and their signatures will be embedded into the sidewalk of Rodeo Drive. Previous honorees include Salvatore Ferragamo, Giorgio Armani and Tom Ford.


[b]Colcci Makes U.S. Beachhead in Santa Monica

Published: Wednesday, February 07, 2007
By Khanh T.L. Tran
SANTA MONICA, Calif. — A 21-year-old brand that generates more than $100 million in sales in its native Brazil and flaunts supermodel Gisele Bündchen in ads, Colcci is taking measured steps to break into the U.S. market.

Owned by AMC Textile, which says it is the second-largest manufacturer in Brazil, the young contemporary label has opened its first U.S. office here with five employees, who are trying to build a wholesale business in a market that they acknowledged to be difficult, competitive and fast-moving.

"For any company, not just a fashion company," the task would be a challenge, said managing director Roberta Cysne, who previously worked at Diesel in Italy and Liz Claiborne in Amsterdam.

Colcci faces competition not only from fast-fashion retailers including Los Angeles-based Forever 21, but also other emerging young contemporary labels like Hot Kiss Inc.'s Emphasis. The U.S. is the latest foreign market Colcci is entering. It established operations in Europe in 2003, and in Australia and Japan a year later. Annual sales in France, England, Italy and about a half-dozen other European countries already number $18 million at wholesale. Cysne said it had a retention rate of about 60 percent with European retailers and planned to open its first European store in Spain in 2008.

Still, the U.S. is an important market, and one where Colcci hopes to exceed its business in Brazil, where it has 120 freestanding stores and 1,000-plus points of sale. Though Cysne plans eventually to open a store in the U.S. and stage a fashion show in New York, she said the current focus was to open accounts with specialty shops and chains that have six or seven locations. So far, Colcci has booked orders from Vault Jeans in Houston, Scarlet in Little Rock, Ark., Staxx in Springfield, Mo., and others.

Colcci, to be launched in the U.S. for winter, designs for four seasons, 230 to 300 stockkeeping units per season; men's styles will make up a third. (Colcci offers 800 to 1,000 sku's per season in Brazil.) Average wholesale prices are $30 for tops, $40 for denim, $45 for sweaters, $50 for nondenim bottoms and $75 to $80 for jackets.

Cysne declined to make first-year sales projections, but predicted that the dresses and tops would do as well in the U.S. as they have in Europe, where they make up 45 percent of the business. Made mostly of cotton and Tencel, the voluminous dresses and tops are meant to be worn over leggings and skinny jeans, which come in shades such as black, raw indigo and canary yellow. For a bit of spice, the back pocket of one jean has the phrase "original Colcci" stitched vertically in gold thread in big cursive script.

Such styling convinced owners of Connoisseur 533 in San Jose, Calif., to dub Colcci "the Versace of Brazil" after spotting the label everywhere on trips to the South American country. The four-month-old streetwear boutique added Colcci to its roster of women's labels, including Nicacelly, Hellz Bells and Mama.

Kareem Jahron, co-owner of Connoisseur 533, said his partner, Danny Sulivan, recently took a model to Colcci's office in Santa Monica and ordered anything that looked good on her. "He ordered a lot of stuff — a lot of the jeans and shoes," Jahron said, expecting that his customers will cotton to the relatively unknown brand because it fits well. "For women, it's all about fit, feel and color," he said.


Forever 21 Rollout Barreling Into L.A.

Published: Wednesday, February 07, 2007
By Emili Vesilind
LOS ANGELES — Junior retailer Forever 21 plans to open a 10,480-square-foot XXI store in the Hollywood & Highland shopping center here in mid-2007, pursuing an aggressive rollout in the Los Angeles metro area, where it operates 28 units.

The newest Los Angeles store will be located on a touristy strip of Hollywood Boulevard, within three miles of existing company units at the Beverly Center and The Grove shopping centers. The XXI concept was originally conceived as a larger-format Forever 21 store; most units measure more than 18,000 square feet.

The privately owned company characterized the store as a new retail concept, although it is more revision than reinvention. Forever 21 already operates 17 XXI stores in nine states and Canada, but will now integrate men's wear into its mix of young contemporary apparel.

"Going forward, XXI will feature an expanded accessories section and will add a full men's line," said Larry Meyer, senior vice president of Forever 21. "Store size will increase to help accommodate the increased merchandise."

The Los Angeles retailer helped invent the concept of fast fashion, producing ubertrendy merchandise at lightning speed. It has had to stay nimble to keep pace with a growing pack of competitors, chiefly Hennes & Mauritz and Zara, two European chains that have opened strongly in key U.S. markets. Last year at the Beverly Center, H&M launched a unit across from Forever 21's three-year-old XXI store.

"We welcome [H&M] as a competitor in this market," Meyer said. "We have competed well with them in other markets."

Part of the company's strategy for staying on top has been to diversify its retail base. In recent years, Forever 21 has started a hodgepodge of retail concepts, including Heritage 1981 — pricier casualwear geared to the Abercrombie & Fitch set — a 40,000-square-foot department store-like Forever 21 prototype and For Love 21, an all-accessories concept that added four new doors in 2006.

Growing all the concepts is a priority for the company, which will launch more than 70 stores and expand another 20 in the next few years. "Our focus is on finding locations for our larger concepts and expanding in better malls," Meyer said.

The company, which also is pursuing expansion in smaller, less-saturated markets such as Lynnwood, Wash., and Toledo, Ohio, operates more than 300 locations nationwide, in addition to an estimated 100 Gadzooks stores since acquiring the teen retailer in 2005.

[bjornson]

Open Sesame

Forever 21 is moving into the Hollywood & Highland center mid-year with a 10,480 square foot XXI store, reports Women's Wear Daily. That should give H&M, who is opening its own Hollywood branch across the street, a run for their money. Meanwhile, The Grove will also be doling out new stores this spring: the highly anticipated Barneys Co-op (set to open March 22), a Michael Kors boutique, eyewear shop Devante and beauty line Fresh. The Grove also recently opened a Kiehl's branch, which offers curbside service for those who don't want to park to pick up moisturizer.



Versace Plans Four New U.S. Flagships
Published: Thursday, February 08, 2007
By Emili Vesilind
BEVERLY HILLS — Versace executives outlined plans Wednesday to launch four new flagships in major U.S. markets by 2010.

Speaking at the firm's newly renovated store here, Roberto Lorenzini, president and chief operating officer of Versace USA, said the company will likely be entering cities where it already operates flagships, including Las Vegas, Miami, New York and Los Angeles. However, he suggested a focus on suburban, outlying locations. Leases for the units have yet to be completed and executives declined to comment on store sizes.

Versace will conclude a cycle of renovation in the U.S. that began in 2005 with the overhaul of its Houston and Atlanta boutiques over the next two to three months, but "we're more focused on developing our [new] flagships," Lorenzini said.

"The company is now in a phase of full growth and expansion," said Giancarlo Di Risio, chief executive officer of Gianni Versace SpA. "The end of 2006 was the end of the turnaround. We only see growth in front of us now, growth in revenue and growth in stores."

The units will reflect Versace's latest black-and-white design concept, a departure from the gilded baroque-inspired aesthetics found in its older stores. In addition, the new concept highlights accessories, Versace's fastest-growing category.

The Milan-based company operates more than 60 freestanding boutiques worldwide.


FEKKAI LANDS SECOND L.A. LOCATION: Frédéric Fekkai has signed a lease to open a salon located at 8457 Melrose Place (duh!) in Los Angeles. The salon will be a satellite to its landmark Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive salon, and will have 17 chairs and one Laura Mercier makeup area. It will be designed by Russell Groves.

[BrighamYen]

^ H&M sucks now, so I'm hoping that new XXI store will have menswear as well. Plus, Zara will probably take the space next to H&M, which is currently my favorite store. (Just bought a nice CHEAP shirt from them in Santa Monica!)

Good to hear the Grove is getting more upscale since the current stores are about as fresh as anything you'd find in a mall in Utah. Michael Kors will probably open up the lower end line called Kors by Michael Kors.

As for the Flagship Versace stores, I'm assuming it will probably be Melrose Place if it's anywhere outside of Rodeo Drive. But am I reading it right? They're going to open up ANOTHER store outside Rodeo Drive???

[bjornson]

^ H&M sucks now, so I'm hoping that new XXI store will have menswear as well. Plus, Zara will probably take the space next to H&M, which is currently my favorite store. (Just bought a nice CHEAP shirt from them in Santa Monica!)

Good to hear the Grove is getting more upscale since the current stores are about as fresh as anything you'd find in a mall in Utah. Michael Kors will probably open up the lower end line called Kors by Michael Kors.

As for the Flagship Versace stores, I'm assuming it will probably be Melrose Place if it's anywhere outside of Rodeo Drive. But am I reading it right? They're going to open up ANOTHER store outside Rodeo Drive???

H&M does suck. I only went to the Viktor & Rolf opening and that's it. Zara a better quality and look. There's one in Century City and Canoga Park, I think.

I don't think the Grove wants to go totally upscale because they might abandon the family friendly feel. Whatevs, I hate the Grove anyway. Probably just a good mix. Look at the Beverly Center. That place targets a very specific market.

More on Michael Kors:
KORS IN L.A.: Michael Kors will launch its sixth lifestyle store at The Grove shopping center in Los Angeles in April. The concept was initiated at NorthPark Center in Dallas in July. It integrates accessories, which make up about 75 percent of the product mix, with three of the company’s apparel lines: Collection, Kors Michael Kors and Michael Michael Kors. The Los Angeles store will be in a roughly 2,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by accessory store Siany.


YEP! You read right! They're planning on opening ANOTHER store outside of Rodeo Drive! You're right, probably Melrose Place. The company hasn't signed any leases for any of the stores they're planning though. Versace Rodeo is currently the West Coast flagship, I think.

[BrighamYen]

It must be Melrose Place, because it'll fit right along side with everything else upscale coming to that little street. I mean, Robertson just doesn't come off as "Couture." It's absolutely the most trendy place on this of the country, which is not what Versace is looking for I believe. Even though they want to be viewed as modern now, they still want to be a classic couture house. Being alongside Oscar De La Renta, Monique Lhullier, Carolina Herrera, Mulberry, Balenciaga, Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, etc. seems much more fitting than Kitson, Parasuco, True Religion, American Apparel, Lisa Kline, etc. (although I can totally see Kate Spade and Miu Miu in that mix).

I really hope Ghost will come back to LA. It's such a pity we lost her.

[bjornson]

It must be Melrose Place, because it'll fit right along side with everything else upscale coming to that little street. I mean, Robertson just doesn't come off as "Couture." It's absolutely the most trendy place on this of the country, which is not what Versace is looking for I believe. Even though they want to be viewed as modern now, they still want to be a classic couture house. Being alongside Oscar De La Renta, Monique Lhullier, Carolina Herrera, Mulberry, Balenciaga, Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, etc. seems much more fitting than Kitson, Parasuco, True Religion, American Apparel, Lisa Kline, etc. (although I can totally see Kate Spade and Miu Miu in that mix).

I really hope Ghost will come back to LA. It's such a pity we lost her.

You're right. It's such a small two block stretch though, which makes the demand and rent high. It'll either go there or at the intersection of Melrose & Melrose. You're description of what they're looking for and what the company is, is perfect.

What happened to Ghost? That was the only store out of London.
Do you know if Kate Spade is still looking around the area? I know Miu Miu is. I think Miu Miu will come back, but I'm not so sure about Kate Spade.

You know what's weird? The lack of an Intermix and Scoop in L.A.


EDIT: The XXI store in Hollywood will carry the menswear line.

[dragonsky]

The Retail-Restaurant Explosion

High Rents and Bidding Wars Hit Downtown; Get Ready for Pinkberry And a $4 Million Sushi Joint

by Kathryn Maese

It'll be hotter than the Standard's rooftop bar, pump out pricier meals than the Water Grill and draw more celebrities than a Lakers playoff game at Staples Center.

At least, that's how Emil Eyvazoff of the Downtown Entertainment Group sees his new $4 million sushi restaurant and lounge, which dazzles with wall-to-wall glass atop the entire 21st floor of the 811 Wilshire Building. When it opens in May, Eyvazoff hopes the ultra-modern venture will draw a celebrity clientele along the lines of the Sunset Strip's posh Katana.

"This restaurant will offer outdoor dining high above Downtown for the first time," said Eyvazoff, one of three partners behind the Takami Sushi and Robata Restaurant and the Elevate Lounge. "This is very New York, very Tokyo. Those are the places you find an establishment like this."

Eyvazoff is just one of dozens of restaurant and retail investors who are flooding Downtown Los Angeles, and have begun to radically transform the business landscape over the last year. And while fierce bidding wars may be a thing of the past in the housing market, local brokers and real estate experts say Downtown's long-dormant retail spaces are fielding multiple offers from national retailers like Walgreens and smaller chains such as Pinkberry frozen yogurt.

The scenario is playing out across Downtown, not just hot spots like South Park near the active Staples Center. The notoriously hard-to-fill ground floors of residential buildings are steadily signing tenants who plan to open everything from galleries to furniture boutiques to mid-sized restaurants. Likewise, square footage in areas such as the Financial District, which has drawn relatively little attention from after-hours users, is now a hot commodity.

Take, for example, the Pacific Center next to the Biltmore Hotel. For more than a decade real estate firm CB Richard Ellis carried the listing on the 12,200-square-foot space, with little more than passing interest from would-be renters. Today, the landlord has offers from two tenants who want in and are willing to pay rents pushing $3.50 a square foot per month - about $1.50 higher than last year for the area.
*

"In just the last two to three years there has been over a 100% increase in activity," said Derrick Moore, who heads retail for CB Richard Ellis' Urban Redevelopment Group. "It's not uncommon to have half a dozen letters of interest for each and every space whether it's in the Central Business District, South Park or projects in Little Tokyo like the Hikari, which is getting some of the highest [residential] rents."

Frenzied Atmosphere


Moore, who has dozens of retail listings in Downtown, said many of the area's available spaces are already in play. That shortage is creating a frenzy of sorts.

At the Hikari apartments on Second and Central, Moore was besieged with interest, despite rents north of $3 per square foot. A new casual Italian restaurant chain called Pastagina inked a deal to open its first Downtown location in the building this spring, with two more planned by next summer. Baja Fresh, La Salsa and a Hawaiian eatery are gunning for the remaining 1,200 square feet.

"We believe that Downtown is growing and we've seen how fast they are building," said Danilo Terribili, a partner in the Pastagina chain. "A lot of single people are living in Downtown and you have all those lofts going up that are selling very fast. It's a great opportunity. Plus you have all the office workers."

Even established restaurants are reaping the rewards of a re-energized marketplace, fueled by a workforce of half a million people and an ever-growing resident base of about 30,000. The Palm steakhouse, for example, racked up a 10% increase in business over the last year, and is the third busiest in the chain, while the upscale Roy's Hawaiian fusion restaurant finished its first year $2 million over projections.

Numbers like that are pushing interest in retail leasing to the tipping point. Armed with demographic figures from the Downtown Center Business Improvement District touting the area's median household income of $90,000, retailers - particularly restaurants and bars - are making the move in droves.

The DCBID will soon release its second demographic study, which officials from the business group said would offer even more surprising statistics on the Downtown market.

"It will make even more of a compelling case," said Carol Schatz, president and chief executive of the DCBID and the Central City Association. "The average income level of the new residents is even higher than indicated in the first study. That's what retailers need to hear."

Schatz said the influx of nightclubs and bars marks a major transformation in the retail sector, with name chefs and prominent investors - including a few celebrity partnerships - backing projects. Eyvazoff of Takami didn't hesitate to sign a 20-year lease for the 14,000-square-foot space. In fact, the Downtown resident had scouted the area for some time, looking at about 50 locations before committing to the Financial District spot.

He said he has no doubt the multi-million dollar investment will become an instant destination. "I have a database of 300,000 customers and at any point I can send out a mailer and if less than 1% respond I'm over capacity and I've got a line down the street," said Eyvazoff, who operates two nightclubs in Southern California. "So it's not about filling the place up, it's about filling it with the right people at the right time."

A Downtown Pig?


A few blocks from Takami, the new retail mix is expanding with as many as 10 deals in the Financial District, specifically along Seventh Street between Olive and Figueroa. The corridor, which was a thriving retail hub before it was crippled by Westside expansion, recession and years of subway construction, is set to host a diverse slate of restaurants, stores and nightclubs.

One of those newcomers will occupy 10,000 square feet on the ground floor of the 76-unit Brockman Building. Called Duci Italian, the mid-priced to high-end eatery will include a gourmet market similar to New York's Dean & Deluca, Moore said.

Others hunting around in the district include the proprietors of the famed Pig 'n Whistle pub, who are looking to open a location on Seventh Street - possibly in the Fine Arts Building. The Hollywood Boulevard restaurant has a hopping bar scene and eclectic menu. Barney's Beanery, the hipster-adopted old-school eatery in West Hollywood, is also hoping to set up shop in Downtown, Moore noted.

Though brokers say the market for the non-food sector is slower, several notable tenants are coming into the area or even changing their policy on locating Downtown - Walgreens (likely in the Financial District) and CVS are looking to establish a presence in the market, according to several brokers who were interviewed. Opening late this year is Bo Concept, an upscale Scandinavian furniture store with locations around the world. The high-design showroom will occupy space in the 617 Building at 617 W. Seventh St.

Smaller clusters are also cropping up, like one on a stretch of Fifth Street off Broadway that includes an edgy hip-hop clothing store, two cafes and a cleaners. Meanwhile, Little Tokyo's active street scene is drawing plenty of newcomers, including a Pinkberry yogurt shop on Second Street across from Japanese Village Plaza.

"The really traditional users have not really come back again but other firms are looking to open in Downtown," said Amy Raine, senior director of retail for Cushman & Wakefield. "There's a certain amount of watching and waiting but there are a lot more users looking, especially mom-and-pop stores."

These smaller retailers have been finding their way into the dozens of residential buildings now coming online, many attracted by the built-in customer base. Leasing agent Frank DeFoe of Ramsey Shilling Co. said the 50-unit Douglas Building at Third and Spring streets has fully leased its retail, with four tenants that include the 3,789-square-foot Ma Petite Bakery and Café, the 3,367-square-foot Origami Bistro and Bar, as well as a photo gallery and coffee and tea bar. Likewise, 801 Grand, an office and residential development, has snagged Tranquility Base, a 3,166-square-foot American restaurant set to open this year.

"Retail as a component of these projects is a very important part of marketing and revenue generation," said Chris Maling, senior director of Marcus & Millichap's National Retail Group. "People are saying if I have a dry cleaners, hair salon or place where I can get coffee, I'll patronize it because it's convenient. This is the mom-and-pop concept that will evolve out of what's happening Downtown."

With Ralphs supermarket opening this summer and Downtown's two mega projects taking shape - the L.A. Live entertainment district and the Grand Avenue cultural hub - thousands of square feet of retail are hitting the market. But the sudden retail rush is creating a few snags and even some concerns, including the lack of affordable visitor parking, poor logistical infrastructure such as loading docks, and the need for retail diversity.

"We need some space for a brave retail entrepreneur to address the contemporary scene," said Ilse Metchek, who heads the California Fashion Association. "We need to replicate what Silver Lake and Echo Park are doing with their retail boutiques that sets them apart, not the same standard fare like Chicos, Ann Taylor and Talbots. We need a developer with that brainpower."

But the biggest problem, business owners say, is the slow city permitting and approval process. It can take developers as long as nine months to receive a conditional use permit to house a restaurant or a bar in their building, and even longer for the tenant to move forward.

"I think because of the number of projects happening at the same time, along with all of the residential, it's a combination of the city not being prepared for it, delays, and the Zoning Department had a lot of turnover," Eyvazoff said. "If you want to open up a restaurant or a lounge or nightclub tomorrow, it's not going to happen. You've got about a two-year wait. There are some growing pains that this area will feel, but the people who really want to do an outstanding project will do it."

[bjornson]

Coach Announces Plans for First Two Coach Legacy Boutiques

Openings Planned in New York and Los Angeles

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Coach, Inc. (NYSE: COH), a leading marketer of modern classic American accessories, today announced plans to open its first two Coach Legacy boutiques this fall, which will be located in New York and Los Angeles. Both stores will be located in neighborhoods well known for their stylish shoppers: Robertson Boulevard in Los Angeles and Bleecker Street in New York’s Greenwich Village. These concept boutiques will reflect a more intimate new store design to showcase an edited assortment of Coach’s more innovative product offering, including limited edition items that will be unique to these stores.

Reed Krakoff, President and Executive Creative Director of Coach, said, “With these concept boutiques, we will be entering new territory for the Coach brand, essentially allowing us to see how far we can take Legacy as a stand-alone concept. The shops will be focused toward the fashion consumer, to heighten our appeal among style innovators and trendsetters, as well as drive editorial interest.”

Lew Frankfort, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Coach, Inc. said, “We have built our brand in part by showcasing our extremely well-made products in environments that underscore their luxurious nature. This has been particularly true in recent years. The new Legacy concept boutiques will provide a different take on Coach, conveying the intimacy of the brand and giving us the opportunity to expand our appeal with our more sophisticated consumer, as our limited edition product becomes a more important part of our offering.”

“Further, we view these boutiques as laboratories, where we can pilot emerging collections, which represent the next evolution of the brand. We will leverage the intimacy that this smaller boutique environment will provide to feature our most innovative products. Ultimately, this will fuel brand excitement, impacting our entire retail store base,” Mr. Frankfort concluded.

Coach’s concept stores will be designed by the Coach Architecture Group under the direction of Reed Krakoff. Each store will feature cream and mahogany awnings with a new horse and carriage logo, unique to the concept store. In particular, the Bleecker Street store, located between Perry and Charles Streets, will be about 1,200 square feet, on one floor with two entrances, and will feature the original restored copper façade. The Los Angeles store on Robertson Boulevard between Alden Drive and Third Street will be also be about 1,200 square feet on one floor.

The interiors of both stores will be inspired by the Legacy shop-in-shop at Coach’s Madison Avenue flagship and will utilize wood plank flooring with wall treatments of Venetian plaster and traditional paneling painted white. A residential feel will be creating by the use of furniture and displays built of natural wood and polished bronze finishes. The layout will be a combination of both large and small scaled elements to present the wide range of product. Subdued, indirect lighting will reinforce the intimate scale of the space. The layering of stylized visual and decorative elements will also reinforce the lifestyling of the brand. The merchandise offering will include handbags, small leather goods, footwear, outerwear, sunwear, fragrance, jewelry and related accessories.

In addition, the company will be expanding the number of Legacy shop-in-shops within their existing stores during fiscal year 2008, taking them to a worldwide total of about 35 - from 25 currently - including a total of 20 in North America retail stores, nine in Japan and up to six in International Wholesale locations.

Coach, with headquarters in New York, is a leading American marketer of fine accessories and gifts for women and men, including handbags, women’s and men’s small leathergoods, business cases, weekend and travel accessories, footwear, watches, outerwear, scarves, sunwear, jewelry and related accessories. Coach is sold worldwide through Coach stores, select department stores and specialty stores, through the Coach catalog in the U.S. by calling 1-800-223-8647 and through Coach’s website at www.coach.com. Coach’s shares are traded on The New York Stock Exchange under the symbol COH.

[bjornson]

Designs on an empire
The name is Versace. The style is Donatella's.
By Mimi Avins, Times Staff Writer
February 9, 2007

DONATELLA VERSACE blew into town with her entourage last weekend and set up camp in a smoking-allowed bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The Pink Palace's high-profile clientele being what it is, it's unlikely that she is the only regular guest who can claim a "Saturday Night Live" doppelgänger.

Yet when Donatella, as everyone calls her, is in residence, the glamour quotient rises, even at a legendarily fashionable place. Her celebrity friends turn up, for one thing — the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Rupert Everett and Cindy Crawford. And since the centerpiece of her current visit is celebrating a Rodeo Drive Walk of Style award given to her and her late brother, Gianni, on an otherwise quiet Monday afternoon, the hotel lobby is taken over by a crowd of chisled young models. A few giraffe-girls with Slavic accents drape themselves over the furniture — they will hover in the background of one of Donatella's television interviews wearing killer Versace gowns. But most of the beauties gathered for the casting session, which Donatella herself will conduct, are male.

After she finishes taping a segment for the "Today" show (leaning on silk pillows from the Versace Home Collection), she will choose four of the assembled hunks to provide atmosphere at a Walk of Style black-tie bash for 500 scheduled for Thursday evening in a temporary tent at the Beverly Hills Civic Center. Earlier Monday, she'd quietly communed with an actress who had the Academy Awards on her mind and cruised the stores on Robertson Boulevard. "The young Hollywood girls are very inspiring to look at," she says. "I like to see what they're wearing."

Back in her bungalow, where scented candles and floral arrangements mask the smell of tobacco, Donatella sits for an interview, surrounded by public relations personnel who were imported from New York and headquarters in Milan, Italy. The hair and makeup artists who have accompanied her are poised to provide touch-ups as needed. Much of her conversation lacks spontaneity. She has a message she wants to convey, and she's probably delivered it before, many times, in fact. But she does laugh now and then, suggesting that she's prepared to have a little fun, even when talking to a journalist.

The next day, she toured the spruced-up and expanded Versace boutique in the 2 Rodeo Drive complex. At the store, "Access Hollywood" got its 15 minutes, and an L.A. Times photographer was given his due. Then she changed into a glittery black sci-fi bustier and narrow trousers for a taping of Jimmy Kimmel's ABC late-night show. The outfit had the perfect Versace blend of beauty and bombast. Framed by curtains of long, blond, fairy-princess hair, Donatella chuckled and schmoozed with Kimmel in her soft, heavily accented voice, seeming more like a shy girl happy to be at the party than the head of a $352-million corporation.

Nearly three years ago, she went into rehab to deal with a drug problem that she had struggled with for years. Clean and sober, she says, "I'm much more focused. I have a clearer vision. Of course, when you look inside yourself and decide to make changes in your lifestyle, everything around you is affected. I'm much more serene. I'm much more confident, and I like myself much more."

Although none of the chores on Donatella's busy schedule would appear particularly arduous to the average ditch-digger, the pace she typically maintains is hectic enough that the real Donatella sometimes longs to trade places with "SNL's" version of herself as portrayed by Maya Rudolph. Last Saturday night, the faux Donatella starred in a sketch about a Versace Super Bowl Party. "I was laughing hysterically," Versace says. "I wish my life was like that, that all I had to do was give parties. She has parties, and that's it. She doesn't work."

In addition to serving as creative director of Versace since her brother Gianni's murder nearly 10 years ago, Donatella symbolizes the brand. Her look is distinctive and consistent — the hair, the prize-fighter's nose, perpetual honey-hued tan, high-gloss nude lips, buff little biceps and the thighs of a sixth-grader. She was surprised that a trail of people followed her when she toured the Forbidden City in Beijing.

"It's difficult to get used to people who don't know you scrutinizing you, seeing if you have the right hair, the right makeup," she says. "It's uncomfortable, but it's also my job. Part of my job is to be a public person. Before, a designer used to be just a designer. Now, to represent the company is my job as well."

When her brother's sudden death thrust Donatella onto center stage, it was her designs that received tremendous scrutiny. "People were asking, 'Can she do it?' I didn't know the answer either," she says. "In the beginning, it was normal for me to follow in Gianni's footsteps. I didn't have a lot of confidence in myself or my ability. But Gianni wanted me to have a point of view as a woman designer. He'd ask what my point of view was. As I grew more secure in the last few years, I've been making changes."

The changes included some housecleaning. Boutiques that weren't profitable or in prime spots were closed (South Coast Plaza was one of them, it closed in 2005). Flagship stores in Milan, New York, Brussels, London and Los Angeles were restyled and refurbished. There are 80 Versace stores worldwide now, and the company is investing heavily in Asia, where it operates five stores. It plans to open 10 more this year, including another boutique in Southern California.

Donatella describes the Versace style as "Sensual, glamorous, sophisticated." Her last few collections have been particularly well reviewed, and the Versace look, ever babe-alicious, is popular with newly rich Russians and moneyed Asians. But the house of Versace has the same problem as any established fashion brand that attempts to evolve: They must do so without alienating their faithful customers.

Skin is essential to the Versace ethos. Photos of Elizabeth Hurley almost dressed in a Versace gown held together by safety pins went around the world in 1994, as did pictures of Jennifer Lopez in a notoriously revealing jungle-print dress at the 2000 Grammys. At last year's Oscar fest, Versace gowns worn by Jessica Alba, Uma Thurman, Hilary Swank and Salma Hayek replaced shock value with elegance.

"They all looked different, which is very important," Donatella says. "I have had some requests already this year, but we don't know till the last moment who will wear our gowns. This year it's about light, fluid fabrics. The look is more sophisticated and less loud, less heavy than before. When a woman looks wonderful on the red carpet, it's the combination of the person, their personality and a great dress. Dressing women for the red carpet, even the ones I have relationships with, is very stressful. But it's worth it."

The value of the world's best-known personalities being seen in Versace? Priceless. Most of the gowns worn to award shows are from the couture line, so if anyone's keeping tabs on how expensive it is to outfit the famous, the cost comes out of the couture budget. Although a chief executive, Giancarlo Dirisio, was hired in 2004, not even he would dare rain on the red-carpet parade.

Versace had long been run like a family business, and in some ways, it is likely to remain one. Donatella's 20-year-old daughter inherited half the company's shares two years ago. Her son was bequeathed Gianni's art collection. Donatella has been separated from her children's American father for six years. Her older brother, Santos, who was CEO, now serves as president of the board of directors.

"I made it possible for Donatella to concentrate more on designing now and less on running the business," Dirisio says. "We are changing from a fashion company into a complete luxury brand."

There are Versace luxury hotels in Dubai and Australia and a division that designs the interiors of private jets. In the last year, sales of accessories have grown from 4% to 40% of sales, reflecting Dirisio's strategy.

At the Beverly Hills boutique, rather understated jewelry, shoes, sunglasses and two lines of handbags glitter under strategic lighting. Handbags that sell for $1,500 and more are the blingiest. Not even the most die-hard Versace fan would likely wear the label head to toe. "The sophisticated part of L.A. is very casual during the day," Donatella says. 'Women wear jeans and a T-shirt but always with the right accessories. The shoes or the bag or the sunglasses will be important. Then, when they go out at night, they really take care with what they wear." Sleek luggage, with the Versace Greek key motif embossed in leather, looks like it will never be touched by a commercial airline baggage handler.

Evening dresses in shades of gunmetal and silver and a textured gold leather coat are displayed on willowy mannequins. If it weren't for her hair and the massive round yellow diamond ring weighing down her right hand, Donatella, dressed in a sedate brown pantsuit for the boutique's official opening, might blend into the crowd gathered for a cocktail party. Yes, she's having another party. But she's working too.





NOTE: I'm not entirely sure where they would be opening another store in SoCal, but I'm guessing in Orange County (probably Fashion Island since SCP's closed) or San Diego. Unless they're talking about that flagship that we're thinking about. It might be too soon for this year though.

[BrighamYen]

Coach Announces Plans for First Two Coach Legacy Boutiques

Openings Planned in New York and Los Angeles

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Coach, Inc. (NYSE: COH), a leading marketer of modern classic American accessories, today announced plans to open its first two Coach Legacy boutiques this fall, which will be located in New York and Los Angeles. Both stores will be located in neighborhoods well known for their stylish shoppers: Robertson Boulevard in Los Angeles and Bleecker Street in New York’s Greenwich Village. These concept boutiques will reflect a more intimate new store design to showcase an edited assortment of Coach’s more innovative product offering, including limited edition items that will be unique to these stores.

Reed Krakoff, President and Executive Creative Director of Coach, said, “With these concept boutiques, we will be entering new territory for the Coach brand, essentially allowing us to see how far we can take Legacy as a stand-alone concept. The shops will be focused toward the fashion consumer, to heighten our appeal among style innovators and trendsetters, as well as drive editorial interest.”

Lew Frankfort, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Coach, Inc. said, “We have built our brand in part by showcasing our extremely well-made products in environments that underscore their luxurious nature. This has been particularly true in recent years. The new Legacy concept boutiques will provide a different take on Coach, conveying the intimacy of the brand and giving us the opportunity to expand our appeal with our more sophisticated consumer, as our limited edition product becomes a more important part of our offering.”

“Further, we view these boutiques as laboratories, where we can pilot emerging collections, which represent the next evolution of the brand. We will leverage the intimacy that this smaller boutique environment will provide to feature our most innovative products. Ultimately, this will fuel brand excitement, impacting our entire retail store base,” Mr. Frankfort concluded.

Coach’s concept stores will be designed by the Coach Architecture Group under the direction of Reed Krakoff. Each store will feature cream and mahogany awnings with a new horse and carriage logo, unique to the concept store. In particular, the Bleecker Street store, located between Perry and Charles Streets, will be about 1,200 square feet, on one floor with two entrances, and will feature the original restored copper façade. The Los Angeles store on Robertson Boulevard between Alden Drive and Third Street will be also be about 1,200 square feet on one floor.

The interiors of both stores will be inspired by the Legacy shop-in-shop at Coach’s Madison Avenue flagship and will utilize wood plank flooring with wall treatments of Venetian plaster and traditional paneling painted white. A residential feel will be creating by the use of furniture and displays built of natural wood and polished bronze finishes. The layout will be a combination of both large and small scaled elements to present the wide range of product. Subdued, indirect lighting will reinforce the intimate scale of the space. The layering of stylized visual and decorative elements will also reinforce the lifestyling of the brand. The merchandise offering will include handbags, small leather goods, footwear, outerwear, sunwear, fragrance, jewelry and related accessories.

In addition, the company will be expanding the number of Legacy shop-in-shops within their existing stores during fiscal year 2008, taking them to a worldwide total of about 35 - from 25 currently - including a total of 20 in North America retail stores, nine in Japan and up to six in International Wholesale locations.

Coach, with headquarters in New York, is a leading American marketer of fine accessories and gifts for women and men, including handbags, women’s and men’s small leathergoods, business cases, weekend and travel accessories, footwear, watches, outerwear, scarves, sunwear, jewelry and related accessories. Coach is sold worldwide through Coach stores, select department stores and specialty stores, through the Coach catalog in the U.S. by calling 1-800-223-8647 and through Coach’s website at www.coach.com. Coach’s shares are traded on The New York Stock Exchange under the symbol COH.


Hmmm, so what I'm getting here is that the Legacy concept is already available in certain Coach stores and that LA and NY will be the first stand alone Legacy boutiques?

This will create the "Halo effect" in fashion.

[bjornson]

^That is correct.

BIG REVIEW (Some old news, some new news, but good explanations on past discussions):

YAY!!!!!!
In Brief: New Diesel Digs... Sears' Big Charge
Published: Tuesday, February 06, 2007
NEW DIESEL DIGS: Diesel has signed a lease for its first West Coast flagship. The 3,500-square-foot space is located at 8401 Melrose Place in West Hollywood and is scheduled to open in April. The lease also includes use of the second-floor roof space, plans for which Diesel has yet to reveal. "We're pleased to be able to create a never-before-seen Diesel retail environment that will draw inspiration from the incredible energy of Los Angeles," said Renzo Rosso, president and founder, in a statement. The company also said it will continue to operate its existing store at Beverly Center.



Lambertson Truex Aiming High

Published: Tuesday, February 06, 2007
By Sophia Chabbott
Never mind accessible luxury — Lambertson Truex is aiming for the somewhat inaccessible.

The U.S. luxury accessories firm, which Samsonite acquired in July, is rolling out its first freestanding stores. The target customer is clearly defined with handbag prices averaging at $3,000 to $5,000 and exotic skin pieces that can climb upwards of $16,000.

"There's always aspiration," said David Lamer, who came on board as Lambertson's president of sales, merchandising and marketing, a new role, in October after a stint at Kate Spade. "There is always going to be the customer who is going to want something that is out of their reach. We want to be the one everyone wants to aspires to. Our specific target is that affluent woman. She's not driven by trend. She knows exactly what she wants."

The nine-year-old firm, founded by designers Richard Lambertson and John Truex, is opening two stores soon. The first, in April, is a 2,200-square-foot shop at 8457 Melrose Place in Los Angeles, with valet parking and custom Tibetan carpets to open. The second will debut early this summer at 692 Madison Avenue in New York. The 1,800-square-foot store is spread over two floors, and like the Los Angeles unit will carry all of the brand's categories, including women's and men's shoes, bags, belts, gloves and other accessories.

The opening of Lambertson's shops marks a trend in the retail world for luxury accessories stores. On Saturday, the Tod's SpA-owned French accessories firm Roger Vivier will launch its first U.S. unit on Madison Avenue, with select handbags climbing into the tens of thousands of dollars. Coach announced an initiative to open two Coach Legacy shops in New York and Los Angeles touting handbags that are 45 percent higher in price than the $2.4 billion firm's core product. British leather goods house Mulberry is also in the midst of a U.S. retail expansion, launching two stores in Manhattan, one in Los Angeles and two in other locations.

Each store, designed by Truex and Lambertson, along with Tsao & McKown Architects, will house an area in which customers can custom order men's or women's accessories to suit their tastes with options of skins in any color, hardware in precious metal, lining alternatives and monogramming. Bespoke prices range from about $3,000 to $25,000, but as is the nature of bespoke, the sky is the limit.



OSCAR DE LA RENTA
At 2,500 square feet, the NorthPark unit is the largest so far in de la Renta's chain of five stores. It's soon to be eclipsed, however, by the unit that will open in February on Melrose Place in Los Angeles, which will be 4,000 square feet on two levels. The 1,000-square-foot second floor will be dedicated to the company's first home store, Bolen noted.

"There are a couple of other markets in the U.S. I'm interested in, and internationally I'm working on Moscow for a late spring opening, and Madrid and Paris," Bolen said. In the U.S., the company is looking at Ala Moana Center in Honolulu and South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Calif.



MULBERRY ON MELROSE: Mulberry is close to signing a deal on its second U.S. unit, on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles (It's already open). The 1,200-square-foot store, formerly an antiques shop, is located at 8407 Melrose Place, next door to Marc Jacobs men’s wear. Housed in a red-brick building with ivy spilling over the facade, the store is expected to sell men’s and women’s accessories exclusively. The opening is set for late October or early November. The Los Angeles store will be the second after the Bleecker Street location in New York, which opened earlier this year. Mulberry plans to open three more units by the end of this year. “We’re opening up stores as we find the right sites, and there are three more U.S. units in the works,” said Lisa Montague, Mulberry’s chief operating officer. She added that Mulberry has been scouring the major U.S. cities such as Chicago and Washington, and also is looking for a larger unit in Los Angeles to house the full Mulberry range.



Melrose Place Gains Momentum With de la Renta
Published: Wednesday, November 08, 2006
By Emili Vesilind
Oscar de la Renta is the latest designer to see opportunity on Melrose Place, the two-block strip in West Hollywood that has become prime retail real estate in less than two years.

De la Renta's 4,000-square-foot, two-level flagship — his first in the Los Angeles area — is to open on Feb. 1 in a space formerly occupied by designer Tracy Feith. He will join Marc Jacobs, a pioneer who launched his store on Melrose Place in March 2005, when there was nothing to lure the paparazzi.

The low-key vibe was to be short-lived.

Alice Temperley opened in October 2005, followed by Carolina Herrera's 3,800-square-foot West Coast flagship in July, which introduced a more grown-up sensibility to the street.

Now, the momentum has picked up. Monique Lhuillier is relocating her store on Santa Monica Boulevard in Beverly Hills to a 4,400-square-foot corner space scheduled to open in March. Chloé is to launch a 2,658-square-foot boutique next year and the U.K.'s Mulberry plans to open a shop in December.

Still, the street, located off La Cienega Boulevard and near boutique-thick Melrose Avenue, is a work in progress. There isn't much foot traffic, or parking. Tracy Feith didn't respond to requests for comment about closing.

"Melrose Place is half the [per square foot] price of Rodeo Drive, but people may be doing half the business," said retail real estate agent Chuck Dembo, co-owner of Dembo & Associates. "That's the trade-off. The international tourists are going over to Beverly Hills and now Robertson Boulevard — the traffic on Melrose Place is more local."

Jay Luchs, retail real estate agent at CB Richard Ellis, who placed Temperley on Melrose Place at $10 per square foot, said: "You have fewer sales, but higher-volume sales there. It's going to take time. The street is in the process of being lined up with names. Right now, there are six or seven major names on a street that has 30 stores. Over time, there's a chance that the street will change. You don't have foot traffic there yet, so as of now, it's based on the targeted customer spending lots of money."

The street "is definitely getting some interest from the Rodeo Drive set," Luchs said. "Being there is one way to try to be edgy but still high-end, like in SoHo or the Meatpacking District in New York."

Regarding sales, Jenny Le, manager of the 1,200-square-foot Temperley store, said, "It's still a bit quiet, but I think it's going to pick up. In the last year, there's been a greater sense of awareness that [the street] is here."

Alex Bolen, chief executive officer of Oscar de la Renta, said a big motivation for opening on Melrose Place was to avoid clashing with the company's wholesale customers. "We have a very strong business in L.A.," he said. "My concern is…we don't want to open a store that will pull traffic from our wholesale accounts. But I don't think the [Melrose Place] shopper is the same person that shops in department stores, anyway."

Collections in the Oscar de la Renta store will fan out over the 3,000-square-foot ground floor, which will comprise a series of spacious rooms and a landscaped interior courtyard. The 1,000-square-foot second floor, accessible from an outside rear staircase, will likely be for VIPs.

A desire for discrete access for high-profile clients — coupled with a need for four times the selling space — prompted Lhuillier's relocation. "There's a back door and sectioned-off room for VIPs in the new space," she said. "Right now, we don't have enough room to take all the appointments for our trunk shows. Now we'll be able to accommodate all that. I think the service will even be stepped up, because now the alterations will be on-premise."

Lhuillier said she expects sales to double. "We looked in Beverly Hills and nothing felt right," Lhuillier said. "Melrose Place had the charm and elegance, and we like how it's tucked away. It's a very special street."

Dembo said the factors involved in the rise of the thoroughfare are basic. "We had a good economy for four to five years, so more people were looking for space, and the rents are high in Beverly Hills and on Robertson Boulevard, with low vacancy. It's also the...mentality — everyone just follows."

Dembo said rents have tripled in the past two years, to around $15 per square foot for smaller spaces. He estimated prices for larger spaces, such as those of Herrera, Lhuillier and de la Renta, at about $10 per square foot. Rents on Robertson Boulevard range from $12 to $15 per square foot, and on Rodeo Drive they hover around $30 per square foot.

"Robertson has received a lot of publicity, so the tourists are going there, as well as Beverly Hills," he said. "It hasn't really flowed over there. But in the future…I see the dots being connected from Robertson Boulevard and Melrose Place [the districts are roughly three-quarters of a mile apart]."

The foot traffic doesn't concern Bolen. "We will manage the store as a destination," he said. "If the street becomes a more pedestrian street, we'll get our share of the business. But that's not what we're counting on."

Lack of foot traffic on Melrose Place has been largely attributed to its dearth of parking, which is limited to meters. Both Rodeo Drive and Robertson Boulevard have underground garages.

Still, the demand for retail space on Melrose Place has spurred some extravagantly priced buyouts. An owner of a store that recently opened on the street, who asked to remain anonymous, said he was offered tens of thousands of dollars to walk away from a hard-won spot.

"There's a bidding war everywhere here," said Le at Temperley. "We get people all the time asking if this space is for rent or for the contact for our landlord."

Dembo said competition is so tight that landlords are able to pick and chose. "Some landlords are looking for branded tenants," he said. "You can have a really great, creative person with good financing, and the landlords are probably not going to select that person because they'd rather go with someone that has a name or a following."

The pieces of the Melrose Place puzzle may still be in motion, but its anonymity has been shed. At a recent fashion event, actress Michelle Trachtenberg, dressed in a Monique Lhuillier cocktail dress, extended her congratulations to the designer after hearing about her move. "You know, the only thing about Melrose Place is, the paparazzi are really bad," she said. "Really, really bad."

[bjornson]

LAB, Juicy's coming to L.A. and putting it's global flagship here! I'm disgusted by this article of the spamming of JC in Manhattan though.

Juicy's New Village Hangout

Published: Thursday, January 18, 2007
By Julee Greenberg
NEW YORK — Juicy Couture just keeps thinking bigger when it comes to Manhattan.

The fashion brand, owned by Liz Claiborne Inc., will open a store on Friday here at 368 Bleecker Street, which will be its third, and biggest, New York location. The store, with 3,500 square feet of selling space, houses the entire Juicy assortment, from women's apparel and accessories, the Couture Couture high-end collection, men's wear and children's wear to pet apparel and accessories.

The new flagship will be the first to house the new baby line, Juicy Baby, when it debuts for spring as well as the Couture Couture jewelry line when it launches this summer. The flagship also stands as only the second location to carry the brand's men's wear. The San Francisco store was the first location to have it.

The space, in a former club, is 7,500 square feet in total and is spread out over two levels, with the street level showing off accessories and Couture Couture. There is a winding staircase that takes customers to the larger lower level, where the "world of Juicy" is truly displayed.

"We love the location of our Bleecker shop. It's on two levels, so our customer can wander through the world of Juicy with each room having its own intimate feeling," said co-founder Pamela Skaist-Levy. "It's right in the heart of the West Village, [which is] so charming. We love all of our neighbors: Marc Jacobs, antique shops, the Magnolia Bakery — we just love those cupcakes."

The lower level is broken down into three rooms, each with its own cash register and set of dressing rooms. The idea, according to Skaist-Levy and her partner, Gela Nash-Taylor, is to have each room feel like a boutique on its own. The women's apparel room is the largest area and houses the entire sportswear assortment, with plenty of kitschy decorations throughout, such as candy jars and a jumbo birdcage, which can also be seen in the company's Madison Avenue location. In the men's area, there is a billiard table stacked with piles of clothes. The children's room has tiny furniture for easy lounging and lower racks and shelves for easy tot access.

The partners declined to reveal first-year sales expectations.

The new location, which brings Juicy's freestanding store count to 20, is the brand's first opening in 2007, with about 15 more stores expected to open in the U.S. this year. The company next will open a store in Milan on Feb. 15. In September, the 5,000-square-foot Juicy Couture world flagship will open on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.

"Each of our Juicy customers has their own sense of style," Nash-Taylor said. "Uptown, downtown, Milan, Malibu, Tokyo — it's about personal style and having fun."

[BrighamYen]

OMG! I absolutely LOVE you bjornson! What would I do without u!


WOW WOW! TWO Mulberry stores in such a short time?! I wonder where the 2nd one is going to be? Perhaps Robertson? I'm so excited about Lambertson Truex. LA is truly the one of the major fashion powerhouses on earth!

And OMG, I knew those Sherman Oaks gals wouldn't bail out on LA! (Juicy was spawned rigth here at FIDM in Downtown LA) The WORLD FLAGSHIP! :)

LA is climbing higher and higher up the fashion world. Now if only we could get the subway to connect the dots and also the Fashion Week to attract more prestigious names.

[Westsidelife]

I'm always surprised at how LA is never regarded as one of the fashion capitals of the world. With names like Juicy Couture, 7 For All Mankind, Citizens of Humanity, and Lucky Brand Jeans, all of which began here in LA, LA should be considered up there in fashion with Paris, NYC, Milan, and London. At least I consider it to be up there with those cities.

[bjornson]

^It's because LA's not a "traditional" fashion stage compared to those other cities. LA's a place to experiment with a vision. It's setting up it's legacy for the future. LA has, however, already staked it's claim as contemporary fashion capital of the world. I mean, come on, where else can you still wear Ugg's when they're supposed to be "out"?

[dragonsky]

Jason Ha Stakes His Claim

The Ahead-of-the-Curve Restaurateur Debuts His Second Arts District Eatery

by Kathryn Maese

Almost everything about Jason Ha's quirky style throws you off a bit. Take for example his latest venture: He just poured $1 million into a sleek steakhouse-lounge, with an Asian twist, in the middle of the Arts District.
Jason Ha's untraditional new steakhouse is turning the corner of Third and Traction into a growing restaurant hub. Also pictured is chef Sean An. Photo by Gary Leonard

East Third, or e3rd for short, is now in its soft opening phase, near the corner of Third Street and Traction Avenue next to Ha's first eatery, Zip Fusion. It's here where he's chosen to stake a claim in the emerging restaurant scene. True to his style, he intends to give Downtown's buttoned-up big guys - Arnie Morton's, the Palm and Nick and Stef's among them - a run for their money.

His strategy? Charge less than they do.

Though the official grand opening takes place March 1, Ha is already creating momentum for the unlikely steakhouse, where locals can dine in T-shirt and jeans, lounge until 1 a.m. and eat their ribeye with a side of kimchee mashed potatoes.

"With East Third I wanted to create something fun," Ha says. "Not suit and tie. Not expensive, but a really affordable, local place to hang out, take a friend, have a drink or a late-night snack without worrying about spending too much money. I wanted to create a restaurant that was very unique and surprising."

It's a shift from the high-end restaurants flocking to Downtown Los Angeles, with many new owners wooing the Hollywood crowd or corporate accounts.
*

Ha's personality and style are integral parts of his success, and are evident the minute guests step into the tiny entrance and turn the corner past a softly glowing hostess stand. The long narrow space flows effortlessly into three separate areas. A stunning vertical wood sculpture on one wall and a bank of long mirrors on the other pulls you through the first intimate dining room into a spacious lounge with low, circular booths and a psychedelic bar that changes colors like a mood ring.

The lounge blends into a sophisticated yet comfortable room set with black wood chairs and white tablecloths that sparkle with glassware and candlelight. Beyond, diners can linger or smoke on a covered patio.

"This was two years in the making," Ha says, pouring Reisling to accompany baby-soft flash-fried scallops. "I'm not a super wealthy guy and it took time to save up money to spend on this and that."

A Space in Siberia

Ha's attention, and finances, have been divided lately. Within three years he opened a Zip on the Westside (which he recently sold) and another in Corona, where his wife and children now reside.

Ha seems to thrive on that sort of frenetic activity. For years he headed a Downtown company that designed and produced clothing for high-end fashion retailers like bebe and Arden B. But it was cutthroat and clients often called the shots. He quit the industry to pursue the smells and sounds of the kitchens he grew up in as a child - his family owned a string of successful restaurants in Korea.

About six years ago, Ha discovered the corner of Third and Traction, where a century-old space was inhabited by a dusty sushi restaurant that had seen better days. At the time, the intersection might as well have been culinary Siberia. His restaurant would be far removed from First Street's well-lit strip of sushi joints and noodle shops, and light years away from the corporate steakhouses and pre-theater dining veterans of the Financial District and Bunker Hill.

Ha's father flew in to inspect the site. The experienced restaurateur was less than thrilled. "He said, 'Jason what's gotten into you? Look around, there are homeless people and then this crazy old building,'" he recalls.

Indeed, the first year turned out to be a disaster. Few people had reason to venture into the neighborhood, except for the small community of artists living nearby. But slowly, almost entirely via word of mouth and by booking DJs and parties that appealed to locals, Zip began to build a steady clientele. Ha earned a reputation as a community-minded restaurateur who was in it for the long haul. As new, affluent residents moved into Little Tokyo and the Arts District, Zip became even more popular.

Paging Ryan Seacrest

Still, Ha knew there was more to do. Over the years, residents had begged him to open a place where they could hang out at night, invite friends and eat well without spending a ton of cash. He had a site in mind, and phoned the building's owner regularly until it became available; as a tenant with a good track record he was able to strike a deal with both the landlord and the small church across the street for valet parking space.

Creating a familial environment was important to Ha, who came to the U.S. in 1988 without speaking a word of English. He learned the language by watching the sitcom "Cheers."

"I dreamed of creating a place like that, where everybody knows your name," he says, quoting the show's theme song. "My restaurants have that spirit. But we don't have to be a mom-and-pop place to feel homey. It has style but you see your next door neighbor here, not some hotshot or movie star wannabe."

At first glance, Ha resembles one of those Hollywood style mavens he dismisses - a sort of Korean Ryan Seacrest - with his perfectly coiffed, strategically tousled head, expensive faded jeans and passion for flashy motorcycles. Coming from the fashion business, old habits are hard to break. But he has a sense of humor about it, and his jovial personality and experimentation with food have built perhaps the most diverse customer base in Downtown Los Angeles.

"Food for me is like dress-up now," he says. "I'm not Sunset, I'm not Hollywood, I'm just a down to earth guy."

His strategy is to offer lower price points than other steakhouses by using more inventive cuts of meat - in other words, not prime - in tandem with Korean marinating techniques that give the same tender result. Though traditional American cuts like the ribeye and New York strip are a relative bargain - $29 for a filet mignon versus the Palm at $34 - it's the signature items that define the restaurant.

Steaks at East Third are flavored with ingredients like Asian pears, soy, honey, sesame oil and chilies, much like the recipes used at his father's Korean steakhouse. What's even more surprising, and successful, is the restaurant's use of pork as a serious steak. Specifically, the flavor-packed "black pork" from the belly of Berskshire pigs.

Ha launches into a passionate treatise on how black pork is healthy because it's full of unsaturated fat, and recites a case study about its preventative properties in Korean and Chinese mining towns. Despite dubious stares, he humbly presents the inch-thick, fork-tender Pork Lovers Steak. One bite and everyone at the table is a convert.

Ha nods knowingly, much like he did when he opened his first restaurant in the Arts District six long years ago. Incidentally, the block directly across the street is bursting at the seams with hundreds of new condos and apartments.

And, of course, customers.

[dragonsky]

Famima!! Opens Second Downtown Location

The popular Japanese convenience store chain that offers everything from sushi to panini sandwiches to magazines last Wednesday opened the doors of its second Downtown spot. The modern new location at 525 W. Sixth St. in the Pacific Center will be open weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and weekends from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. The first store debuted in October at 800 S. Figueroa St. Famima!! is one of Asia's top three chains.

[Westsidelife]

^It's because LA's not a "traditional" fashion stage compared to those other cities. LA's a place to experiment with a vision. It's setting up it's legacy for the future. LA has, however, already staked it's claim as contemporary fashion capital of the world. I mean, come on, where else can you still wear Ugg's when they're supposed to be "out"?

But we have basically ALL of the top designers. Why aren't we a city known for our fashion shows featuring the those top designers?

[colemonkee]

:banana: Groundwork at 2nd and Main is now open. If there was a dancing coffee bean, I would've used that...

[bjornson]

^Yes we do basically have them ALL. However, having them doesn't mean that L.A. spawned them. L.A. is known for more casual and contemporary fashion, which it did spawn. While Paris, New York, Milan, and London are known for Chanel, Ralph Lauren , Prada, and Burberry and the like--all classic brands, L.A. is known for Juicy Couture, Denim Brands, and being trendy casual.

L.A.-based brands:
Juicy Couture
Seven for All Mankind
True Religion
Chip & Pepper
Citizens of Humanity
Rock & Republic
Frankie B.
Earl Jean
Joe's Jeans
Von Dutch
Guess
BCBG
Max Azria
Monique Lhuillier
Kevan Hall
Lloyd Klein
The granddaddy of them all Fred Segal...(in which the largest store of them all is going in Las Vegas).

It's not so much of having a presence in a given market. That's only one factor. The other is having created a form of fashion as well. You see, L.A. is home to more contemporary brands and basically has a monopoly on the denim market. From the brands listed above, almost none of them are classic or couture. The only ones seem to be Monique Lhuillier (L.A.'s Vera Wang), Kevan Hall, and Lloyd Klein. Otherwise, nope.

If only having a presence determines if a city is a fashion capital then Las Vegas would be there, too.



Colemonkee, GREAT! How's the cwoffee?

[Westsidelife]

Chanel began in Paris yet it seems that NYC and Milan have Chanel fashion shows as well. I don't think top designer fashion shows are exclusive to only the city that they were spawned in.

The fact is, LA is a major center for fashion, PERIOD. We don't just have the top designers but we are creative and experimental with our fashion trends. Las Vegas cannot say the same. I wouldn't say that LV or SF have the top top designers. For example, they don't have Asprey or Neil Lane (not designers). I'm just saying that we are one of the select few cities that have the very top caliber of boutiques. Chicago has only the basic designers. LV and SF are a step up of Chicago though no quite up there with LA and NYC. But LV has Fred Leighton and SF has Goyard and we don't have either boutiques. SF also is where the West Coast flagships for Macy's and Tiffany and Co. are located (sadly). I just think LA deserves more recognition in terms of fashion along with SF (Old Navy, Banana Republic, Levi Strauss) because of our fashion trends and have the absolute top designers. There's no reason why we can't have classic and couture fashion. LA needs to be a city of high fashion as well where Chanel and Marc Jacobs hold their fashion shows.

[Westsidelife]

Also, how do you reconcile the fact that Florence, where designers such as Gucci, Emilio Pucci, and Salvatore Ferragamo began, is not really considered one of the fashion capitals of the world?

[bjornson]

Chanel began in Paris yet it seems that NYC and Milan have Chanel fashion shows as well. I don't think top designer fashion shows are exclusive to only the city that they were spawned in.

It's not the fact they hold shows in other cities. That doesn't matter. They do it so they can have influence in that given market. It's the fact that Paris brought the World some of the most innovative fashion houses in the world and the city continues to be a global influence on fashion around the world. It creates a universal "classic" fashion while L.A. creates contemporary fashion that does indeed influence the rest of the world. What is said about Paris can be said about the three other "capitals."


The fact is, LA is a major center for fashion, PERIOD. We don't just have the top designers but we are creative and experimental with our fashion trends.
That's exactly what I've been saying! The city's more liberal in their use of just about anything. This is the city where dreams can come true.


Las Vegas cannot say the same. I wouldn't say that LV or SF have the top top designers. For example, they don't have Asprey or Neil Lane (not designers). I'm just saying that we are one of the select few cities that have the very top caliber of boutiques. Chicago has only the basic designers. LV and SF are a step up of Chicago though no quite up there with LA and NYC. But LV has Fred Leighton and SF has Goyard and we don't have either boutiques. SF also is where the West Coast flagships for Macy's and Tiffany and Co. are located (sadly). I just think LA deserves more recognition in terms of fashion along with SF (Old Navy, Banana Republic, Levi Strauss) because of our fashion trends and have the absolute top designers. There's no reason why we can't have classic and couture fashion. LA needs to be a city of high fashion as well where Chanel and Marc Jacobs hold their fashion shows.

Now, I'm not trying to prove anything. I'm just stating the obvious.
Neil Lane's only in L.A.
Las Vegas currently has the only U.S. Christian Lacroix, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Fred (jewelry). However, Lacroix is in expansion mode, Jean Paul Gaultier closed it's doors in other places (US), and Fred had a store in BH. They also have Manolo Blahnik, which L.A. doesn't have. Fred Leighton--I don't even know whey there's not a presence here. I think LV is high in terms of having a presence. I mean, look at the Forum Shops, then look across the street and beside it. There's more designers coming in the future developments.

SF has the West Coast flagships for Macy's, Bloomingdale's, & Tiffany's. Maybe others as well. Neiman Marcus, too? Keep in mind that Goyard has only two stores in the entire world. SF is lucky to be one of them. The other is in Paris.

L.A.'s also a flagship city. Just because they're not downtown doesn't mean it's not flagship. Flagship status depends on location and more importantly size. Barney's West Coast flagship (second largest store after NY's, and despite SF's future one being a flagship). Carolina Herrera, Paul Smith, Marc Jacob's campus, Oscar de la Renta, John Varvatos, Costume National, Marni, Stella McCartney, Harry Winston, David Yurman, and numerous other high fashion stores have West Coast flagships in this city. The city also has the only Badgley Mischka store in the world.


I just think LA deserves more recognition in terms of fashion along with SF (Old Navy, Banana Republic, Levi Strauss) because of our fashion trends and have the absolute top designers. There's no reason why we can't have classic and couture fashion. LA needs to be a city of high fashion as well where Chanel and Marc Jacobs hold their fashion shows.

L.A. actually has a great reputation in fashion. The problem is, however, that we're so much more casual in ours than theirs' is. People here wear jeans (gasp!) and flip flops! New York, London, and Milan is home to classic fashion, and Paris is home to haute couture and classiness. L.A. has class & couture houses here (from other cities), but the city hardly has any big classics out of here. I honestly don't know when those companies will hold fashion shows out of New York or those other cities. Now, just to point this out, I'm not discounting L.A.'s presence in the world of fashion, I'm just quick to point out that not everyone thinks of L.A. as a traditional fashion capital.

[bjornson]

Also, how do you reconcile the fact that Florence, where designers such as Gucci, Emilio Pucci, and Salvatore Ferragamo began, is not really considered one of the fashion capitals of the world?

Does Florence continue to have influence today? Did they leave their headquarters there? Do prestigious fashion houses worldwide want to set up there because they think people know about fashion?

Gucci's case is weird. It's under the Gucci Group which is headquartered in Amsterdam, has services in London, finances in Florence, and other stuff.

Emilio Pucci was eventually bought out by LVMH, which revived the brand. This brand actually does not have an L.A. presence. The closest one is at South Coast Plaza.

Ferragamo is still headquartered in Florence. Also has regional ones in NY, HK, Tokyo, & Miami.

[Westsidelife]

I think Florence has somewhat of an influence, though it is mostly in the past. I don't think that matters though. If a city is or has been innovative in its fashion trends it is regarded as a fashion capital in my book and such cities should not limit themselves based on such trends. They should not limit themselves to either classic/couture or contemporary/casual. Fashion is fashion, whether it be classic or contemporary. LA is a fashion capital. It's only appropriate that it host fashion shows for designers like Chanel and Marc Jacobs. NYC is not limited to classic fashion. Fashion Week in NYC I believe featured a fashion show by Monique Lhuillier.

[bjornson]

^I agree with you, but what I'm saying is that not everyone sees it that way. Some people see LA as a joke in fashion. Some don't think that it's taken seriously and that's one big reason why some big designers like Chanel and Marc Jacobs don't move their collection shows here for not even one season. Fashion week is not limited by a certain type of fashion. The purpose of Fashion week is to show a collection so then stores can pick up on who you are so then you can get a deal with them. Monique Lhuillier is more of a couture designer. A bunch of LA designers went to NY this year. What I appreciate are the designers that stay tried and true to LA like Kevan Hall.

[Westsidelife]

I see your point. Hopefully all of that will change in the future and NYC designers will head to LA as opposed to vice versa. Monique Lhuillier is a major designer. One of her two fashion salons is located in Beverly Hills. Hopefully we will see her collection displayed in some LA fashion shows.

[bjornson]

^I hope so, too, but only time will tell. Yep Monique is a major designer. I call her L.A.'s Vera Wang. She's actually moving from her Beverly Hills location on Little Santa Monica to Melrose Place. She says she likes the Melrose Place atmosphere a lot more. It's in one of the many articles I've recently posted. She used to show in L.A., then she recently moved to NY to show.

[DJM19]

If you want to have major fashion shows in LA, then its just a matter of an ambitious well-connected show organizer deciding to really take charge and pursue the big names. They will come, and get attention. There are certainly enough celebrity guest in the area and photographers.

[ChrisLA]

:banana: Groundwork at 2nd and Main is now open. If there was a dancing coffee bean, I would've used that...

Cool, I may have to stop by one day next week. What time does it close?

[RAlossi]

Is Groundwork in the Higgins? I didn't see anything at 2nd/Main for Groundwork when I was there last week... I'd love to check it out.

[colemonkee]

Groundwork is in the Higgins, on the Main St. side. It's got a little sign and three tables on the sidewalk. Coffee (and tea) is great! I'll post pictures after I get some work done.

[Rational Plan2]

Plans for Riverside center for supermarket giant Tesco inch along
Grocery firm has struggled with permits, lawsuits
10:00 PM PST on Saturday, February 10, 2007
By JONATHAN SHIKES
The Press-Enterprise
Permit and planning problems have held up construction of a sprawling Riverside distribution center for supermarket giant Tesco PLC and two suppliers. But the British retailer says the delays won't significantly affect its billion-dollar U.S. plans.
One of the world's largest grocery companies, Tesco doesn't operate any U.S. stores right now. But it intends to open 100 to 150 in 2007 and 2008, and compete with Vons, Ralphs, Albertsons, Stater Bros., Traders Joe's and others.
The conglomerate has pledged to spend $400 million a year in this country for several years. It could employ up to 1,400 people in Riverside County and another 2,500 at stores in Southern California, Phoenix and Las Vegas.
Tesco has nailed down at least 20 California locations, according to liquor license applications and real estate listings, including nine in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. It has secured 20 sites in the Phoenix area.
On Wednesday, Tesco said the stores -- about half the size of typical groceries -- will be called Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market and unveiled the logo.
In a recent interview, the head of Tesco's U.S. operation, Tim Mason, said the company has visited 500 sites and signed letters of intent on more than 100.


Tesco plans to open more than 100 stores in the U.S. in 2007 and 2008. The plan rests on completion of its distribution center.
Storage Space
But first, Tesco will need a warehouse to supply them.
"That needs to be ready. It is the lynchpin of the launch," said retail strategist Bruce Cohen, who follows the grocery industry for consulting firm Kurt Salmon Associates in San Francisco. "Without it, you can't restock your stores."
Last July, Tesco bought 88.4 acres in the 1,280-acre Meridian business park, where it is working on a five-building, 820,400-square-foot warehouse complex. Just west of Interstate 215 and south of Riverside, Meridian is on land once owned by the Air Force.
Two British suppliers, fresh produce firm Wild Rocket Foods and chicken processor 2 Sisters Food Group, also plan to build facilities at Meridian.
Landing Tesco was a major coup for officials and regional business leaders who felt it helped give the region some economic respect.
"This is the rollout of a major international firm in one of the more competitive parts of the United States," said Jack Kyser, chief economist for the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. "A lot of people will be watching carefully."
And while the name Tesco might elicit blank looks from consumers now, that will change once the company starts its advertising campaign, he said.

The Brookside Market stands next to the proposed site of a Tesco store in Redlands. It is one of 20 California locations the company plans.
Permit Troubles
Between August and December, Tesco and its representatives became increasing frustrated with the permitting agency in charge of the former military land, according to e-mails obtained in a public records request.
In one, Tesco construction manager Mark Salvi bluntly urged the March authority to speed up the process, saying he was desperate for the permits and that his employer's entire U.S. plan depended on the distribution center opening in July.
In another, Tesco's attorney, Maura O'Connor, warned that Tesco was losing valuable time and the project was being stymied by new requests.
To complicate the situation, attorneys representing groups that oppose the project filed two lawsuits in October questioning whether the March authority correctly followed environmental rules.
Those cases are pending.
Tesco marketing director Simon Uwins didn't respond to repeated interview requests, but Tesco USA chief Mason acknowledged in a January press conference that the distribution center was behind schedule.
He said he expects it to be finished sometime between July and September, but wouldn't give more details. He also wouldn't say when the first stores will open.


Slow Going
As the weeks went by and Tesco still hadn't received the permits it needed to begin working on the buildings, pressure from the company intensified.
Finally, in December, Tesco won approval to build foundations, but it wasn't until February that it was allowed to begin putting up walls.
"It took longer than any of us wanted," said Dan Fairbanks, planning director for the March authority, who was among several recipients of Tesco's e-mails.
Overseen by regional elected officials, the authority is a public agency in charge of redeveloping surplus land once part of March Air Reserve Base.
"Typically, developers want their project rushed through," Fairbanks said, adding that Tesco's tone wasn't out of the ordinary for any developer. "We do the best we can to help, but safety comes first."
The problems may have come about because Tesco submitted plans piece by piece, rather than all at once, said March authority interim director Lori Stone.
But the company and the agency are getting along fine now, she said. The authority is hiring more staff to help the permitting process.
It's no surprise the world's fifth largest retailer wants its stateside plan on track, experts said. Tesco's U.S. investment is large, even by Tesco's standards, said Philip Dorgan, head of research for Panmure Gordon Limited, a London firm that follows Tesco.
But the $73 billion company is "used to the immense vagaries of the U.K. planning system and can be very patient," he said by e-mail. "I am sure that it will play the game (in the United States) and get things sorted out eventually."
Distributors' Struggles
But Tesco's distribution center delays aren't its only problem.
Wild Rocket Foods and 2 Sisters Food Group, who both supply Tesco in the United Kingdom, had hoped to receive planning approval for their own facilities in September, but were delayed by several issues, including a nearby school.
The problems were eventually sorted out, but not until January.
"The moment that timeline slipped was the moment we knew we wouldn't be ready," said James Truscott, vice president of sales and marketing for Wild Rocket, which will supply prepackaged produce, salads, dips and juices for Tesco.
Wild Rocket is looking for a temporary site until March 2008, when it hopes to finish a 200,000-square-foot factory on 14 acres at Meridian.
The company now operates out of a Riverside office building with 22 employees. It plans to spend $100 million in the United States and employ 350 people.
The other firm, 2 Sisters Food Group, has $55 million plans over the next few years to buy 10.5 acres in Meridian and employ 350 there.
In mid-January, the company still wasn't sure if it would have to scrap its plan for Riverside, 2 Sister co-chief executive officer Jeremy Chew said Feb. 1 at a joint meeting of the Riverside and Moreno Valley chambers of commerce.
"We could have thrown in the towel quite a few times in the past six months," he said. Instead, the company will come up with contingency plans of its own, he said.

[colemonkee]

Groundwork
2nd & Main

http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/4302/groundwork200702111wz8.jpg

http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/7305/groundwork200702112bi6.jpg

http://img407.imageshack.us/img407/7305/groundwork200702113zm7.jpg

[ChrisLA]

Thanks for the photos, again do you know what time it closes?

I live in Long Beach, but I may be over on the west side of LA on Wednesday. I don't want to make a trip downtown if they're close before I head home. I may want to pick up some espresso beans for my machine at home, and also try a cappuccino while I'm there. Does is have free internet as well?

Also are there any windows :( that you can look out other than the ones up top?

[colemonkee]

^ I didn't ask about the hours, but I would assume they're at least open until 6:00 or 7:00pm on weekdays (which is pretty consistent with their other stores). No, there really aren't any other windows to look out onto, but most of the seating inside is upstairs, so it's eye level with those windows. Besides, there's seating outside!!

[ChrisLA]

^
Thanks!

Well I guess I'll have to get downtown early. I'm also glad to hear there is a 2nd floor for people who would want to be able to look outside the windows.

[BrighamYen]

Who is Kevan Hall? And isn't James Perse from LA as well?

I'd like to add Great China Wall to the list of LA based brands. :)

Reiss from the UK is opening up on Robertson Blvd. btw!

[bjornson]

Kevan Hall is famous for his evening gowns that celebrities always wear. He's quite well known among industry types. His gowns constantly show up at awards shows and in fact they've been showing up quite a bit lately. His only boutique is on Beverly Blvd.

Yep, James Perse is the LA t-shirt king. Three LA area stores alone.

[BrighamYen]

^ I'm disappointed that he dropped the "Los Angeles" from his label.

It used to say "James Perse Los Angeles" and now it only says "James Perse."

I never liked his clothes anyway. Hope it dies!

[fridayinla]

I was shopping at Banana Republic at Hollywood/Highland yesterday. Apparently, Forever 21 is moving into THAT space and the BR is closing down. I'm not happy about this at all!

[DJM19]

:(

I like BR

[BrighamYen]

I'm sure they'll be back later. Maybe just not at the Hollywood/Highland center. They may open up down Hollywood Blvd. The store that SHOULD HAVE closed down is GAP!

[DJM19]

Maybe the Gap will leave and BR will take its place

[RAlossi]

Men need more clothing options. Badly.

[fridayinla]

Banana Republic said they were moving to the Grove, but that doesn't make much sense b/c the Grove already has a monster-sized space there. Maybe she meant just the employees.

[LA/OC/London]

I'm not that surprised that BR would be closing. The whole Gap chain has done horribly in terms of sales for the past several years. The head of the company was recently asked to step down due to years of consecutive losses. That said, I agree that the Gap should be closing as BR actually has some nice things from time to time whereas the Gap...well...sucks

[bjornson]

^ I'm disappointed that he dropped the "Los Angeles" from his label.

It used to say "James Perse Los Angeles" and now it only says "James Perse."

I never liked his clothes anyway. Hope it dies!

Really? I didn't know that. It still says it on his website and on his shopping bags; at least it did in Vegas anyway. I'm not too familiar with his clothes anyhow.


ABOUT BR. I don't really care for it and I do agree that the GAP should close! I think more interesting retailers should come to Hollywood, not same old, same old.

[BrighamYen]

Gap sux so bad, Beverly Center kicked them out! Or maybe no one shopped in there and the Gap just decided to leave on its own? Either way, it's gone and we're all glad!

Hopefully, it can do a major revamp and become hip again in the future.

The only place that is truly unique in terms of retail in LA is Melrose and Santee Alley. Everything else has a presence somewhere else. So instead of denying chains, CIM should attract more exclusive chains that you can't just get anywhere.

[BrighamYen]

Designs on an empire
The name is Versace. The style is Donatella's.
By Mimi Avins
Times Staff Writer

February 9, 2007

DONATELLA VERSACE blew into town with her entourage last weekend and set up camp in a smoking-allowed bungalow at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The Pink Palace's high-profile clientele being what it is, it's unlikely that she is the only regular guest who can claim a "Saturday Night Live" doppelgänger.

Yet when Donatella, as everyone calls her, is in residence, the glamour quotient rises, even at a legendarily fashionable place. Her celebrity friends turn up, for one thing — the likes of Jennifer Lopez, Rupert Everett and Cindy Crawford. And since the centerpiece of her current visit is celebrating a Rodeo Drive Walk of Style award given to her and her late brother, Gianni, on an otherwise quiet Monday afternoon, the hotel lobby is taken over by a crowd of chisled young models. A few giraffe-girls with Slavic accents drape themselves over the furniture — they will hover in the background of one of Donatella's television interviews wearing killer Versace gowns. But most of the beauties gathered for the casting session, which Donatella herself will conduct, are male.

After she finishes taping a segment for the "Today" show (leaning on silk pillows from the Versace Home Collection), she will choose four of the assembled hunks to provide atmosphere at a Walk of Style black-tie bash for 500 scheduled for Thursday evening in a temporary tent at the Beverly Hills Civic Center. Earlier Monday, she'd quietly communed with an actress who had the Academy Awards on her mind and cruised the stores on Robertson Boulevard. "The young Hollywood girls are very inspiring to look at," she says. "I like to see what they're wearing."

Back in her bungalow, where scented candles and floral arrangements mask the smell of tobacco, Donatella sits for an interview, surrounded by public relations personnel who were imported from New York and headquarters in Milan, Italy. The hair and makeup artists who have accompanied her are poised to provide touch-ups as needed. Much of her conversation lacks spontaneity. She has a message she wants to convey, and she's probably delivered it before, many times, in fact. But she does laugh now and then, suggesting that she's prepared to have a little fun, even when talking to a journalist.

The next day, she toured the spruced-up and expanded Versace boutique in the 2 Rodeo Drive complex. At the store, "Access Hollywood" got its 15 minutes, and an L.A. Times photographer was given his due. Then she changed into a glittery black sci-fi bustier and narrow trousers for a taping of Jimmy Kimmel's ABC late-night show. The outfit had the perfect Versace blend of beauty and bombast. Framed by curtains of long, blond, fairy-princess hair, Donatella chuckled and schmoozed with Kimmel in her soft, heavily accented voice, seeming more like a shy girl happy to be at the party than the head of a $352-million corporation.

Nearly three years ago, she went into rehab to deal with a drug problem that she had struggled with for years. Clean and sober, she says, "I'm much more focused. I have a clearer vision. Of course, when you look inside yourself and decide to make changes in your lifestyle, everything around you is affected. I'm much more serene. I'm much more confident, and I like myself much more."

Although none of the chores on Donatella's busy schedule would appear particularly arduous to the average ditch-digger, the pace she typically maintains is hectic enough that the real Donatella sometimes longs to trade places with "SNL's" version of herself as portrayed by Maya Rudolph. Last Saturday night, the faux Donatella starred in a sketch about a Versace Super Bowl Party. "I was laughing hysterically," Versace says. "I wish my life was like that, that all I had to do was give parties. She has parties, and that's it. She doesn't work."

In addition to serving as creative director of Versace since her brother Gianni's murder nearly 10 years ago, Donatella symbolizes the brand. Her look is distinctive and consistent — the hair, the prize-fighter's nose, perpetual honey-hued tan, high-gloss nude lips, buff little biceps and the thighs of a sixth-grader. She was surprised that a trail of people followed her when she toured the Forbidden City in Beijing.

"It's difficult to get used to people who don't know you scrutinizing you, seeing if you have the right hair, the right makeup," she says. "It's uncomfortable, but it's also my job. Part of my job is to be a public person. Before, a designer used to be just a designer. Now, to represent the company is my job as well."

When her brother's sudden death thrust Donatella onto center stage, it was her designs that received tremendous scrutiny. "People were asking, 'Can she do it?' I didn't know the answer either," she says. "In the beginning, it was normal for me to follow in Gianni's footsteps. I didn't have a lot of confidence in myself or my ability. But Gianni wanted me to have a point of view as a woman designer. He'd ask what my point of view was. As I grew more secure in the last few years, I've been making changes."

The changes included some housecleaning. Boutiques that weren't profitable or in prime spots were closed. Flagship stores in Milan, New York, Brussels, London and Los Angeles were restyled and refurbished. There are 80 Versace stores worldwide now, and the company is investing heavily in Asia, where it operates five stores. It plans to open 10 more this year, including another boutique in Southern California.

Donatella describes the Versace style as "Sensual, glamorous, sophisticated." Her last few collections have been particularly well reviewed, and the Versace look, ever babe-alicious, is popular with newly rich Russians and moneyed Asians. But the house of Versace has the same problem as any established fashion brand that attempts to evolve: They must do so without alienating their faithful customers.

Skin is essential to the Versace ethos. Photos of Elizabeth Hurley almost dressed in a Versace gown held together by safety pins went around the world in 1994, as did pictures of Jennifer Lopez in a notoriously revealing jungle-print dress at the 2000 Grammys. At last year's Oscar fest, Versace gowns worn by Jessica Alba, Uma Thurman, Hilary Swank and Salma Hayek replaced shock value with elegance.

"They all looked different, which is very important," Donatella says. "I have had some requests already this year, but we don't know till the last moment who will wear our gowns. This year it's about light, fluid fabrics. The look is more sophisticated and less loud, less heavy than before. When a woman looks wonderful on the red carpet, it's the combination of the person, their personality and a great dress. Dressing women for the red carpet, even the ones I have relationships with, is very stressful. But it's worth it."

The value of the world's best-known personalities being seen in Versace? Priceless. Most of the gowns worn to award shows are from the couture line, so if anyone's keeping tabs on how expensive it is to outfit the famous, the cost comes out of the couture budget. Although a chief executive, Giancarlo Dirisio, was hired in 2004, not even he would dare rain on the red-carpet parade.

Versace had long been run like a family business, and in some ways, it is likely to remain one. Donatella's 20-year-old daughter inherited half the company's shares two years ago. Her son was bequeathed Gianni's art collection. Donatella has been separated from her children's American father for six years. Her older brother, Santos, who was CEO, now serves as president of the board of directors.

"I made it possible for Donatella to concentrate more on designing now and less on running the business," Dirisio says. "We are changing from a fashion company into a complete luxury brand."

There are Versace luxury hotels in Dubai and Australia and a division that designs the interiors of private jets. In the last year, sales of accessories have grown from 4% to 40% of sales, reflecting Dirisio's strategy.

At the Beverly Hills boutique, rather understated jewelry, shoes, sunglasses and two lines of handbags glitter under strategic lighting. Handbags that sell for $1,500 and more are the blingiest. Not even the most die-hard Versace fan would likely wear the label head to toe. "The sophisticated part of L.A. is very casual during the day," Donatella says. 'Women wear jeans and a T-shirt but always with the right accessories. The shoes or the bag or the sunglasses will be important. Then, when they go out at night, they really take care with what they wear." Sleek luggage, with the Versace Greek key motif embossed in leather, looks like it will never be touched by a commercial airline baggage handler.

Evening dresses in shades of gunmetal and silver and a textured gold leather coat are displayed on willowy mannequins. If it weren't for her hair and the massive round yellow diamond ring weighing down her right hand, Donatella, dressed in a sedate brown pantsuit for the boutique's official opening, might blend into the crowd gathered for a cocktail party. Yes, she's having another party. But she's working too.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
mimi.avins@latimes.com

[dragonsky]

Thousand Oaks mall expansion gets underway
By Gregory W. Griggs, Times Staff Writer
February 16, 2007

The wrecking ball is in full swing this week on the eastern end of The Oaks shopping center in Thousand Oaks, which is undergoing a $100-million expansion.

Contractors demolished a former Robinsons-May store to make way for a new outdoor retail, dining and entertainment section of the Ventura County shopping center.

But the main attraction for the refurbished mall will be a full-service Nordstrom department store — the first in the county — along with a 14-screen movie theater, an open-air marketplace for fashion retailers, and a food court with indoor and outdoor seating.

Among the upcoming tenants that have been announced are Abercrombie Kids, a Guess jeans outlet, J. Crew and Planet Funk, an upscale denim store. The Oaks, now at 1.1 million square feet, is currently anchored by Macy's Women, also set for an expansion, and a JCPenney.

Mall owner Macerich Co. of Santa Monica intends to add nearly 231,000 square feet extending into the current parking lot of The Oaks. The project, which includes upgrades of the shopping center's interior that began Thursday, is scheduled for completion by fall 2008.

"We'll be open sooner than you think," said Randy Brant, the company's senior vice president of development leasing, who spoke at last week's groundbreaking ceremony, which included a gold-painted wrecking ball, music and fireworks.

Thousand Oaks City Manager Scott Mitnick said during the ceremony that the city was pleased to see the renovation and expansion of its shopping center to retain its position as a leading regional retail center.

"We will be looking at how to pay for two more police officers," Mitnick said. "So I turn to Randy and say, 'Make it happen.' "

During the multiyear approval process, city officials estimated that the expansion could produce $900,000 in additional annual sales tax revenue and at least $300,000 in added property taxes. The Oaks currently provides about $2.5 million in annual sales taxes.

[bobcat]

I thought this was an interesting little tidbit from the latest Downtown News quarterly update:

7+FIG RENOVATION

New York-based Brookfield Properties purchased the 7+Fig shopping mall last year and has begun working on plans to expand and renovate the complex. Not many details have been released yet, but Anthony Manos, senior vice president of Brookfield's Southern California region, said the company is working on a complete repositioning of the mall that would include an expansion of more than 150,000 square feet. In the meantime, the company is working to bring "some of the hottest restaurant concepts in Los Angeles" to the food court level, Manos said. New retail stores - which could include a big-name home store - will be announced within a month.

It would seem that 150,000sf is a pretty significant addition. How big is it now, like 350,000sf or something? And I wonder what "big-name home store" they are referring to.

[BrighamYen]

^ Either Williams-Sonoma or Crate and Barrel was mentioned in previous press releases. More than anything, I hope they completely remodel that nasty thing. I'm so glad Brookfield has the experience and ambition to revamp this ugly mall. When Trizec owned it, they were not sure how to go about revamping it. So it just stalled and stalled and is what it is today. I met with Trizec MANY TIMES, and even brought in brokers who supposedly had the connections to Target and developers willing to redo it, but they just never went forward with it. So now, I think Target may be in collaboration with a Japanese landowner close by. This is where Four Seasons was reportedly in talks to build a hotel in Downtown LA at 8th/Fig.

[SamBronco]

Rumer has it. . .
Balenciaga just leased on Melrose Ave. across the PDC.

[bjornson]

Across from the Pacific Design Center? Hmmm...odd. I heard it was goin on Melrose Place.

Oh and Oscar de la Renta is open. The opening was delayed earlier this month because PETA was protesting it.

[Rational Plan2]

An attempt to put a court block on Tesco's construction of a grocery distribution centre in California could cost it over $50m if successful, the retailer claims.

The legal move is part of efforts to disrupt Tesco's plans to establish a network of US stores that involve the leading US grocery workers union.

Lawyers who have worked closely with the UFCW union and its allies in the past are trying to win a court injunction that would require Tesco to stop work on its planned depot in Riverside county, some 50 miles east of Los Angeles.

The depot will be the backbone of Tesco's distribution network for the new stores but it is facing a challenge under a California environmental law that will go to trial in June.

Last week, Tesco successfully opposed a bid to secure a temporary restraining order that would have blocked work on the site with immediate effect.

The court will rule on a second attempt to block construction in early April. In court documents, Tesco said it had secured leases for 71 of its new Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market stores so far, and that any delay to the completion of the project would cost it more than $1.9m a week.

The retailer is planning to launch its stores sometime in the second half of the year, and has previously expressed frustration with delays in the approval process for its Riverside depot.

The company said a stoppage of work from the end of February up to the date of the June trial could cost it up to $60.9m, rising by a further $8.4m a month if the stoppage continued beyond the June trial date.

If Tesco loses the case, it will be required to undo the work done on the site.

The stoppage is being sought by the law firm representing a group called Health First, which says it represents local residents concerned about air quality.

However, the group is not known to other local environmentalists and is believed to have been established with the sole purpose of challenging the Tesco project. Tesco has requested information on Health First from its lawyers, Johnson & Sedlack, but has told the court it had received in reply "blanket objections and refusals to provide information or documents".

At the same time, the UFCW has leafleted households in Arizona, asking them to oppose Tesco's applications for alcohol licences for about 20 Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market stores it is planning in the Phoenix area.

The leaflets cited incidents in the UK in which Tesco stores had been found to be selling alcohol to underage customers.

Tesco has said it has not reached a decision on the issue of union representation. While its established supermarket rivals in the US are unionised, Wal-Mart and a range of smaller growing chains such as Trader Joes and Whole Foods Market are not.

[bjornson]

Beverly Center
Now open: The U.S.'s second Ferrari Store.
Coming soon: Gucci (no r2w)

Century City
Iridesse Pearls
Pinkberry
Pink Taco (of Harry Morton fame)

Robertson
Parasuco (Possibly Opening April 2007)

[dragonsky]

Digging the difference in Downtown Disney
Take a stroll through Anaheim's shopping oasis.
By Lark Ellen Gould

Serious shoppers stop here. Should your day dictate the scoring of a delicate wrap to go with that bridesmaid dress you’ve just ordered or the right socks for the Bruno Magli shoes you bought back in May, do not read on.

A shopping sojourn to Downtown Disney should be an experience in be-here-now, no goals, no future, no past – just one big dose of Zenutainment, a rollercoaster ride for card-carrying browsers and amblers. The “wow” factor starts the minute you park. Three hours free, rarely a back-up and the shopping thrills are within an easy walk from the car. There is even valet parking to be had for $6.

The Disney effect starts at the crisp edge between parking lot asphalt and lush jungle growth marking the border of the Disneyland Hotel. The path leads to a hodgepodge of ornate facades and design-intensive shops that look like Tinkerbelle has been cavorting with pirates and Bayou alligator hunters somewhere in 1930s New York City.

The riveting and roaring assault on the senses is subtle at first. The journey begins with an espresso and a good book found at the Compass Book Shop and Cafe'. Compass, a division of Hudson, whose bookshops can be found in airports, holds a quaint spot on the outer limits of the Happiest Place on Earth. Compass offers racy best sellers, O.C. Thomas Guides map books, philosophical classics and the most comprehensive collection of Disney tomes available.

Want to know where all the “hidden Mickeys” are? Find the answers in a paperback found here (hint: check the Main Street Station train, second level, train roof; or note the elusive shadow of Winnie the Pooh walking back and forth across a large hole in the rock as you leave Space Mountain along the moving walkway; and remember to look carefully at the portrait of the aging man just above the fireplace in the first room, next time you dare to enter the Haunted Mansion).

You can also find a book devoted to telling the story of Walt Disney recordings, another unfurling the history of the Magic Kingdom and a coffee table book on Disney animation. An entire central shelf area is filled with Disney wisdom and it is the focal browsing spot for most that come this way.

A good book on Walt is best accompanied by an espresso under the California sun at an outside table. The adjacent cafe' obliges with shots for 75 cents, not to mention cups of caramel apple cider ($2.60-$3.60), chocolate mint hot chocolate ($2.85-$3.85) and white hot chocolate ($2.10-$3.10). This is also a good place to pick up your Disney fridge magnets ($2.50-$5.50), your Emily the Strange “sinimints”, and a compact of Nightmare Before Christmas lip gloss ($5).

Next door to the bookstore cafe' and just beyond the magazine kiosk is the AMC 12-screen cinema where $10 buys an adult ticket to a first-run feature ($6 if before noon). So if we add it all up, three hours of free parking covers coffee, pre-movie literary entertainment, a full-length film feature and possibly even a quick Bayou Bowl at Ralph Brennan’s Kitchen Express. But with a dozen super-themed and entertainment-driven dining venues to choose from, consider staying just a bit longer for the full five-senses experience. There is no need to hustle back to the car if you are dining; restaurant validation gets you an extra two hours of free parking.

On the path towards Disney’s California Adventure (DCA), the opposite end of the Downtown area, you will be lured by many a distraction. In the Zen of Disney you must go with the flow or make that “move with the mouse” in Waltspeak. The Downtown Disney corridor connects pedestrians with DCA and Disneyland as well as the Disneyland Hotel and the Grand Californian. There is also a resort monorail station here.

Let the tide take you to Starabilia. The Wurlitzer whirls Dean Martin’s greatest hits as you browse the many Marilyn Monroe photos on the walls. These hang, possibly purposely, next to headshots of famous mobsters and the framed presentations of the past three and a half decades of Republican presidents.

And then you hear it. Zoltan literally calls out to you. The mystic in a cage shifts his eyes and beckons you to drop a quarter or a dollar into a slot. However, you quickly realize the price of fortune is $14,000 and you put your quarter back; opting for a black and white headshot of Jimmy Stewart instead (only $9.95).

The Lego Store nearby gets a nod, if only for the city of Legos towering over the store. Children gather around a pot of colorful plastic pieces below and imagine themselves as the next Frank Lloyd Wright.

Outside at kiosks and stands, happy “cast members” are busy wrapping colorful strings into long strands of hair, marking arms with temporary tattoos or sketching out comic images for curious passers-by. Music blares from each wildly-conceived store and stand, usually Duran Duran or Norah Jones.

In all there are some two dozen stores and kiosks in Downtown Disney. Many are unusual and rare, such as Island Charters (there is one in Monterrey and one in Carmel by the Sea, but this one was designed exclusively by Disney) and several that sell limited edition Disney-themed items that cannot be found elsewhere.

Fossil, for instance, a common enough chain of watches and purses, keeps its high-end line here and showcases film-themed time pieces; such as Star Wars watches and a Cars watch ($115), one of only 2000 manufactured by the company.

Now open in Downtown Disney is Vault 28, a reference to the Disney vault and the year Mickey was born. The store contains high-end, Melrose-meets-Roberson style fashions, a Downtown Disney original.

http://www.ocregister.com/newsimages/discoveroc/downtowndisney_large.jpg

[dragonsky]

Los Angeles-A Beautiful City Neighborhood You Don't Know About
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=238589

[bjornson]

Miu Miu's Flagship Frenzy
New York, L.A. stores in works

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

(NEW YORK) Miu Miu is gearing up for a busy fall/winter season.

The division of Prada Group, who tapped Michelle Kessler Sanders as Miu Miu’s first U.S. president as part of an ongoing effort to expand its presence here, has tapped flagship locations in both New York and Los Angeles. In Manhattan, Miu Miu will take over the 7,000-square-foot space at 11 East 57th Street, currently occupied by Jil Sander, and join such high-profile neighbors as Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel, Burberry, Montblanc, and Nokia.

“In keeping with the expansion strategy of its retail network, initiated in the last 18 months, Jil Sander will move out of their Manhattan flagship on 57th street within a year, and are considering opening more than one location within Manhattan,” a Jil Sander spokesperson said, noting that a new store concept by creative director Raf Simons is scheduled to make its debut in London later this year. “The company is currently relocating its Paris Avenue Montaigne Flagship and opened stores in Tokyo, Osaka, Frankfurt, as well as in Rome and Naples.”

In Los Angeles, meanwhile, Miu Miu has sets its sights on retail mecca Rodeo Drive and has inked a deal to open a 3,200-square-foot West Coast flagship at 317 North Rodeo Drive. The former Lalique shop is currently under renovations and will boast an 800-square-foot mezzanine, among other distinct features. As reported, Miu Miu quietly shuttered its 6,900-square-foot store at 8025 Melrose Avenue last summer.

Following in the footsteps of its recently opened Milan, London, and Paris stores, Miu Miu is expected to apply its new store concept to its Stateside locations as well. Those flagships boast such design elements as mirror-top coffee tables, antique parquet floors, ivory rugs, and luxurious Italian silk damasks.


Probably couldn't find a location on Melrose Place and went with the touristy steet. Such a shame.

[BrighamYen]

^ Thanks for the update! :)

We need Jil Sander back in LA next...

[bjornson]

Will Chanel Boutique Change Robertson?
By Andrew Asch
Retail Editorhe big buzz on Robertson Boulevard is not about the latest premium denim or celebrity sightings. It’s about iconic design brand Chanel opening a boutique onto the Los Angeles high-profile retail street, which in the past 10 years seems to have been almost exclusively the mainstay of expensive jeans, T-shirts and pop-culture items.

The legendary French fashion house will open a boutique at 125 N. Robertson Blvd., which formerly housed a boutique for English fashion brand Ghost, according to sources familiar with the deal. Chanel declined comment for this story. Dembo & Associates, the Beverly Hills–based real estate company that leased space for the former Ghost boutique, also did not comment for this article.

Chanel’s interest in Robertson follows the announcement in early February that $2.1 billion New York luxury accessories company Coach Inc. will open a Coach Legacy boutique at 112 S. Robertson this fall.

The burgeoning interest of big luxury brands on Robertson has the street’s independent retailers wondering how the new neighbors will change the neighborhood.
“People don’t come to Robertson to see something that they would find in Paris or London,” said Fraser Ross, owner of Robertson boutique Kitson. “They come for stuff that they’d only find in a Los Angeles store.”

Yasmine Farmanara, co-owner of Avedon, a high-end menswear store that moved to Robertson on Dec. 22, said she believes designer brands setting up shop on the street will attract a new class of shoppers to the area. “It’s going to bring a different customer base that is into buying couture names,” Farmanara said. “It’s going to divert some business from Rodeo Drive.” Chanel maintains a boutique at 400 N. Rodeo Dr., which is in a retail neighborhood for some of the world’s best-known luxury fashion brands, such as Prada, Versace, Dior and Gucci. Chanel also runs boutiques in the South Coast Plaza shopping center in Costa Mesa, Calif., and in San Francisco.

Skyrocketing Los Angeles real estate prices are one reason for the steady flow of iconic brands moving onto Robertson. Commercial real estate prices for the most coveted sections of Robertson, between Alden Drive and Third Street, have jumped 30 percent to 50 percent in six months, according Matthew May, president of Encino, Calif.–based May Realty Advisors.

Price per square foot of commercial space increased from more than $12 per square foot in September 2006 to the current $15 to $17, according to May, who made the deals to bring the True Religion store to Robertson, as well as recently renewing the lease of Robertson pioneer Lisa Kline.

May said that the street was not in danger of becoming a second Rodeo Drive. “What could hurt the street is if it had too much of the same retail. You want product diversification. If you have the range of retail from American Apparel to Chanel, you’re going to have a great street that people will want to walk,” May said.

[bjornson]

This week's openings and sample sales
By Lizzie Garrett
March 28, 2007

Juicy Couture Malibu (March 29) It's about time Juicy landed in Malibu, the unofficial capital of Uggs and tracksuits and home to one of the two founders of this fashion phenom. The new boutique, stationed at the upscale yet rustic Malibu Country Market, right off PCH, will offer the full Juicy Couture world, including the kids and accessories collections. And all that salty sea air might have you looking, or at least feeling, as young as the clothes you're buying. 3900 Cross Creek Rd., Malibu; (310) 317-9240; www.juicycouture.com; Mon.-Sat., 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sun., 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

CO-OP Barneys New York (on-going) The Grove can now claim the first free-standing Co-op in L.A., and Barneys' acolytes can hardly contain themselves. Inside they will find the expected array of cool-casual picks from Marc by Marc Jacobs, Splendid, Rebecca Taylor, Roberto Del Carlo, Antik Batik, Bing Bang, Lulu Frost, and Wendy Mink. If you can stand the Oldies cover bands and manage to part the sea of tourists, the new digs offer a more convenient (and less pretentious) way to get a Barneys' fix without crossing into the 90210. The Grove, 189 The Grove Dr., Los Angeles; (323) 761-5255; www.thegrovela.com; Mon.--Thurs., 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Fri.--Sat., 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sun., 11 a.m.--8 p.m.

[Westsidelife]

Finally! It's about time that a Chanel boutique be actually located in the city. Chanel will do wonders for Robertson Blvd. I really like how all of these major designers are choosing Robertson Blvd. over Rodeo Drive. That has been the trend lately and no doubt that that trend will continue, especially now that Chanel is opening up a boutique on Robertson.

[bjornson]

Interesting article from the LABJ. I kind of agree.

Shopping Shuffle

Skyrocketing commercial rents are redrawing the map of L.A.’s trendiest shopping spots.

By ANNE RILEY-KATZ, EMILY BRYSON YORK

For years, L.A.’s retail hotspots have been known to shoppers around the globe.

West Hollywood’s Robertson Boulevard was the edgy home of young designers. Homey Melrose Place was an antique mecca. And Larchmont was what passes for quaint in Los Angeles.

Attention, shoppers: There’s some heavy roadwork going on.

Deep-pocketed corporate interests have been swarming L.A.’s trendy retail neighborhoods, driving commercial rents to double what they were a year ago on Robertson and Melrose Place. The rental land rush has become so intense that several small retailers have sold their leases, sometimes for hundreds of thousands of dollars and usually to big chains.

Jay Luchs, a retail specialist at CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. said this “key money” frenzy is unlike anything he’s seen.

“Robertson Boulevard has become so popular around the country and the world that it’s caught the attention of retailers,” he said. “There are only so many tenants on two blocks and only so many leases coming up, so you do whatever you can to get space.”

The hot portions of the shopping streets are only a few blocks long, so the influx of corporate chain stores is changing the ambience of the neighborhoods. And not everyone’s happy with the changes.

Chan Luu, a well-known clothing and jewelry designer, says that things just aren’t the same near her Robertson Boulevard boutique.

“It became very young, very jean and T-shirt oriented.”

For Luu, whose international label is sold in Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, Robertson was losing its refined appeal and so she sold the remainder of her lease to Coach Inc. for about $350,000.

“If you have over a year on your lease, you can get a few hundred thousand dollars,” said Chuck Dembo of Dembo & Associates.

Lisa Kline, who owns men’s, women’s and children’s boutiques on Robertson, said her rent doubled, from $10 to $20 per square foot last year.

She bought a lease a year ago to open a men’s boutique. She paid $100,000, a bargain it turns out.

“I knew it would be a good investment,” she said. “I knew I would make more money with more space, and make back what I spent immediately.”

She didn’t anticipate all the changes, however.

“It’s nice to be a popular area, but when paparazzi are everywhere, there is no parking. And the corporate stores are coming in and driving rents even higher,” she said. “It’s suddenly Madison Avenue.”

Joining Luu in the exodus is the apparel boutique Harari, which sold out to Intermix. Retail apparel chains Fresh, True Religion, Tory Burch and American Apparel are among the chains that have moved into what was once a boutique haven for L.A.’s up-and-coming designers.

Melrose Place

A comparable transformation is occurring on Melrose Place, a four-block area between La Cienega Boulevard and Melrose Avenue. The newcomers are selling $5,000 couture, rather than $500 cut-off jeans.

High-end outlets Carolina Herrerra, Tracy Feith, Marni, Oscar de la Renta and Chloe have all opened recently, with similarly upscale Theory, Helmut Lang, Moss Gallery and Lambertson & Truex still to come.

These new arrivals would seem a perfect fit on Rodeo Drive, but Dembo, a Rodeo Drive Committee member, points out that the rent on Melrose, at $15 to $20 per square foot, is about half the price of the $30 to $40 rents on Rodeo.

“Some see Melrose as a new frontier,” he said. “And that’s the thing about fashion – you want to be fashionable.”

As on Robertson Boulevard, these elite brands are buying up leases.

Diesel SPA bought the lease of antiques dealer Mayfair Gallery and BCBG Max Azria Group Inc. bought out Wilshire Fireplace.

For Wilshire Fireplace owner Richard DiGiorgio, part of the motivation for selling his lease was the arrival of the designer brands. He said that changed the character of the corridor, which was once dominated by antique dealers and other home furnishing outlets.

He said he talked to Marc Jacobs and Diane Von Furstenberg, but the price wasn’t right. DiGiorgio finally accepted an offer of several hundred thousand dollars from Nasa Property Management, which has leased the space to BCBG.

“Once Marc Jacobs came in, it started,” said DiGiorgio, who moved his shop to Wilshire Boulevard. “They opened and did all the marketing and drove up rents, so people were trying to ride their coattails. Those New York places have deep pockets, so the writing was on the wall.”

Abbot’s New Habits

“People said I was crazy five years ago when I signed on the dotted line for $2.50 a square foot,” said Jason Stroh, owner of Stroh’s Gourmet Market on Venice’s Abbot Kinney. “Now you can’t get in here for less than $5 a foot.”

Five years ago, Abbot Kinney was known as street with some hip furniture stores, high merchant turnover and gang violence just around the corner.

“The street always had an incredible amount of potential,” said Hans Rockenwagner, a well-known chef who opened his first restaurant on Abbot Kinney in 1985. He opened Three Square Bakery, a restaurant that offers outdoor service and $8 sandwiches, in January.

“I think it turned the corner about five years ago and now it has become a destination,” he said.

While Rockenwagner’s prices initially raised eyebrows, Stroh said that the chef’s grand opening has increased foot traffic and boosted his sales. The high prices have spread, too.

Abbot Kinney’s Stronghold sells $300 jeans and the nearby eCookie boutique offers $500 dresses.

For the merchants and locals, however, the big news on the street these days is the imminent arrival of its first chain store. Yogurt outlet Pinkberry Inc. quietly negotiated a lease in a new mixed-use building in the center of the strip.

“When people complain to me about a chain coming to Abbot Kinney, I say ‘Just wait,’” Stroh said.

Golden Goosed?

In formerly laid-back Larchmont Village, near the tony Hancock Park residential enclave, the exit of several longtime retail fixtures has mobilized residents.

Larchmont Boulevard rents have doubled, to between $6 and $8 a square foot. Cottage Antiques and Village Footwear have lost their longtime leases in the past year and 15-year-old La Luna Ristorante is battling to hang on.

Owners Robertino Giovannelli and Theresa Kim recently filed suit to block eviction proceedings, claiming that Omada Hospitality, a restaurant group, paid $100,000 in key money for the space and will pay around $6 a square foot in rent. That’s considerably higher than what La Luna pays, according to attorney Joseph Fishbach.

Attorneys for the landlord and Omada Hospitality did not return calls seeking comment on the dispute.

Former state Assemblyman Wally Knox, a member of the Committee to Save Larchmont, said the locals were trying to preserve the character of the neighborhood.

“It’s very clear that some of the landlords want to turn it into a regional fashion mall, and they are making a tremendous mistake in their relationship with the area homeowners, who have long supported the area and made it what it is,” Knox said.

“They are killing the goose that laid the golden egg.”

[bjornson]

Finally! It's about time that a Chanel boutique be actually located in the city. Chanel will do wonders for Robertson Blvd. I really like how all of these major designers are choosing Robertson Blvd. over Rodeo Drive. That has been the trend lately and no doubt that that trend will continue, especially now that Chanel is opening up a boutique on Robertson.

Remember, part of Robertson is in WeHo. Also, I'm happy about the Chanel and all, but Robertson isn't right for the location. It's completely out there. The ambiance for the classic brand just isn't Robertson. It would be more pleasing if it is in the Beverly Center with Gucci and Dior.

Oh and designers aren't choosing Robertson over Rodeo. They're choosing Melrose over Rodeo. Robertson is more trendy--t-shirts and jeans.

[Westsidelife]

I still don't find anything wrong with that choice. In fact, I think all of these classic designers really do like to pass their stuff of as being rather trendy. SoHo in New York City houses Prada, Chanel, and Louis Vuitton. But they still have their Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue locations.

I suppose an even better location for Chanel would be Melrose Place since Marc Jacobs is there. Nevertheless, it's great news. I just hope that not too many major designers will open locations on Robertson. Part of what makes Robertson great is that it's still somewhat of a secret, which is why many celebrities shop there.

[bjornson]

It's not a secret as much as Melrose Place currently is. Oh well. It's paparazzi central. If you know the atmosphere of Robertson, then you know that Robertson isn't suited for the brand. Just because the brand has a store in SoHo doesn't mean anything. SoHo has varying mixtures while Robertson does not.

Another Opening Ceremony in L.A.

Friday, March 30, 2007

By Emili Vesilind
LOS ANGELES — Fashion-forward New York specialty boutique Opening Ceremony will launch its second location on Sunday here with a mission to educate the West Coast on New York style.

It's opening on La Cienega.

[yeah215]

Street vendors feel the heat
Change hasn't been good for cart owners, who say they are being pushed out as downtown gets a taste of gentrification.
By Anna Gorman
Times Staff Writer

April 1, 2007

Claudia Arias folded the dollar bill and made the sign of the cross before placing it in her apron pocket.

The first dollar, Arias said, is always for the church.

"It's my grandmother's secret," she said in Spanish on a recent morning as she stood on Santee Street waiting for customers. "It's good luck. If I do this, I will earn lots of money."

That's what Arias is counting on.

She has been selling hot dogs out of a small motorized cart in downtown Los Angeles for nearly a decade. But this is her first day back at work since December, when her cart was impounded for the fourth time.

Arias, a green-card holder from El Salvador, is among hundreds of immigrant vendors who make their living selling tacos, fruit, corn and ice cream on the streets of Los Angeles. She is also one of many who say they are being pushed out by the revitalization of downtown.

"When downtown was ugly, they didn't say anything," said Arias, 35. "Now that it's pretty, they want to get rid of the hot dog vendors."

In September, Los Angeles police officers launched a crackdown on street sales, enforcing laws that had been largely ignored for years, impounding carts, issuing citations and arresting vendors for misdemeanor crimes.

The enforcement is part of the Safer City Initiative, designed to reduce crime in and around skid row.

"We are not the hot dog patrol," said Police Capt. Andrew Smith. "It is but a tiny slice of the enforcement we do. But part of changing the culture of lawlessness is enforcing the laws that are on the books."

Smith said the vendors can still sell food on the streets, as long as they follow the law. For Arias, that means having the required business and health permits, using precooked hot dogs and moving her cart every hour. The law also prohibits her from grilling hot dogs with bacon, a popular Mexican treat whose preparation county health officials consider unsanitary and unsafe.

Business owners, who say the vendors create unfair competition, applaud the crackdown as long overdue.

But the immigrants and their supporters counter that they are entrepreneurs who have helped build the sidewalk culture and deserve to be part of the new downtown without unrealistic restrictions.

"This is the way of actualizing their dream because they came here to work," said Angela Sanbrano, executive director of the Central American Resource Center. "Unfortunately, their dream has become a nightmare because they have to be watching the cops."

LAPD Sgts. Randy McCain and Kevin Royce are well known in the fashion district. When they are patrolling, often with health inspectors, word spreads quickly among vendors.

"This street used to be lined with carts — not anymore," Royce said as he drove down Los Angeles Street.

As they pulled around a corner, two women took off running down Santee Alley, abandoning their fruit carts. The officers got out of the car and called the local Business Improvement District.

"I'm on 12th and Maple," Royce said. "Can I have someone come by and pick up some carts?"

McCain said he isn't trying to take money out of people's pockets. He's just trying to do his job.

"I've always been fair," he said. "I've given them break after break after break."

As he waited for a truck to load up the carts and dump the fruit, McCain chatted with Mostafa Hassan, the manager of Hot Dog Alley, who said his restaurant sales have jumped 40% since police stepped up enforcement.

"There were laws being violated but no one was paying attention," he said. "It really affected our business."

Street vendors served a purpose when there were few restaurants downtown, said Kent Smith, executive director of the Fashion District Business Improvement District. But now, he said, there is no shortage of places to eat.

"With the transformation of our area from an industrial area to a thriving destination, the appearance of these hot dog vendors on every street corner is not as appropriate as it once used to be," he said.

In addition, Smith said much of the downtown street vending is unsanitary. "If you were a county restaurant, you would have a C-grade…. "

The county Health Department tries to control street sales and keep up with the complaints from businesses and residents, said Terrance Powell, Los Angeles County's interim director for environmental health. There are about 7,500 licensed vending vehicles in the county, he said, and two or three times that many unlicensed vendors.

Inspectors have found tamales being sold from the backs of cars, hot dogs being grilled on sheet cake pans resting on plywood boxes, pork skins drying in backyards and full-blown kitchens in parking lots, he said.

"There are absolutely no safeguards whatsoever in terms of sanitation," Powell said of the illegal vendors.

Arias has been working as a street vendor ever since she can remember. As a child, she sold toys and dolls on the streets of San Salvador and worked in her grandmother's clothing shop.

But after her grandmother's store burned to the ground during the civil war, the family had trouble making money. She sneaked into the U.S. in 1989, leaving two young daughters behind.

"I was scared," she said, "but I was more scared being in El Salvador."

Arias found work at a clothing factory and a fast-food restaurant. In 1993, she met a woman who was selling mangos on the street and she quickly learned the trade. Fruit vending gave her the autonomy — and flexibility — she was looking for.

"It's funny," she said. "You don't think you are going to get ahead with this type of business, with mangos."

But she did. In 1995, with some help from relatives, she put a down payment on a $10,000 cart and got the required permit from the Health Department and later a business license from the city.

"I felt more respected, by my compadres, my customers and the police," she said.

Nevertheless, Arias still encountered problems. She had begun selling hot dogs, and in 2003, her cart was impounded after she was caught wrapping them with bacon. She paid about $2,000 in fines, got her cart back and returned to the street. Twice more, authorities confiscated her cart for the same reason.

She refinanced her house for the third time in as many years. At one point, frustrated with selling hot dogs on the street, she used the home equity to open a small restaurant in East Los Angeles. She had to close about six months later because she couldn't afford the rent or insurance for her employees.

When the Los Angeles Police Department began its crackdown last fall, Arias said, she tried to abide by every law. But in December, police officers took away her cart a fourth time. She said they told her she didn't have the required sticker from the commissary where she stored and cleaned her cart.

Arias, who has five children, decided to stop selling hot dogs for a while. And she refinanced her house again.

In January, Arias joined her fellow hot dog vendors on the steps of City Hall to protest the police enforcement. They held signs that read, "Stop the Police Harassment" and "Respect the Right to Work." The vendors said the crackdown has caused several to go into debt, others to face criminal charges and at least one couple to risk losing their home.

"There is a lot more serious crime happening in downtown than us selling hot dogs," said Xiomara Corpeño of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, who helped organize the vendors. "We see it as gentrification — we see it as kicking the poor people and the ugly out."

After three months of no income, Arias decided in March that she had to take her chances and get back to work. She needed the money.

"This was not going to defeat me," she said. "I had to keep going forward."

Meanwhile, she and her fellow vendors continued their fight against tougher enforcement. They were especially frustrated with the one-hour rule, saying that parking spots were hard to find and that it was dangerous to drive their three-wheeled carts around downtown.

They came up with a possible solution: a downtown vending district in which food sellers would have special permits and designated spots. They met with LAPD and city officials to talk about the possibility.

At a recent organizing meeting, Corpeño told the vendors that if the city approves a pilot project, they would have to abide by all the regulations and would have to prove themselves to the city as respectful entrepreneurs.

"It gives us an opportunity," she said, "but we have to be successful."

Even with a special vending district, Arias said, she still expected competition from illegal vendors — or piratas.

"The only way we can get rid of piratas is if we are allowed to cook with bacon," Arias told the group.

"We have to focus on one thing," Corpeño interjected. "Do we want to focus on the issue of bacon or on the issue of selling on the streets?"

Several vendors answered in unison: "Selling!"

"OK, selling first," Corpeño said. "One thing at a time."

[SamBronco]

The exact address for Opening Ceremony is 451 N. La Cienega.

[bjornson]

This week's openings and shopping events
By Lizzie Garrett
April 3, 2007
- The Shopping List: Warehouse and sample sales throughout the region
OPENINGS

Secret Service The upscale downtown men's clothier recently opened its doors to the public on weekends (previously by appointment only). Secret Service carries lines such as Nice Collective, Eskimo Shoes, and both the New York and Paris Surface to Air labels. Owner Chad Hilton also designs and sells his own label, Crate Denim. Not so secret anymore, boys. 1855 Industrial St. #107, Los Angeles; (213) 402-1531; Sat., noon to 8 p.m. Sun., noon to 5 p.m.

Crème Based on the idiom "crème de la crème," it isn't any wonder this new boutique carries luxurious feminine collections and has a 90210 zip code. Designers include Tracy Reese, Robert Rodriguez, Corey-Lynn Calter, Development and Burning Torch, as well as newcomers Nanushka, Lundgren & Windinge and Samantha Treacy. In addition to clothing, Crème carries fine jewelry from Delicate Raymond, handbags, belts, and other accessories. They're calling it a true "girl's girl" store. We would have to agree. 9465 Charleville Blvd., Beverly Hills; (310) 273-8001; www.cremebeverlyhills.com; Mon.-Sat., 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sun., noon to 6 p.m.

Lola Et Moi (April 15) The vibrant girl's label, started in Lebanon and known for colorful fabrics, is opening its first U.S. store in Beverly Hills. Designer Rania Thome, who was drawn to children's fashion after giving birth to her twin daughters, Lola and Rea, creates clothes for girls ages six months to 12 years. Look for retro-like patterns, A-line dresses, vintage-inspired coats as well as accessories and gifts. 238 – S. Beverly Dr., Beverly Hills; (310) 276-5652; www.lolaetmoi.com; Mon-Sun., 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

[SamBronco]

Tommy Hilfigur just signed on Melrose Ave., west of La Cienega.

[dragonsky]

Monday, April 9, 2007
GardenWalk occupancy at 80 percent
First phase scheduled to open in November.
By CRYSTAL HENSON
Contributing writer

Anaheim's GardenWalk has already leased 80 percent of its retail space – less than a year after construction began last May.

The outdoor shopping and dining area has already received commitments from national chains such as Bubba Gump's, Bar Louie, Cheesecake Factory, McCormick & Schmick Grill, P.F. Chang's and Roy's of Hawaii.

The first phase of restaurants located along Katella Avenue is slated to open in November.

Excel Realty Holdings LLC of San Diego is the developer. William Stone, Excel Realty's senior vice president of development, answered some questions about the development on 321 W. Katella Ave.

Q.What are some of challenges with the project?

A.The good news is you have to appeal to three separate markets: the leisure tourist, the convention visitor and the local residents. The three markets also present challenges when it comes to the mix of tenants, something we have spent a lot of time on. The other challenge is to bring a unique experience to the Anaheim market. We met that challenge by not only bringing some of the finest national tenants, but also including a number of unique one of a kind or strong regional tenants, that you just can't find in other projects around the country.

Q.What is your role in the GardenWalk project?

A.As the principal in charge of development for Excel Realty holdings, I was the one that had to capture the vision and translate it into reality, working with our more than capable staff. That included not only working with the city to obtain the entitlements, but to also convince the key tenants that the Anaheim Resort district is where they had to be.

Q.How will Garden Walk complement the surrounding area?

A.We designed GardenWalk to be a natural hub of the resort area and the City of Anaheim. The project is designed to be very pedestrian and encourage people to walk and linger in the concourses and the gardens. GardenWalk will be the place were the local residents can spend their Saturday night, celebrate that special anniversary and show off to their visiting relatives.

[LAMetroGuy]

April 11, 2007 – Financing Notes
Article Date: 04/11/07

http://www.rentv.com/news_images/7399.gif

Full Story:
George Smith Partners has arranged $28.4 mil in construction financing for the development of a mixed-use project at 801 N. Fairfax Ave in LA, a block south of West Hollywood. The infill project, a development of Frost/Chaddock Developers, will feature a 93-unit multifamily development built over 15.6k sf of ground-floor retail.

"This financing will provide Frost/Chaddock with the means to deliver a project that will meet the growing demand for both multifamily and retail product in the Los Angeles market through a unique, mixed-use development in a prime Hollywood location," explains Larry Wilemon, Senior Vice President of George Smith Partners who arranged the financing.

James Frost, principal of Frost/Chaddock Developers added, "We are excited to bring a project of this dimension to Los Angeles. It will represent one of the first zone changes to RAS-4, which is the new mixed-use zoning classification for the city."

According to Wilemon, a portion of the loan will be used to remediate contaminated soil beneath the site. As a result, the loan was structured in two phases to finance the pre-development environmental remediation and the construction process. The three-year, limited-recourse construction loan will cover 87 percent of the total project cost.

Wilemon was assisted by Lee Norman, Principal with George Smith Partners, and David Bierman, Assistant Vice President with George Smith Partners.

Based in Sherman Oaks, Frost/Chaddock Developers acquires, rehabilitates, manages, leases and re-sells residential, mixed-use and retail properties. Since its inception in 1994, Frost/Chaddock has acquired more than 160 properties valued in excess of $250 mil. Currently, the firm owns and manages more than a dozen income properties and has 10 projects under development.

[LA/OC/London]

Monday, April 9, 2007
GardenWalk occupancy at 80 percent
First phase scheduled to open in November.
By CRYSTAL HENSON
Contributing writer

The outdoor shopping and dining area has already received commitments from national chains such as Bubba Gump's, Bar Louie, Cheesecake Factory, McCormick & Schmick Grill, P.F. Chang's and Roy's of Hawaii.

The first phase of restaurants located along Katella Avenue is slated to open in November.

Some of these are pretty upscale chains for Anaheim. I'm curious to see how this whole development will look when it finishes - so far the renderings make it look kinda like the Grove but with hotels, which isn't a great thing IMO, but in the land that Disney built, I suppose it works...

[dragonsky]

Shoppers line up for opening of first Orange County H&M store
By Leslie Earnest, Times Staff Writer
1:21 PM PDT, April 12, 2007

Angelica Mejia and her friends got to South Coast Plaza at 2:30 a.m. today to welcome fast-fashion retailer H&M to Orange County, hours before they were allowed to even start forming a line.

It was worth it.

"Nobody was here before us, we were the first ones," the 23-year-old Santa Ana resident said, clapping delightedly for herself and her chums, who had gone to a nearby parking lot and waited until they were allowed onto the Costa Mesa mall's property. "Yea!"

Mejia was one of hundreds of young shoppers who turned out early this morning to shop at the county's first two H&M stores, both at South Coast Plaza. A third store will open on Friday at Irvine Spectrum Center.

The Irvine center said early birds are welcome, although, as in Costa Mesa, the store doesn't open until noon. And shopping center officials aren't pouting about being in line behind South Coast Plaza.

"We are absolutely thrilled that Irvine Spectrum Center and South Coast Plaza are aligned together in this," said Nina Robinson, vice president of marketing for Irvine Company Retail Properties, a division of the Irvine Co., which owns the center. "How could we ask for anything more?"

It figures that South Coast Plaza -- which admits it has been wooing the retailer for at least eight years -- would get first dibs on the hot retailer, which made its California debut in San Francisco in 2005 and last year opened in Pasadena, Los Angeles' Beverly Center and the Westfield Santa Anita mall in Arcadia

But H&M's opening is a coup for Irvine Spectrum Center, which has dramatically reshaped itself since it opened with an emphasis on entertainment in 1995, said Gregory Stoffel, a retail strategist in Irvine. The tide turned when Nordstrom plopped itself down there in 2005, attracting a slew of other trendy stores, including Anthropologie, White House/Black Market and Ann Taylor Loft. Target piled on last year.

Since then, Irvine Spectrum Center has "evolved into a real shopping destination," Stoffel said. "If we had the same conversation two years ago, it would have been unbelievable."

"If you boil it down to one thing, it just shows the affluence of the South Orange County market area."

[BrighamYen]

April 11, 2007 – Financing Notes
Article Date: 04/11/07

http://www.rentv.com/news_images/7399.gif



This is EXACTLY the kind of developments LA needs more of all over the place. Instead of designing faux-classical edifices like The Grove, we should edge toward modern designs like this which could really give LA a very distinct identity that I think would be positive. It doesn't look stucco and cheap. It's more concrete and glass, which at the very least doesn't come off as half-assing it.

If we had structures like this all over LA, replacing strip malls, it would really give LA a new image of being not only modern and cool, but truly more urban.

[LA/OC/London]

Not to mention that anything that resembles something nice is very needed on Fairfax - its such an ugly street asethetically. At least until you reach the Jewish Business and the border of West Hollywood. Even then, many of those businesses could use some TLC. Everytime I pass by Canter's I'm tempted to buy a can of paint and give it to the owners.

[fridayinla]

This is EXACTLY the kind of developments LA needs more of all over the place. Instead of designing faux-classical edifices like The Grove, we should edge toward modern designs like this which could really give LA a very distinct identity that I think would be positive. It doesn't look stucco and cheap. It's more concrete and glass, which at the very least doesn't come off as half-assing it.


It's similar to Madrone under construction at La Brea & Hollywood:
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL144/5090918/10396790/209430721.jpg

[BrighamYen]

^^ Yes, and if we had similar developments like that all over the place, as ubiquitous as the infamous strip mall, then LA's image would be improved I think. :)

[bjornson]

Diab'less Heads West With First U.S. Store

Monday, April 16, 2007

By Emili Vesilind
LOS ANGELES — The Parisian contemporary brand Diab'less has been sold here for almost two decades in boutiques such as Fred Segal and Planet Blue, but wants to make a bigger impact with the launch of its first U.S. store, on Melrose Avenue.

It's spring: Shopping is in full bloom
Lizzie Garrett
April 15, 2007

A new Bloomies flagship. A hotel ballroom filled with Diane von Furstenberg on sale. Jeans and cocktails in Santa Monica and jeweled flip-flops in the Palisades. The spring shopping scene is in full flower.

Check for weekly updates at latimes.com/image, and while you're there, post your greatest discoveries at the Exchange.

*

OPENINGS

Opening Ceremony Along with a well-edited selection of home goods and indie magazines, the New York-based store's L.A. outpost also stocks jewelry, and the fantastic Opening Ceremony house label of forward basics for men and women. In addition to a handful of New York and L.A. brands, Carol Lim and Humberto Leon feature threads from one specific locale a year. Last year it was Brazil, this year it's Sweden, next year it's California — and they have a head start on that with L.A. brands Band of Outsiders and Hansel From Basel. 451 N. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles; (310) 652-1120, openingceremony.us. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. daily.



Lola Et Moi May 1: The vibrant girls' clothing label, known for colorful fabrics, is opening its first U.S. store in Beverly Hills. Lebanese designer Rania Thome, drawn to children's fashion after having twins, Lola and Rea, creates clothes for girls 6 months to 12 years. Look for A-line dresses and vintage-inspired coats as well as accessories and gifts. 238 S. Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills; (310) 276-5652; http://www.lolaetmoi.com. 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.



MAC Malibu April 27: The cosmetics force is opening a store at the pastoral Malibu Country Mart. We're sure that at least one person besides us will be happy about the new digs — Malibu resident and MAC spokeswoman Pamela Anderson. 3835 Cross Creek Road, No. B2, Malibu; (310) 854-0860. 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mon.-Sat., noon to 5 p.m. Sun.

Avita Co-op May 1: Drive a Prius? Married to Larry David? Cherish life on this Earth? Then this new store is for you. Avita, an eco-friendly fashion brand made from materials such as organic cotton, recycled cashmere and bamboo, is opening its flagship store on a row saturated with chic boutiques. View their earthy-colored fall line at the in-store fashion show planned for the grand opening. 8213 W. 3rd St., West Hollywood; (323) 852-1716; http://www.avitastyle.com . 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday. Normal store hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.



Bloomingdale's South Coast Plaza May 4: Bloomingdale's opens a Southern California flagship store at South Coast Plaza with upscale apparel and accessories for men, women and children, as well as home accessories, cosmetics, fine jewelry and a bridal registry. With a new Bloomies and a new H&M, South Coast Plaza has Fashion Island shaking in its Manolos. 3333 Bristol St., Costa Mesa (714) 824-4600. 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Sun.

[BrighamYen]

^ South Coast Plaza should have been designed more like Fashion Island and Fashion Island should have never been built!

The only stores I saw there that SCP didn't have was Juicy Couture, Kate Spade, and a few more I guess.

I asked the sales associate in the Kate Spade store if there were any plans to open more and she said she heard a store would be opening in LA somewhere. She also said there actually used to be a store OPERATING on Robertson but left because of the "water fiasco." I already knew about the water fiasco but I didn't know it was operating.

Anyway, hopefully Kate Spade will open back up somewhere soon: Rodeo, Robertson, or Melrose. I can actually also see Kate Spade opening up branches in Downtown Santa Monica and Old Town Pasadena.

[bjornson]

Oscar de la Renta's Melrose Mania
Starlets storm L.A. flagship opening en masse

Thursday, April 19, 2007

(LOS ANGELES) Melrose Place has been abuzz with a ripple effect of major retail: Marni and Marc Jacobs played the pioneers, Carolina Herrera followed suit last fall, and now word is that Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, and possibly Nina Ricci stores are all headed like fashion missiles toward L.A.’s new street of dreams.

Oscar de la Renta’s chic flagship debuted with a bang Wednesday night, and while it had tout le monde of Tinseltown society—co-hosts Kelly Meyer and Jamie Tisch, Jacqui Getty, Brigette Romanek, Betsey Bloomingdale, Barbara and Nancy Davis, Crystal Lourd, Estee Stanley, and Cameron Silver, mixed with an impressive showing of celebrities like Brooke Shields, Amber Valletta (newly brunette), Kristen Davis, Lisa Rinna, Gretchen Mol, Ione Skye, Lauren Graham, Vanessa Seward, Lisa Kudrow, Amanda Peet (who was married in Oscar de la Renta), and co-host Jennifer Garner—there was no Mr. de la Renta himself, who was waylaid back in New York with a cold. Company president Alex Bolen was on hand, however, as were emissaries Boaz Mazur and Eliza Reed Bolen, all of whom held court in the 4,000-square-foot store’s various rooms, outdoor courtyard, and upstairs terrace and home furnishings area instead, while guests bemoaned the loss of their charming host.

“Mr. de la Renta called to apologize for not coming today,” explained Garner, in a black trapeze embellished and encrusted dress from the pre-fall collection and Brian Atwood patent pumps. “But I’m here to represent him for the wonderful charity, The Women’s Cancer Research Fund [a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation]. He told me he and his wife always watched Alias, so that’s why I’m here! But, no, really, I’m also a big supporter of this charity.”

Tisch played co-host in a black and brown Oscar leaf-design dress she pulled practically right off the fall runway, but while she certainly had looking glamorous down pact, there was a more pressing duty at hand: playing stylist to pal Kudrow. “I shopped in Jamie’s closest,” Kudrow laughed, clad in a black Oscar sweater encrusted with a gold in-set large necklace. “She said she’d send me over some things, and this is what I picked. It’s timeless, isn’t it? You could wear this forever. And poor Jamie—I just might!”

Indeed, the ladies clad in the dashing Dominican’s designs were all aflutter over their choices, both while traipsing around the store and at the intimate dinner at Lucques afterward. “I knew when they said the designer wanted to send something over to me, I had nothing to worry about in this case!” quipped Angie Harmon, in a black bubble high-waisted dress with lace cap sleeves. “I am loving this color,” said Getty, whose blue poppy dress she matched with bright blue Roger Vivier flats. “And Oscar made my wedding dress years ago.” “Yes, it’s all about blue,” added

Camilla Belle, who said she fell in love with Oscar when she wore his sweetheart dress on the runway at the Heart Truth show during New York’s Fashion Week, and whose Atlantic blue fitted dress that night was a real head turner. Davis’ white and black embroidered shift, meanwhile, was an admitted departure. “I don’t usually wear Mr. de la Renta because he’s Sarah Jessica Parker’s designer!” she laughed. “But Sarah isn’t here tonight, so I felt okay about it.”

The Bolens, meanwhile, showed off the upstairs “apartment-like” area to guests who ascended the stairs. “Oscar decorated it just like if it were his own Los Angeles apartment,” Alex said. It included a beautiful blue and white living room that doubles as a VIP dressing area, a bedroom, and study areas—furnished with lamps, rugs, dishes, and even a well-turned out bed and leopard chest of drawers. “Is all of this for sale?” asked Julie Jaffe. “I think it is,” the company chief answered, before retracing his words. “Wow. I hope Oscar doesn’t want to stay here when he finally gets to L.A.!”
MERLE GINSBERG

[bjornson]

California Dreamin': Bloomingdale's Lands In South Coast Plaza

Published: Wednesday, April 18, 2007
By David Moin
Bloomingdale's is finally opening in South Coast Plaza and has created a showcase it promises will stand out in a crowded, competitive landscape.

The unit is the upscale department store's second major assault on California in six months; it opened a downtown San Francisco flagship in September.

With a facade that glows at night, two four-star restaurants and an impressive array of designer shops and vendors, the retailer's 291,000-square-foot, three-level unit in South Coast Plaza is expected to generate $80 million to $90 million in annual sales, according to market sources. That's just a tad under the projected volume of Bloomingdale's 300,000-square-foot San Francisco flagship, and a level that would rank the store among the chain's top three locations outside Manhattan, along with the stores in Chestnut Hill, Mass., and on North Michigan Avenue in Chicago. The 59th Street flagship in Manhattan is easily the chain's volume leader, generating roughly $575 million in sales.

The $2.3 billion Bloomingdale's has long hungered for a site at South Coast Plaza, one of America's largest and most productive shopping centers. The 2.8 million-square-foot megamall, located in Costa Mesa, Calif., about 40 miles south of Los Angeles, generates $1.6 billion in annual sales, or about 90 percent of what downtown San Francisco generates in retail sales.

The center is also the site of Nordstrom's top-volume unit, said to generate more than $180 million in sales. And Macy's has a huge presence, operating separate men's, women's and home stores that, combined, yield $160 million in sales.

Almost every top nameplate has found a place at South Coast Plaza, which this year celebrates its 40th anniversary. It took a little longer for Bloomingdale's to find a spot there. Years ago, the retailer was rebuffed by the anchors and was forced to take an alternative location in Newport Beach, Calif., at Fashion Island mall in 1996, more than seven miles from South Coast Plaza. The Fashion Island store will lose some business to its new sister in South Coast Plaza, but Bloomingdale's hopes to minimize the impact by renovating the unit and retraining sales associates.

"With all due respect to all the other terrific centers in the U.S., I think South Coast Plaza is the premium upscale center in North America. It's got every designer shop you can think of," said Michael Gould, chairman and chief executive officer of Bloomingdale's. "South Coast Plaza has been on my mind forever."

But it wasn't until Federated Department Stores' takeover of May Department Stores two years ago that a site became available. Bloomingdale's has completely gutted the former Robinsons-May unit.

The new Bloomingdale's is the chain's 38th unit and eighth in California. It will sell such designer and bridge collections as Giorgio Armani Black Label, Armani Collezione, Akris Punto, St. John Collection, Sonia Rykiel, Burberry, Tory Burch, Elie Tahari, Ralph Lauren Black Label and M Missoni.

Contemporary collections will include Diane von Furstenberg, Vince, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Juicy Couture, Theory, Da-Nang and the private label Aqua. Accessories and fine jewelry brands offered include David Yurman, John Hardy, Judith Ripka, Baume & Mercier, Ferragamo, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Fendi, and some key cosmetic vendors are Mac, Kiehl's and Jo Malone.

For the Orange County customer, "status names are very important, particularly in accessories and jewelry," Gould said.

The store makes its debut May 2 with a charity gala for the Orange County Performing Arts Center and opens to the general public May 4. A battery of events, more than 200, and a plethora of designer appearances have been lined up for the season, which is necessary at South Coast Plaza, where there's no shortage of competition. Everything sold at Bloomingdale's, with the exception of private label, can be found elsewhere in the mall, and Gould readily acknowledged that.

However, he said much of the competition in the mall is a good distance away. "From Nordstrom to our door, it's 1,400 feet. Saks is also about 1,400 feet. That's the equivalent of about five city blocks. At our end of the center, we've created a destination. We've created the unexpected. People like to have different environments to shop in, and we've defined ourselves by creating a whole other ambience."

Gould considers the South Coast Plaza store an evolution from two seminal Bloomingdale's openings: the compact, 79,000-square-foot SoHo unit opened in New York in 2004, which has an assortment skewed to the downtown contemporary customer, and the San Francisco store, the chain's largest branch and the most advanced in terms of ease of shopping, spacious interior design, and designer and contemporary offerings.

"We've learned that a department store can give the customer something unexpected — architectural drama, broad vistas, wider aisles and shallower presentations, so the merchandise is always very close to you. The merchandising remains the most important thing."

Acknowledging the competition at South Coast Plaza, Jack Hruska, Bloomingdale's executive vice president of creative services, noted, "We do have a lot of duplication, but we have the right mix and how we mix our merchandise is what makes Bloomingdale's unique."

The Bloomingdale's store, at 3333 Bristol Street, will be like a beacon. The south facade has two layers of glass, and the inside one is illuminated at night, so the store glows white.

There is another draw. Bloomingdale's is signing deals for two four-star restaurants that will occupy prime spots in the store, by the main entrance, and about 20,000 square feet in total. The names of the restaurants and their "marquee chefs" will be revealed at a later date, Gould said.

"We feel food is real important," he added. "We know someone who eats in one of our restaurants spends more in the store than other shoppers who don't eat in the store. If you go to Paris, London or Tokyo, you see how retailers treat food. At Selfridges, Harrods, Bon Marché, it's a whole different world….We sent out a survey in Orange County by e-mail and learned that 86 percent of the respondents said dining out was their first form of entertainment."

Going to the beach and attending cultural activities ranked second and third. The restaurants will be leased and are opening in the fall.

Bloomingdale's wants to re-create the excitement of the flagships in New York and San Francisco, and advance the store's designer presentation, but Gould and Hruska emphasized the South Coast Plaza unit would fit with the community's casual attitudes. Colorations will reflect the local palette. There are no hard shops, only ones bearing the signature Bloomingdale's black trim, and a special shopping bag has been created for the store, with a colorful design that plays down the Bloomingdale's logo.

"The important point here is that the South Coast Plaza store reflects our evolution, beginning with SoHo, when we learned that, as a department store, we can deliver the unexpected, and it's a blending of what we created in San Francisco and Chestnut Hill," said Gould. "That defines our South Coast Plaza store the best."

Arnold Aronson, managing director of retail strategies at Kurt Salmon Associates, characterized the store as "a sequel to the San Francisco opening with the same subset of competition, but without Neiman Marcus. What Bloomingdale's brings is a unique combination of all the families of business for today's modern department store, including home furnishings, fashion in better-bridge-designer price points and a powerful presentation for the contemporary customer."

The next Bloomingdale's opening is in Chevy Chase, Md., in the fall, but beyond that, no others are set. There are major renovations in the works, including a redo of the Aventura, Fla., store; the metro level for men's wear and the fifth floor for home products at the 59th Street flagship, and the men's store in the Chestnut Hill mall.

"I don't know if we're headed for a cooling-off period, but we don't have any new plans for new stores" after Chevy Chase, Gould said. "We feel very good about how we've been able to grow our comp-store business and EBIT, while opening new stores."

[BrighamYen]

^ Speaking about department stores, I think that Nordstrom needs to open in Century City Shopping Center. Besides the Westside Pavilion, there are not any Nordstroms on the Westside! (The Grove is more "mid-town") I would either support a free standing Nordstrom on Wilshire in BH, or have one built out in CCSC. If you look at Westfield's website for CCSC, you'll see that there are ambitious plans to expand the retail square footage of the mall, and I think a Nordstrom would be perfect! They were able to add the Container Store and Borders successfully, so this shouldn't be a problem.

As for South Coast Plaza, it would be great if eventually they can get rid of Sears and finally allow Neiman Marcus to come in - where it rightfully belongs in the OC, NOT Fashion Island.

[bjornson]

^ Speaking about department stores, I think that Nordstrom needs to open in Century City Shopping Center. Besides the Westside Pavilion, there are not any Nordstroms on the Westside! (The Grove is more "mid-town") I would either support a free standing Nordstrom on Wilshire in BH, or have one built out in CCSC. If you look at Westfield's website for CCSC, you'll see that there are ambitious plans to expand the retail square footage of the mall, and I think a Nordstrom would be perfect! They were able to add the Container Store and Borders successfully, so this shouldn't be a problem.

As for South Coast Plaza, it would be great if eventually they can get rid of Sears and finally allow Neiman Marcus to come in - where it rightfully belongs in the OC, NOT Fashion Island.

If the Nordstrom is the be on Wilshire, would it necessarily have to be in BH? I mean it could ride the border, but I think you know what I'm saying. It is rather strange, too, as the WP is not a heavily trafficked mall. I'm all for the upscale-ization of CC as long as they add the other major department stores (Neiman, et al) and expand the Bloomingdale's! It was the largest in SoCal. Oh well, if we took all the Bloomingdale's in LA (Century City, Beverly Center, Sherman Oaks--more than any other city) and put them all together, that would be so huge! One aspect of Century City, I'd like to see is that it become more urban instead of the standard suburban fare.


Re: South Coast Plaza
Even though the mall doesn't look like Fashion Island, I still give it props. Unfortunately the Sears has a long term lease and a deal with the owners, dating back to when South Coast opened. That's why it's not gone. The rents are low (for the Sears) and it's not going anywhere any time soon. Just get rid of some parking lots and you've got your Neiman Marcus lol.

[ocman]

Puttin NM in place of Sears wouldn't work. SCP has three main wings.

Low-range
1)McDonalds, Hollister, Rainforest Cafe, Starbucks, Sears

Mid-range
2)Banana Republic, GAP, Club Monaco, Donna Karen, Bloomingdales (coming in May)

High-range
3)Gucci, Prada, Vuitton, Dior, Nordstrom, Saks.

Neiman Marcus could probably settle for wing #2, but there is no way in hell they'd agree to be placed in wing #1. There is a lot of drama among tenants (usually higher end) about where they want to be located. They'd have an easier time convincing them to move to the smaller mall. The small mall no longer is a place for tenants who couldn't afford the main mall. Now they have Diesel, the bigger H&M, Apple store.

[bjornson]

Stars show off new Oscar dresses
(No, not that Oscar)
By Elizabeth Snead, The Envelope
April 20, 2007

It was Oscar night on Wednesday as scads of stylish stars, all clad in dainty designer dresses, scampered to the opening of Oscar de la Renta's new Melrose Place boutique.

The night was more than just a chance for Brooke Shields, Amber Valletta, Cindy Crawford, Kristin Davis, Camilla Belle, Gretchen Mol, Lisa Rinna, Lisa Kudrow, Amanda Peet and Lauren Graham to model the designer's Spring '07 frocks supplied to them.

The bash, coordinated by party boys Rabin Rodgers, also raised money for the Entertainment Industry Foundation's Women's Cancer Research Fund and was co-hosted by Jennifer Garner, Kelly Meyer and Jamie Tisch.

In the haute mode mix: political author/commentator Arianna Huffington, socialite Betsey Bloomingdale, Barbara Davis and her daughter, Nancy Davis, Irina Medavoy, Crystal Lourd, Cameron Silver of Decades, designer/stylist Estee Stanley and Elizabeth Stewart , the stylist who helped make Cate Blanchett look like a million plus interest last awards season.

So why not open Oscar on Rodeo Drive? "We do not need tourist traffic," said company CEO Alex Bolen. "This location is much more suited to our regular customers."

And it probably doesn't hurt that the neighboring John Frieda hair salon is a regular pit stop for Oscar fashion fans and stars Reese Witherspoon, Kim Basinger, Jane Fonda, Kate Hudson, Minnie Driver, Renee Zellweger, ad infinitum.

The open, airy 4,000-square-foot flagship boutique, designed by Meyer Davis, features a peaceful inner courtyard garden and upstairs terrace and is the largest Oscar shop in the U.S. It also boasts an upstairs apartment (bed/bath/sitting area) designated as the first official retail home for Oscar de la Renta Home. "Everything up here is for sale," noted Bolen.

While they aren't expecting to do a huge home trade, the space will do double duty. "It will make the perfect private space for VIP fittings," he added. Celebs can even enter from a private rear entrance to avoid the inevitable paparazzi destined to abandon C-list shoppers on Robertson and move to Melrose Place's A-list rich hunting ground.

Oscar is the latest high-end designer to call Melrose Place home. Marc Jacobs and Marni were early homesteaders. Diane von Furstenberg and Carolina Herrera followed. Red carpet fave Monique Lhuillier's banner hangs on an in-progress spot at the corner of MP and La Cienega. It's whispered that Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Chloe, Vera Wang and Nina Ricci (headed by Witherspoon's DOC Olivier Theyskens) will snag spaces on the quaint tree-lined street.

The influx of luxury-brand boutiques may be due to the fact that they are the only ones that can afford the rent. According to one former resident, rents shot up from $7,000 to $40,000 a month this year. Both Retrospecs and Melrose Place Aesthetics have moved to more affordable digs. Retrospecs is now open on Melrose Avenue, just steps from Urth Café, the popular WeHo caffeine-charging station.

But wait a minute. Where was the real Oscar? The world-famous Dominican-born de la Renta missed his own party, felled by a flu that grounded him in nippy New York. Rest assured he'll recover and do some award-season starlet-schmoozing this fall. Oh, and if you're feeling flush and charitable today, 15% of sales at the store will be donated to cancer research until tomorrow, April 21.

[bjornson]

Puttin NM in place of Sears wouldn't work. SCP has three main wings.

Low-range
1)McDonalds, Hollister, Rainforest Cafe, Starbucks, Sears

Mid-range
2)Banana Republic, GAP, Club Monaco, Donna Karen, Bloomingdales (coming in May)

High-range
3)Gucci, Prada, Vuitton, Dior, Nordstrom, Saks.

Neiman Marcus could probably settle for wing #2, but there is no way in hell they'd agree to be placed in wing #1. There is a lot of drama among tenants (usually higher end) about where they want to be located. They'd have an easier time convincing them to move to the smaller mall. The small mall no longer is a place for tenants who couldn't afford the main mall. Now they have Diesel, the bigger H&M, Apple store.

HAhah I forget about the "courts" in the mall.
1. There isn't a Hollister at SCP and I totally agree about low range.
2. It's DKNY. Donna Karan (the designer collection) is in the Saks, Macy's, and Nordstrom wing. Bloomingdale's is pretty much on par with Nordstrom so I bet that wing is going to be more desirable in the near future.
3. Keep in mind, Macy's (which is mid-range) is in this wing as well. Fendi is one of the stores that flanks the Macy's entrance.

The Crystal Court is getting more desirable, but it's still less trafficked than the main mall. The third floor is where it's at. A lot of premium denim shops have set up shop--Replay (Italian), Diesel, Miss Sixty/Energie...

[yeah215]

Super-sized malls raise concerns
A building boom is in full swing as developers reinvent the shopping experience. But some fear traffic gridlock, other woes.
By Cara Mia DiMassa
Times Staff Writer

April 22, 2007

Southern California's shopping centers are in the midst of a major building boom that promises to change the mall experience but also raises new concerns about how the retail behemoths fit into their surrounding communities.

The latest addition is likely to be developer Rick Caruso's 830,000-square-foot Shops at Santa Anita, which won unanimous approval from the Arcadia City Council last week. Caruso, considered Southern California's mall innovator, built the faux village-style Grove mall in the Fairfax district — which gets more visitors a year than Disneyland — and is building a similar "lifestyle center" in downtown Glendale.

Equally important, Caruso has helped spur competing malls across Southern California to rethink what they do.

The region's largest mall owner — Westfield — is spending $1 billion to expand and remake nearly a dozen retail centers, in some cases knocking down fortress-style buildings to replace them with more open shops, restaurants and theaters.

Westfield just finished a major expansion of its Topanga Canyon mall, has proposed a similar build-out of Fashion Square in Sherman Oaks, and plans to build hundreds of condos in its Century City mall. The company even plans to expand its shopping center next to Caruso's Arcadia development.

Others are following suit. Developers took the roof off the Huntington Beach Mall and turned it into a Grove-style village, naming it Bella Terra. Owners of Santa Monica Place recently proposed a similar transformation.

Malls have struggled in recent years as anchor department stores have closed, but owners are looking for ways to maximize their sprawling grounds by adding stores not traditionally found at malls, as well as housing.

The new versions of the mall usually are less monolithic, more stylized outdoor centers that resemble self-contained villages and often face inward. Stuccoed buildings open onto central courtyards or walkways that are designed to take advantage of the mild Southern California climate and allow patrons to linger a little longer and spend a little more.

Critics roll their eyes at what they consider glorified Hollywood sets. But land-use planners say the village look speaks to shifting consumer tastes — away from the sprawling, sterile suburban mall and into something with a more intimate, urban feel.

"The era of the cookie-cutter shopping center is ending," said Michael Beyard, a senior resident fellow for retail and entertainment at the Urban Land Institute. "What were suburbs are really now urban."

In many communities, however, the added development is raising alarms. Residents and local businesses spent years fighting Caruso's plans in Glendale and Arcadia, worrying that the new shopping centers would cause more traffic gridlock and drive out mom-and-pop businesses.

Other mall expansions have faced similar opposition.

In downtown Glendale, Caruso's Americana project — a mix of housing and retail built around a "town square" — is rising on Brand Boulevard amid smaller eateries and shops but also right next to the Glendale Galleria mall.

Glendale officials strongly backed Caruso's project, eagerly anticipating the sales taxes it would generate. But there remains debate in the city over how huge shopping centers located back-to-back will affect already bad traffic as well as the scores of small businesses in downtown Glendale.

Anne Maria Tafoya, who lives in a downtown Los Angeles loft but comes to Glendale to shop, likes the concept of an outdoor mall but wonders whether Brand Boulevard can handle another huge development.

"I don't know if the community can support much more shopping, especially if more traffic comes to the neighborhood," said Tafoya, 39.

Community opposition has already derailed mall developer Macerich's ambitious plans for the Santa Monica Place mall. Macerich wanted to tear down the aging indoor center and replace it with a sprawling complex of shops and eateries as well as high-rise condos, shops and offices.

But residents rose in protest, saying the development would be too dense and would ruin the low-rise ambience of the area.

Now the developer is back with a scaled-down plan that calls for stripping away the mall's roof, creating public walkways, large gathering places and a third-floor dining deck with ocean views as well as play areas for children and public art space.

In Arcadia, residents backed by businesses that feared the competition of another mall fought Caruso, saying the city was placing sales tax revenue ahead of what was best for residents.

"This is the last large parcel of developable land in the San Gabriel Valley," said Sung Tse, a spokesperson for Arcadia First, the group opposing the Shops at Santa Anita. "Why not look at an alternative? Why are there no other options than another mall?"

Tse said the shopping center would become a regional destination, used by more than just Arcadia residents. But she said her city, which already has one serviceable mall, would bear the brunt of the increased traffic and pollution.

Traffic also was a huge concern when Caruso's Grove opened five years ago. The project included $5 million in traffic improvements paid for by Caruso. But last year, the city of Los Angeles tried to address the gridlock with $2.86 million more in street improvements.

The changes in the look and feel of shopping centers are part of a national, if not international, trend that is driving consumers outdoors and enhancing the shopping experience. Locally, operators are adding large indoor playgrounds for children and shattering the mold that once pegged a mall as either high- or low-end — integrating, say, a Target and Neiman Marcus into the same center.

In South Africa, developers are adding sports complexes for local schools near food courts and drive-in movie theaters on parking lot roofs. In Japan and Israel, theaters are stitching the movie complex into the larger shopping culture, tracking consumers closely so giveaways and coupons offer a carefully crafted premium that will keep them in the mall longer.

But because Southern California culture is so intrinsically linked with mall culture, and has some of the nation's biggest shopping centers, the changes are especially profound.

Mall developers must make the revamped centers conjure up nostalgia for shoppers who might have had their first date at the mall, or spent their first hard-earned dollar there, while they stay on the cutting edge of American retail tastes, said Paco Underhill, a self-described "retail anthropologist" and the author of "Call of the Mall: The Geography of Shopping."

"There's a generation of Americans out there who have disposable income but don't need anything. Therefore, providing them with something that gives them nostalgia … that's important," Underhill said.

Caruso is trying to harness that nostalgia. His Arcadia plan promises to "create an old-town center in the heart of Arcadia" through a combination of upscale shops, outdoor restaurants and open space.

In an interview, Caruso said his projects — which also include the Commons at Calabasas, the Promenade at Westlake and the Encino Marketplace — aren't malls.

"The industry phrase is 'lifestyle center,' but I wouldn't use that phrase either," he said. "They are more akin to streets than anything else. That's what we try to pattern them after."

More than anything, Caruso said, he is trying to "build something I would enjoy … a place where you can sit out, have a glass of wine and watch people. If you create a very interesting, compelling place to go, people will go there to shop."

The developer said he carefully studies how cities are put together and uses that information to construct his projects. "We write stories," he said. "We have story lines of all of the projects."

The Grove, for example, is based on Charleston, S.C., in terms of the scale and relationship of buildings, he said, and is meant to evoke a 1940s town square sort of feel.

Americana in Glendale, scheduled to open next spring, conjures a different version of the city center, with apartments and condos alongside shopping, dining and entertainment.

The project, which was blocked repeatedly by a group of residents and the owners of the nearby Glendale Galleria, got the nod only after it was placed on the ballot for citywide approval.

"If we do our job well," Caruso said, Americana "will look and feel different" from the Grove. "My goal is to have a customer come to Americana on a Thursday, go to the Grove on a Friday, and feel as if he is at very different places."

Caruso dismisses concerns about traffic and overdevelopment, noting that many of his opponents are funded by rival mall developers such as Westfield. In most cases, Caruso said, the rival shopping centers ended up pouring millions of dollars into their redevelopment.

The owners of the Beverly Center, near the Grove, spent $20 million to $30 million "upgrading it, and it's making it a better mall," he said. "The Glendale Galleria is doing a whole revamp. If we hadn't come there, they would have sat — very fat and sassy — controlling that trade area, because they didn't have to" improve it.

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cara.dimassa@latimes.com

Times staff writer Amanda Covarrubias contributed to this report.

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(INFOBOX BELOW)

Next-generation shopping centers

More than a dozen Southern California shopping centers have undergone major renovations, are planning remodels or are being built from scratch around a new model that trades fortress-style buildings for a more open, urban feel. Here are some examples:

1. Westfield Topanga Canyon

A $350-million, 600,000-square-foot expansion completed last October added a Target, a carousel and a children's play area. Neiman Marcus will join as a tenant in 2008, according to a company spokeswoman.

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2. Westfield Fashion Square (Sherman Oaks)

A proposed $200-million expansion would increase the mall size by one third, adding a five-story parking structure, more landscaping and four sit-down restaurants.

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3. Americana at Brand

(Glendale) The $320-million project is under construction, expected to be completed next spring. Developer Rick Caruso plans restaurants, shops and an 18-screen cinema as well as condos and apartments.

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4. The Shops at Santa Anita

Another Caruso development, to be built on a parking lot of the Santa Anita racetrack, would create nearly 830,000 square feet of commercial, retail and office development with about nine acres of open space.

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5. Santa Monica Place

Plans include taking the roof off the current structure to provide open-air walkways, public gathering spaces and possibly a rooftop dining deck. Construction could begin as early as next spring.

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6. Westfield Century City

A $170-million facelift completed in 2005 upgraded the mall's food court and movie theater. An additional $500-million renovation would raze two office buildings to create space for 250 high-end condos and additional shops.

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7. Bella Terra

(formerly Huntington Beach Mall) A $170-million redevelopment, completed last August, turned the mostly shuttered Huntington Beach mall into an open-air entertainment, dining and shopping plaza.

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Sources: ESRI, TeleAtlas. Graphics reporting by Cara Mia DiMassa

[ozone]

It's similar to Madrone under construction at La Brea & Hollywood:
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL144/5090918/10396790/209430721.jpg

This is a totally awesome urban infill that is modern and still very LA..way to go. I love it.

[Rational Plan2]

Tesco announces that it will have opened 100 stores accross LA, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix by Feb 2008! 14 locations in Las Vegas and 20 in Phoenix have been announced, with more to be announced accross Southland in the next few weeks. The first stores should open in the third/fourth quarter. The first store to open Las Vegas will be at 8650 West Tropicana Avenue.

Two locations mention in LA will be a store in Manhattan Beach and one in Compton!