MIAMI — The colorful clothes and snappy home accessories of Island Trading Co. have added some spice to trendy South Beach.
First-year sales are projected at $1.5 million to $2 million, according to Mary Vinson, an owner of the 3,400-square-foot store, which made its debut three months ago on Ocean Drive, one of the town’s liveliest streets.
The spacious store has a high ceiling, white fixtures and light wood floors and shelving. A sound system pumps out salsas and reggae and a juice bar offers a taste of the Caribbean with items like papaya juice and mango ice cream.
The shop is a few steps below street level in the newly renovated Netherland Building. Vinson and her partner, Chris Blackwell — the founder of Island Records — had a similar store with the same name in SoHo in New York for four years. But they felt the colorful, loose apparel was more suited to a beach lifestyle. Last year, they closed the Manhattan store and headed south.
Blackwell, who is still involved in the record company, shares the management and planning responsibilities with Vinson, but leaves most of the design and merchandising to her. Vinson designs the clothing under the Island Trading Co. label, drawing her inspiration from travels to such places as Jamaica, Bali and Africa, where she buys all the fabrics.
“It’s for busy people, who are always on the go and have comfort in mind,” she said, citing drawstring pants and roomy, print shirts as key items from the collection. Vinson designs men’s and women’s collections, but many of the clothes are unisex. Most of the designs are simple silhouettes, with the fabric playing a main role.
“I love fabrics, it’s the one thing I can’t compromise on,” Vinson said. Among the fabrics she uses are tribal prints, batiks and madras plaids. She also sells them right off the bolt in back of the store.
Bestsellers include multicolor silk doupioni slip dresses for $70 and patterned cotton madras boxer shorts for $45. Simple cotton T-shirts are $20.
Home accessories include such items as candlesticks, soap dishes and mugs, imported from exotic haunts around the world. Some of the most popular pieces include Moroccan pottery vases and rugs handmade by children in Burkina Faso (formerly Upper Volta), Africa.
Related Articles
You May Also Like
Vinson said she and Blackwell plan to open smaller outposts of the store in the Bahamas and in Jamaica within the year and are also venturing further into wholesaling. Currently, the company wholesales only the men’s line, and only at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York.
“Right now we’re experimenting,” Vinson said, “but we don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves.”