LOS ANGELES — Responding to anger and confusion among showroom owners and buyers, organizers of Los Angeles market week are going back to the future — they will stage one unified event for spring products in October.
The decision marks a turnaround. The Los Angeles Contemporary Market this month was for the first time separated from the April edition in an effort to get a jump on the fall selling season, streamline sourcing and improve coordination with vendor deadlines in Europe.
Instead, many showroom owners said the switch triggered disruptions in buyer traffic and reduced attendance. The contemporary market ended March 22, and the Los Angeles Fashion Market will take place April 8-12.
In addition, the next spring showcase will be Oct. 21-25, two weeks earlier than previously scheduled. Some apparel industry players successfully pushed to move the event back on the calendar, saying the switch would allow them to better service designers’ sourcing needs as well as attract more European vendors and buyers who work on different seasonal cycles.
The announcement on abandoning the split shows was made by the Intersection, a promotional organization consisting of the California Market Center, the New Mart, the Gerry Building and the Cooper Design Space, the Fashion Business Improvement District and the Designers & Agents contemporary show. It was the first high-profile decision for the new leadership at the CMC. The complex is being sold to Los Angeles-based Jamison Properties.
“We understood this split dissected the market and created confusion and, doing our due diligence, we thought the best approach was to work with our neighboring buildings,” said John Kim, general manager of the CMC, which is being renamed the Jamison California Market Center.
Ed Mandelbaum, co-founder of D&A with Barbara Kramer, said the unified market bodes well for the city. He said D&A will stage its show Oct. 21-24. “It opens the doors of L.A. to the world…and allows for an international market,” he said.
The dates for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios, produced by 7th on Sixth, a division of IMG, are still undecided. For now, those runway shows are slated for Oct. 14-18, but that may change because the Yom Kippur holiday, a day of fasting and prayer for Jews, is Oct. 13.
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Fern Mallis, executive director of 7th on Sixth and vice president of IMG, said market week doesn’t need to coincide with fashion week, but “a date that gets us closer together without stepping on each other’s toes is the best scenario.”