Casualwear vendors look for new ways to market their products.
Expanding retail distribution and continuing to service existing retail clients are the main goals shared by casual apparel vendors this week at WWDMAGIC.
“Business has been good,” said Joe Lanzaro, president of the Pompano Beach, Fla.-based Tia Designs and Raquel Rocks brands. “MAGIC has always been successful for us in terms of opening new accounts. It’s a great opportunity to see a wide variety of business in the market.”
Like many apparel firms, Lanzaro said he does not set a goal of how many retail accounts he’d like to secure, and emphasizes that in today’s market many clients need to see you at the shows a couple of times before becoming a new account. His company does about $3 million to $4 million in annual wholesale volume, with average retail prices of $20 to $65 for Tia Designs and $70 to $100 for a Raquel T-shirt.
Meanwhile, growing buzz and mainstream popularity for eco-friendly apparel has helped create awareness for Of The Earth, the Bend, Ore.-based casual lifestyle brand that uses all organic materials in its clothing. The privately held company, which originated in 1992, is seeing 180 percent growth each season, according to Richard Ziff, men’s designer, president and chief executive officer of the brand.
“We’re focused on expanding our customer demographic. What’s happening is the organic niche market is merging with the mainstream market so boutiques, national chain stores and department stores are now interested in the organic story,” said Ziff, who hopes to open 50 new retail accounts at WWDMAGIC and said he thinks the company is ready to meet that goal.
“We’re seeing explosive growth, and the fabrics and colors have evolved to the point they’re ready for the mass market.”
One big advantage that Of The Earth has is being vertically integrated with its supply chain, so “we have unlimited capacity for growth. It’s from the farm to finished goods. We basically just need more customers, and we’re gaining them,” Ziff said, noting that all the company’s garments are made in China with fiber grown and manufactured there. “We’re looking to expand our demographic into contemporary,” he added.
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Trade shows like WWDMAGIC are integral to expanding and growing, Ziff noted, and he said in 2006 the company’s goal is to attend even more trade shows nationally and internationally.
At this edition of WWDMAGIC, Ziff said he thinks it will mark the first time buyers have a real enthusiasm for organic fashion. Still, he said, “these clothes don’t get sold just because they’re organic. It’s nice that it’s a buzzword now and people are always looking for something different. We have 20 different fabric blends that we’ve developed and exquisite colors and design.”
At Of The Earth, retail prices range from $175 for organic denim to $78 for a soy dress to $48 for yoga apparel.
“MAGIC is a good show,” Ziff said. “It’s a really diverse buying crowd — from active lifestyle to casual lifestyle to fashion. It draws five-to-10-store owners to national stores to international buyers.”
Landing new retail accounts and tapping into new areas is also on the business agenda at A Touch of Class Clothing, a 20-year-old Irwindale, Calif.-based casual brand. The company does about $2 million to $3 million in annual wholesale volume.
“We cater to about 500 mom-and-pop stores nationwide and about four to five mail order catalogues,” said Nina Tolentino, president and designer of A Touch of Class. “We’re trying to reach the buyers from the bigger stores, such as department stores. We do have a great line — we just need more exposure. We know the consumers love it and we have so many consumers who call us directly from the Web site asking where they can buy the line. They wish they could buy it in the malls.”
Specializing in slinky wash-and-wear knits, Tolentino said the line is popular with women on the go because the clothing doesn’t wrinkle and it’s easy to dress up or down. “It’s work to cocktail,” she said. “And it’s great travel wear.”
A three-piece pantsuit retails from $199, while the silk separates range from $99 to $295 retail.
Attending trade shows like WWDMAGIC is key to growing the business, Tolentino noted, as it’s great exposure to retailers in the various states.
“We just need more retail stores,” she said. “We do a very thorough show at MAGIC. Not only are our clothes done in such high quality but they’re offered in moderate prices. A lot of stores when they’re new only want to spend $1,000 at a booth. Chances are, on the next visit, once they’ve gotten their feet wet, the stores will reorder. We have customers that are still buying from us for the last 15 years.” About half of A Touch of Class’ business is reorder and half is new accounts, she added.
“It would be like a dream come true for us to get into a department store because I know they could sell the line really well,” Tolentino said. “I believe in the clothing. It’s moderately priced and seasonless, so stores don’t have to worry about packing up for winter or summer. It’s just a matter of having a big company walk into our booth and discover us.”
Meanwhile, New York-based Capezio is aiming to attract more specialty shop business at WWDMAGIC with its one-year-old women’s casual active lifestyle collection. This will be the first time the company is showing at WWDMAGIC, and the goal is to secure 20 to 30 new boutique or specialty store accounts and three to six major accounts.
“We want to get more business for the women’s casual line and we’re looking for shops that want to carry crossover active women’s apparel and things that can be worn from class to work and beyond,” said Deborah Gibbs-Pelton, director of business development at Capezio, which does $75 million in annual sales, including apparel and shoes.
Currently, the casual lifestyle collection, which launched at retail in spring 2006 and will be shipped to more than 600 doors this spring, sells in several mid-tier stores, such as J.C. Penney. The goal is to grow the business into specialty pro shops and boutiques, Gibbs-Pelton said.
“We’re interested in international business, such as [in] Europe and Japan,” Gibbs-Pelton said. “We don’t do a lot of trade shows but [WWDMAGIC] is a venue we want to address. We’re mostly dance and activewear but now we’ve created a line that can be worn on the street [and] we’re trying to promote this business.”
The new Capezio line features flattering, feminine styles that can be worn for active or real life, Gibbs-Pelton said. “The styles are contemporary with up-to-the-minute trends. The challenge we have is to educate new customers and retailers that our line will blend with any contemporary line. For women who wear suits, we have tops that can be worn under suits like basic foundation pieces at very competitive prices.”