The Closet has undergone quite a few changes lately, including closing all stores but one location in Costa Mesa, as well as changing ownership and management.
We caught up with head buyer Patrick Riley to find out what is going on with the influential fashion retailer and how they are changing strategy to grow their business.
According to Riley, in April of 2010, Regal Street Investment Group, owned by Hagop Sargisian bought out the assets of The Closet from owner Billy Stade who started the business in 1993.
The shop has been known in the action sports arena for launching cutting edge fashion brands.
After the acquisition, the company changed names to California Couture Incorporated and it now does business as The Closet.
After Regal Street acquired the assets of The Closet, Billy continued to work with the company. However, a legal dispute around ownership and company organization issues developed around November, during the holiday season, according to Riley.
Billy ended up leaving the company. A story in Apparel News said he has plans to open his own store in the next few months, called Stade California. Billy told us he would share more about his new concept soon.
Patrick Riley joined the company in February of 2010. He said undergoing a legal dispute during holiday was tough on the company and put them about three months behind.
Now that things have settled, The Closet is starting from scratch to rebuild and is moving in a slightly different direction to keep up with the new consumer of today’s economy.
“We are trying to go back to creating the allure of what The Closet once was while attracting a new customer base as well,” said Patrick.
See Page 2 for more about The Closet’s new strategies
One of the first decisions the company made was to consolidate doors.
In January, The Closet closed its Irvine Spectrum location. It closed Fashion Island in February and closed its Main Street Huntington Beach location just a few weeks ago in mid-March.
Patrick, who was not involved in the company during its expansion phase, said it grew too rapidly during the peak of retail, opening stores in Irvine and Santa Monica right before the economy tanked.
The Closet’s flagship Costa Mesa store is still open. Shop-eat-surf file photo.Since then, Patrick said the company has been trying to fix things to keep doors open. Like a lot of retailers during the economic crunch, the shop got behind on payments.
Patrick said the store is back on track now, and brands have responded well to its new strategies.
Besides closing doors, The Closet moved towards a tiered price point system.
Patrick explained that as a buyer he brings in a few different head to toe looks for general audiences.
Within each of those styles, the store offers three broad tiers of price points so any customer can get that look based on their budget.
For example, at The Closet denim ranges from $68 Comune jeans to higher end brands like Frankie B, J Brand or Levi’s Made & Crafted for $150.
Patrick said that at shows like Project, Agenda and Workroom brands have responded positively.
“We had some issues in the past, but I was at Agenda, Project and Workroom and responses from brands have been nothing but awesome,” he said, also saying that they have remained transparent the entire time about their struggles and changes.
The store carries brands like OBEY, Commune and Stussy, Doppelganger and Howe.
“We have been a staple of the industry for the last 17 years and are known for launching brands and setting a precedent for fashion in Orange County,” he said.
“We have seen numerous retailers who follow our buying model and we understand what weight we carry in the industry and are also trying to live up to our reputation.”
As for launching new stores, Patrick said they plan to open a new store within a year, but are focusing on their Costa Mesa location for this immediate season.
