Irvine apparel maker nZania LLC has shut down.
The company, which had licensed or produced clothes under the brands Black Flys, Andy Warhol by Levi’s, Disney and others, closed after a bank withdrew a credit line in September amid the financial meltdown.
NZania was unable to secure new financing, according to owner and apparel industry veteran Ivan Spiers.
Spiers, known for turning around struggling clothing brands, had planned to shed poor performing lines and revive nZania. But he couldn’t do so without financing.
He called it “a sad story.”
The company was estimated to have yearly sales of more than $300 million.
NZania has left its Irvine headquarters near John Wayne Airport, where San Clemente-based Silver Star Casting Co. has signed on to lease the space.
Spiers said “his friends” at Silver Star are using screen presses left by nZania in the 93,000-square-foot space.
Known for its edgy designs worn by mixed martial arts fighters, Silver Star outgrew its 12,000-square-foot San Clemente site after more than doubling sales each year since 2004.
Silver Star and other companies inspired by Ultimate Fighting Championship, including Seal Beach-based Affliction Inc., have held up better than most apparel companies during the downturn.
NZania also has a 42,000-square-foot building on Von Karman. It’s unclear what will happen to it.
The low-profile Spiers, originally from South Africa, built a reputation as a savvy marketer who could revive brands.
He continues to co-own and run Mozambique Steakhouse in Laguna Beach. He started the restaurant with childhood friend Tony Shill and named it after the African country where their families vacationed together.
Early in Spiers’ career, he was known for buying leftover, end-of-season clothes and selling them to discount stores for a profit. He expanded from there.
In 2001, Spiers and Connecticut’s Windsong Allegiance Apparel Group LLC bought cheeky underwear maker Joe Boxer Corp. Soon after, they landed an exclusive deal with Kmart Corp., now part of Sears Holdings Corp.
In 2005, Windsong sold Joe Boxer for $80 million to current owner Iconix Brand Group Inc.
In 2002, Spiers led an investment group that bought Long Beach-based Mr. Rags Acquisition Inc., a 150-store chain that sold clothes inspired by surfing and skateboarding. The business filed for bankruptcy protection in 2003.
He’s also run stores selling clothes from Irvine-based Billabong USA and what’s now Fox Head Inc. of Northern California.
Through the years, nZania has acquired licenses or made clothes for Costa Mesa’s BB Dakota, Irvine-based Fly Industries LLC, maker of Black Flys, as well as brands Montego Mon and Blue Cult.
In 2002, Walt Disney Co. tapped nZania to come up with stylish, playful clothes featuring Disney characters for tweens.
BB Dakota, a maker of trendy women’s clothes that had shared an office with nZania in Irvine, broke off on its own last year with a move to Costa Mesa.
The company now is working with Samsung America Inc., a unit of the South Korean conglomerate that is handling warehousing, shipping, technology and order management systems and other services.
Founder Gloria Brandes started BB Dakota in the mid-1980s from her Laguna Beach garage and began licensing her brand to Spiers in 2005.
Sales tripled in her first year in business with Spiers after getting by on little marketing for 20 years, Brandes told the Business Journal last year. Her company ultimately outgrew nZania’s operations, she said.
In 2000, Spiers also helped turn around Fly Industries after it took over inventory and shipping for the sunglasses maker.
