Costa Mesa-based Lucy Love plans to keep making clothes and bathing suits for girls and young women in California, despite high costs and a trend of apparel makers moving manufacturing offshore.
The main reason for keeping production in Orange and Los Angeles counties: Lucy Love can fill reorders from customers more quickly, President Michael Sharp said.
“We do it the old fashioned way,” he said. “It has worked really well.”
Lucy Love is one of a few clothing makers that has kept production here amid high wages, real estate costs, workers’ compensation insurance premiums and utility bills.
The company’s profit margins might not be as high as other clothing makers, Sharp said. But the company has solid growth, he said.
Sales this year are expected to grow 30% to 50%, according to Sharp, who declined to give a revenue figure.
|
|
O’Neill’s Gibson: added a VP, COO |
Lucy Love has been expanding sales to existing stores instead of adding new ones, Sharp said. The company sells its garb in surf shops and boutiques, including Hobie in Laguna Beach.
It’s a family business: Sharp’s daughter and wife oversee design.
The goal is quality clothes at a low price, Sharp said. Prices range from $13 for a tank top to $80 or more for a swimsuit.
“For us, it’s a family business,” Sharp said. “We don’t have to make huge numbers to be satisfied.”
The company plays up a traveling theme in its latest catalog for its summer clothing line, which includes dresses, shirts, shorts and pants.
The 150-piece collection got its design inspiration from different places around the world, including California, Europe and Indonesia, Sharp said.
Fleetwood Work in Tow
Last week, I wrote about work Costa Mesa-based Honest Mechanics Advertising and Brand Engineering picked up from Fleetwood RV, a unit of Riverside’s Fleetwood Enterprises Inc.
Since then, I’ve gotten more details about the first campaign that’s set to break this month.
Honest Mechanics put together print ads for Toy Hauler magazine that promote Fleetwood’s new Nitrous Toy Hauler towable trailer.
The shop also has been working on marketing materials for Fleetwood, including Web work, branding and in-store advertising. The shop nabbed the account in a review with three other shops, including Erwin Bell in Irvine and Ballpark Advertising in Santa Monica.
Dominic Symes, principal at Honest Mechanics, said one of the challenges in making the campaign is that trailers are a “fairly confusing category for the man on the street.”
“The average person goes through a whirlwind buying process when it comes to buying a motor home or towable trailer,” Symes said. “The average buying process is about six months.”
Honest Mechanics picked up another assignment for Fleetwood and its luxury division called American Coach.
Oakley Gets Girlie
Foothill Ranch-based Oakley Inc. continues to shed its macho image and target women buyers with more stylish designs.
Its latest move: a line of women sunglasses that are more about fashion than sport, an Oakley spokesman said.
Some sunglasses are oversized and have different colors, such as pink and black. The cost: $130 to $200.
Oakley continues to tweak its women’s clothes and accessories.
“Everything from styling to fit has gotten overhauled,” said Jenny Delapena, who oversees women’s apparel sales at Oakley.
New purses are bigger and have a lot of embellishments to help “set us apart,” she said.
Meanwhile, Oakley has been busy pushing its O Rokr sunglasses made with Motorola Inc.
The shades, which hit stores mid-May, play music and are compatible with iPods, the company said.
O’Neill Adds Execs
Kelly Gibson, chief executive of O’Neill Clothing and Lost Clothing in Irvine, continues to build his management team.
He recently promoted Charlie Setzler to vice president of sales and Toby Bost to chief operating officer overseeing O’Neill and Lost.
In the past year, Gibson said he added a layer of vice presidents to oversee the growth plans for O’Neill and Lost, which include expanding and improving the clothing lines.
Bits and Pieces:
The Newport Beach Conference & Visitors Bureau is smiling about the amount of media attention surrounding the city’s 2005 Christmas Boat parade. The parade was included in news broadcasts in 28 states, highlighted in an HGTV holiday special and featured on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” according to the bureau Costa Mesa-based Volcom Inc. is revving up for the launch of its snow movie, “Escramble.” The apparel company has worked on the flick for three years. It’s set to launch in the fall Irvine-based Kia Motors America Inc. is tweaking marketing for its redesigned Optima sedan and Sedona minivan. Its ad shop, davidandgoliath in Los Angeles, will handle the work, which includes three commercials pitching the Sedona.
