Lifted Research Group Inc., a maker of clothing inspired by hip hop and skateboarding, has moved its headquarters from Lake Forest to the Irvine Spectrum.
The company outgrew its 70,000-square-foot building in Lake Forest and signed a five-year lease valued at $3.9 million for a 90,975-square-foot building at Toledo Way, which is owned by Irvine Company.
Known as LRG, the company has carved its niche by appealing to guys with West Coast styles inspired by surfing and skateboarding and edgier East Coast streetwear rooted in
rap music.
“It’s hard to nail down LRG’s core customer,” spokesman Kevin Delaney said. “We appeal to skateboard rats and hip hop guys from Atlanta to men pushing their 30s that like nice denim and sweaters.”
The company generates an estimated $175 million in yearly sales by selling clothes at big and small retailers including Cincinnati-based Macy’s Inc., Dillard’s Inc. of Little Rock, Ark., Mira Loma-based Active Ride Shop and Costa Mesa’s The Closet.
This diversity of stores allows LRG to reach more customers and has helped fuel the company’s growth, Delaney said, which is what prompted the move and expansion.
“We needed more space so that we could keep growing,” Delaney said.
At LRG’s Irvine headquarters, employees will oversee the design of clothes, sales, marketing, accounting and warehousing and distribution, he said.
The company’s new home is closer to its 30,000-square-foot Irvine distribution center for a women’s clothing line called Luxirie, he said.
“It makes sourcing easier,” Delaney said.
LRG counts more than 100 employees in Orange County and a handful of others at its showrooms across the U.S.
A bigger headquarters could allow the company to bring in more workers, but Delaney is mum about future hiring.
Odd Timing
LRG’s expansion comes at a time when clothing makers are feeling the pinch of a slow economy and a weak retail environment.
LRG is becoming more aggressive with its sales and marketing to fight the downturn, Delaney said.
“Most companies are scaling back, but we’re not,” he said. “We’re gobbling up retail space. We’re engaging the customer.”
LRG is mum about its sales goal for next year but plans to generate more revenue by introducing new products.
The company is launching an LRG kids collection this winter, Delaney said.
The product line is made up of smaller versions of LRG’s men’s clothes.
“It’s essentially the little version of our men’s stuff just tweaked a bit,” he said.
LRG also plans to introduce a line of LRG sunglasses next summer, Delaney said.
A line of accessories such as backpacks and cell phone cases are also in the works, he said.
The company competes against a slew of brands including Live Mechanics, Rocawear and Coogi. Upstart companies such as Crooks & Castles and 10.Deep also are competitors.
LRG’s clothing draws inspiration from music genres such as ska, reggae, punk, emo and heavy metal music, among other things.
The company has a celebrity following.
Rapper Kanye West is an LRG fan. He even models in LRG’s catalog and appears in its promotional DVDs.
LRG has teamed up with other companies to help boost its brand and presence in front of consumers, Delaney said.
Recent collaborations include an LRG G-Shock watch with Tokyo’s Casio Computer Co.
“We’re going out there and getting in the mix,” he said.
