Erica Dee, a women’s boutique in Corona del Mar, is scouting out a spot for expanding next year.
But it won’t be at the mall,strip or otherwise,even though the wooing is persistent, owner Erica D. Thomas said.
“They approach all the time,” she said.
“They” are Fashion Island’s The Irvine Company and South Coast Plaza. More so with the Irvine Co., Thomas said.
“I really like being a destination,” she said. “In a mall, you may lose that.”
Competition is tougher in a mall, Thomas said. And you lose the intimate relationship with customers, she said.
“I know their names and birthdays,” Thomas said.
But she won’t say never. One day, it might be a good idea to be in a mall, Thomas said.
In a small store, between Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and the Port Theater on Coast Highway, Erica Dee sells women’s clothes, shoes and accessories. The store also sells gifts such as wedding ring and binky dishes handpainted by local artist Timree Gold. There are candles, perfumes, Dita sunglasses and Tylie Malibu suede handbags.
Thomas said she sells hundreds of $13 Havaiana flip-flops a month.
The goal is to turn the current store into a kids and maternity shop, Thomas said. The new store, planned for Corona del Mar, is set to be a larger women’s and men’s shop.
“I never thought that guys were that into style,” she said. “But they are.”
Thomas isn’t aiming to open a slew of stores. She may open a few more,perhaps one in a hip hotel, she said.
The store has been profitable since it opened five years ago, Thomas said.
“We way underestimated how well the store was going to do,” she said. “There weren’t a lot of trendy boutiques in this area when I opened.”
Thomas said she puts in the hours and has a fashion background. She opened two Anthropologie stores, including Fashion Island’s, and attended the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles.
She also interned at Huntington Beach-based Quiksilver Inc., where she met a lot of contacts. The pay was minimal but the experience was worth it, Thomas said.
Her dad, an investor, helped finance Erica Dee.
“He’s happy he did,” she said.
For the new store, Thomas said she expects to be able to go to the bank for a loan.
Dog Shop
Retail has gone to the dogs.
That was too easy.
Muttropolis is set to open during the second week of December at Fashion Island. The company, based in Solana Beach, sells all kinds of doggie goodies.
For the Jewish pup there’s the Hanukkah Menorah, a toy that sings traditional songs when chewed. Really.
For the smarty dog, there’s the IQube, a puzzle toy.
Then there are the more practical items such as doggie hoodies and the romantic roses sweater and beanie set.
Muttropolis also sells some cat items but dogs are more lucrative.
“Some cats just won’t stand for wearing a sweater,” said Janet McCulley, one of Muttropolis’ six partners.
Muttropolis, founded in 2002, has four stores including one at Fashion Island. It’s set to open another in Tucson.
Muttropolis caters to “pet parents,” those who treat their pets like kids. Orange County has a huge population of pet parents, McCulley said.
There are a number of theories as to why the pet craze has taken off, McCulley said. People are getting married later in life, so pets provide companionship before the children, she said.
“Pets used to be relegated to the back yard,” McCulley said. Now they are allowed everywhere. Fashion Island is known as being doggie friendly.
Then there’s the whole dog-as-an-accessory trend, where young girls dress up their dogs a la Paris Hilton or Britney Spears.
“There are those that look at a dog as an accessory,” she said. “But they’re certainly not.”
OC No. 4 in Auto Sales
OC ranks No. 4 in new vehicle sales per 1,000 people.
That’s according to a recent Orange County Auto Dealers Association report. OC’s 2005 sales are 67 cars per 1,000 people.
The top three greater metropolitan markets: San Diego, New York and San Francisco.
For the next three years, new auto sales are expected to dip 3.9% in OC, according to the report. Sales are projected to start going up in 2008.
There are several reasons for the projected decrease. Consumers only can buy so many new cars and they’ve been on a spree in the past few years because of aggressive incentives.
The report predicts that manufacturers will bring back incentives as sales slow.
Other reasons for the sales decline include high consumer debt, a negative savings rate, high energy costs and decreasing consumer confidence.
Despite all that, the report says relatively low interest rates, growing personal income and more incentives should help keep the OC market relatively strong in 2006.
