That’s helping many OC apparel companies.
“Business is really strong,” said Z Supply LLC President Mandy Fry.
Fry heads a multibrand company based in Costa Mesa whose largest brand is its namesake basics line.
“The Z Supply customer is wanting to go out again, and they are starting to spend more and dress accordingly,” Fry added.
“They want something new, but they want it to be casual, comfortable and make them feel confident as they return to school and work. People don’t want to sacrifice comfort.”
Eclectic Mix
OC’s apparel landscape is diverse, mixed with heritage action sports brands, specialty lines of workwear and dance, swimwear and resort, along with plenty of retailers producing their own in-house lines to supplement their broader assortments.
It’s difficult to get an accurate read of the health of the fashion companies. A majority of the 37 businesses on this year’s Business Journal listing of apparel makers opted not to report their financial results and worker ranks; state filings indicate several firms furloughed many workers over the course of the year, if not eliminate positions outright.
Based on a combination of reported and Business Journal estimates for sales, the apparel industry here saw sales last year dip 1.6% to $11.4 billion, with workforces as of April down 3% to 8,362 employees.
Transition in Uses
While loungewear did well for Z Supply and others in 2020 as consumers stayed in much of the year, spending is now being directed to what can make the transition for out-of-home activities, Fry noted.
“What she wears on Zoom must also work for her to run an errand, pick up her children from school or meet a girlfriend for coffee,” Fry said of her customer’s mindset.
She went on to say she expects growth for this year, with strong sell-through paving the way for more floor space at retailers for Z Supply. In the meantime, e-commerce is up 73% year-over-year, with the company also seeing online shoppers transition to repeat Z Supply customers.
Boot Barn Boom
Irvine-based Boot Barn Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BOOT), like Z Supply, navigated 2020 by offering products demanded by its core consumer. In the Western-inspired retailer’s case, that meant being open for essential workers looking for workwear, while also buckling down and not getting heavy into markdowns as some businesses did to drive sales.
“We are an everyday, low price retailer. That’s part of the success of Boot Barn. We’ve never gone down the route of every week [having] a new promotion and a new sale,” CEO Jim Conroy said in a late March interview with the Business Journal.
“The commitment to the customer is that we will have the product that you need in the size that you need, in store at a very competitive price. So, with that, we haven’t really run big sales or promotions. We will match competitor prices, but our prices are already so fair, that we rarely need to invoke our price-match guarantee. And as we get bigger, we have the ability to continue to deliver product that is profitable to us at a very fair and value-oriented price to the customer.”
The retailer with more than 270 stores, also counts five proprietary brands created and designed in-house, each of which are tied to a unique customer segment.
Boot Barn has plans to launch a men’s and women’s brand next year that will focus on what it calls the country market consumer. That is, the shopper who isn’t necessarily working on a ranch but appreciates the style.
Challenges
While the general mood among brands is upbeat, there’s also caution that the challenges of last year are not completely gone.
“In 2021, we are working through new opportunities, as well as challenges, while the country has not completely put the pandemic behind us,” said 5.11 Inc. CEO Francisco Morales of the outlook. “We remain flexible and optimistic about this year.”
The Irvine-based company, with a store fleet of more than 70, makes and sells tactical gear and apparel for military, law enforcement and outdoor enthusiasts. By the CEO’s account, it “was able to successfully navigate” the pandemic with what he attributed to “hard work and diligence” on the part of the 5.11 workforce.
“Continued collaboration among our teams, customers and suppliers will be even more critical for 5.11 to achieve success in 2021,” Morales added.
