Lost exposure
Even among those who make a name for themselves on the runways or in retail, the lure of Hollywood - both for fame and fortune - is hard to resist. Several designers and manufacturers here churn out items, from special one-of-a-kind items to orders of thousands for film and TV, boosting their brand awareness and bottom lines in the process.
Although industry observers say this particular segment would be the least vulnerable part of the Hollywood machine to a strike because sales to studios are generally a small portion of their overall wholesale business, there could be thousands of dollars of lost exposure at stake. The exact magnitude of the impact is difficult to quantify, they concede.
"It all depends on how long it lasts," said Ilse Metchek, executive director of the California Fashion Association. A strike shorter than six months would be negligible, she said. But anything more than that period of time, and "it's time to start assessing the impact," she said.
Many designers, though lamenting the possibility of lost visibility, said they mostly fear the strike's ramifications on a retail level. Kevan Hall, former creative director for Halston, who opened an atelier here last month housing the Kevan Hall Collection, said 5 percent of his business is producing clothing for the movies. He most recently produced gowns for the upcoming movie "All That Glitters" starring Mariah Carey.
While he values the sales to the studios as well as the prestige product placement on celebrities bring, he said he won't miss it when it's gone. "[The strike] is not something I'm going to concern myself with," said Hall, who sells to Neiman Marcus and other specialty stores. "There are other ways to generate dollars, such as going straight to the customer via trunk shows." (taken from an unknown California Paper) Many thanks to Regina from Mariah Daily.
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