Z SPOKE RETAIL: Zac Posen is about to set up shop in New York’s Meatpacking District. According to sources, the designer is getting ready to open his first store for Z Spoke, his secondary collection at contemporary price points. The unit will be on Washington Street between 13th and 14th Streets in a space that is currently occupied by Scoop Beach. The Z Spoke boutique is expected to open on Aug. 25.
CLOTH BOUND: Aspiring filmmaker Vicki Vasilopoulos is using an innovative technique to raise the final funding needed to complete her first film, “Men of the Cloth,” a documentary about Italian master tailors. She has turned to a crowd-funding campaign on the global fund-raising Web site IndieGoGo, working with a number of men’s wear firms that are providing goods and services to those who contribute $100 or more. Carrot & Gibbs is providing silk bow ties; Mel Gambert will provide custom shirts; Ike Behar is offering Gold label dress shirts; Adrian Jules is offering a custom-made suit and a tour of its factory; Holland & Sherry, Isles Textile Group and Gladson Ltd. are all offering premium English suiting cloth, and master tailors Nino Corvato and Joe Centofanti (subjects of the film) are both offering a custom-made sport coat.
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THREE’S A CHARM: Rebecca Taylor is putting its first West Coast store on Robertson Boulevard. The store will be the third that Rebecca Taylor has in the U.S. and the only in the country outside of Manhattan, where the brand has stores in the Meatpacking District and NoLIta. “We have a strong L.A. customer base, therefore we wanted to offer them the opportunity to further explore the Rebecca Taylor lifestyle,” said Rebecca Taylor of the new Los Angeles store slated to open by early winter. Kellwood Co., which acquired Rebecca Taylor in January, has made retail expansion a key component of its strategy for building the brand. In addition to opening more stores in the U.S., Rebecca Taylor’s retail growth could come from extending its retail footprint abroad. Rebecca Taylor’s sole international store is in Hong Kong.
THE BIG RED BOX: Chicago retailer Ikram Goldman’s new bigger, bolder shop needs no outdoor signage as its all-red exterior with circular windows at 15 East Huron Street does all the talking. Even the store’s clerks tell patrons, “It’s the big red box, you won’t miss it.” Goldman, who previously styled First Lady Michelle Obama, said she expanded not to bring in new lines, rather to give her existing collections room to breathe. The shop, housed in a 16,000-square-foot structure, does tout new elements including home decor, photos taken by her husband, Josh Goldman, and an upstairs cafe, which serves small salads, sandwiches, desserts and a fresh juice of the day.