Band of Outsiders to Open Pop-up Shop at Fred Segal in Los Angeles
Los Angeles is a town famous for its second acts, and now two of its recently rebooted fashion brands are coming together for a new production. L.A.-founded men’s wear brand Band of Outsiders is returning to its hometown for the first time since its recent reboot, with the launch of a pop-up shop and window at Fred Segal’s equally new Sunset Boulevard flagship in West Hollywood. Open from Feb. 8 to 18, the pop-up will be the only retailer in L.A. to sell Band’s spring collection, which was first shown during London Fashion Week Men’s in June.
The two brands — Band now based in London and Fred Segal’s executives now based in New York — came together through the Liberty trade fair. “Our merchandising and commercial director, Katharina Groborz, met Brian Nylas from Fred Segal through Eitan Braham from Liberty Fairs, in New York,” said Daniel Hettman, Band’s brand director. “Fred Segal and Band of Outsiders already had a great partnership in the past, so Katharina and Brian were especially excited about creating this new project together.”
Hettman continued, “L.A. has always been a very important city for the brand, considering our historical ties; Band of Outsiders was founded there in 2004. It was therefore essential for us to relaunch the brand in L.A. with the right partner, with a typical Band of Outsiders event.”
Said Fred Segal president John Frierson, “Band of Outsiders is a cool brand with deep roots in Los Angeles, and a distinct point of view. We’re excited to partner with them for their global relaunch as part of our ever-changing presentation of newness.”
To celebrate the pop-up shop, Fred Segal and Liberty Fairs will cohost a comedy night with Band on Feb. 8 at the legendary club The Laugh Factory, just down the street on Sunset Boulevard. The format mirrors the London show, which was presented in a comedy club by a troupe of entertainers, harkening back to the original brand’s quirky interactive presentations as conceived by founder Scott Sternberg. The L.A. show will feature comedians Jonathan Kite (from the television show “2 Broke Girls”); Jordan Rock, brother of Chris Rock; Rell Battle, and Rob Pearson.
In addition to Fred Segal, the spring collection will be stocked at Le Bon Marché in Paris and KaDeWe in Berlin, among others. In addition, the brand is focused on its e-commerce channel, with social media bringing much of its web traction. “We love connecting directly to the consumer this way — finding more and more sales coming through personal Instagram messages, which is really fun,” noted Hettman.
As for its next collection and show concept, Hettman said, “We are currently working on the theme for the next collection and will make sure we will surprise you with a great new idea.” The brand’s next event will take place in New York.
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