MAGIC show to feature trendsetting fashions

Michelle Swafford

Monday, Feb. 23, 2004 | 11 a.m.

When people think of cutting-edge fashion trends, they think of New York. But Las Vegas will be the trendsetter today through Thursday at the MAGIC Marketplace fashion industry convention.

During the semiannual event in Las Vegas, formerly known as the Men's Apparel Guild in California, companies work to capture a piece of the $11.7 billion men's fashion industry. The conference will feature the latest men's apparel trends such as tailored clothing, contemporary sportswear and celebrity brands.

One player in the industry is designer Eddie Rodriguez. His company chose the Las Vegas Strip's Fashion Show Mall for its pilot store, which opened this month and is named after the designer. Eddie Rodriguez is a Latino-inspired concept for men's and women's apparel and home furnishings.

The Men's Wearhouse Inc., Eddie Rodriguez stores' parent company, has representatives at MAGIC to meet with current and potential designers.

Eddie Rodriguez stores chose Las Vegas for the first of six stores because of the city's diversity, passion and sense of sexiness, Rodriguez said from his office in Manhattan.

"If you really want to learn about a concept, Las Vegas not only gets a diverse local market, but the feedback you get from tourists is enormous," he said.

The Men's Wearhouse has been a successful retailer of men's tailored clothing and also operates K&G Men's Center nationwide. Collectively, the company had $1.3 billion in sales last year and posted a $42.4 million net profit. Rodriguez declined to comment on the new stores' financial projections.

Rodriguez said his stores provide a mixture of his Cuban and American culture by incorporating aged wood, tile, wrought iron and bamboo throughout the store.

"Whether you're from Mexico, Cuba or anywhere in the Caribbean you'll fee a sense of place," Rodriguez said. "There was certainly a need for a new retail environment"

Although the store is targeting all races and ethnicities, Rodriguez said he wants Latinos to see the store as an example of cross boundaries and being successful just as Ricky Martin and Jennifer Lopez did in entertainment.

The target consumer for Rodriguez's apparel is people between age 25 and 45 who are in a career, but want "wearable, fun, sexy clothes," he said.

About 90 percent of the clothing is priced for less than $100 and the apparel is manufactured in Asia and Europe.

MAGIC is also drawing attention to BIB Holdings Ltd. of Las Vegas, a designer and manufacturer of young men's and women's apparel with a new licensed mSasson label that will be launched at MAGIC and hit stores nationally in the coming weeks.

The new brand emphasizes denim apparel for men and women age 18 to 34.

Gail and Mark Binder have been quietly growing their company and designs since 1972 through private labels, meaning stores such as Wal-Mart put their own labels on the BIB apparel.

Now, it's ready to launch a young women's apparel collection and expand its young men's collection by promoting mSasson.

The company has its main office and a distribution center in Las Vegas, along with a distribution center in Pennsylvania. All of the clothes are manufactured in Asia and Mexico.

"Shipments from China get here 10 days quicker than if we were on the East Coast," Gail Binder said.

Also, the Las Vegas area offers a good labor market for the company's distribution center, which handles 30 percent of the company's business, Mark Binder said.

BIB projects record sales this year and says they will surpass its 2003 sales of $16.5 million because it has already taken $4.1 million in orders.

The company sells apparel to between 300 and 500 retailers nationwide and the mSasson line will likely be the bulk of this year's sales, Mark Binder said.