Our New LA Flagship.
Photos: Brandon Shigeta
Words: Johan Lam
Admittedly, we didn’t make it very easy for all of you with our first flagship store in LA. For several years, we were headquartered at a warehouse on the second floor of a building in the Arts District. A few years into our tenure there, a small streetside office space in that same building became available downstairs. It didn’t have a door to the street or any sort of signage, but it was the right size and was conveniently located so that we could easily access backstock in the warehouse upstairs. We turned that tiny office space into the retail store of our dreams: a clean, minimal space where our clothing could take center stage, while also functioning as a hub for our community to hang out and a quiet haven for our clients. We served our customers there for eight memorable years.
I fought against moving the shop and warehouse for a long time because I loved that our team was always together. I loved that the retail staff could run up to help pack orders or the warehouse staff could jump down and help customers during a big rush. I also loved that we had access to all the inventory in the warehouse, which kept our small shop well organized and tidy. But for many years I had dreamt of moving our store to Row DTLA. I’ve always enjoyed visiting the property: perusing the latest sneakers at Bodega, grabbing a Business & Pleasure at Go Get Em Tiger or a slice from Pizzeria Bianco, picking up some stationery from High Tide, or sampling the good smells at Scent Bar. Finally, after over a year of discussions and negotiations, the right space became available in the exact wing where I wanted our shop to be. We signed the lease to move to Row DTLA.
When we began our initial meetings with Anton Anger of Studio Meadow, who also designed our original LA and New York stores, he asked whether we wanted to continue with the language of our previous spaces or to push the envelope and make something decidedly different. The three of us agreed that the most compelling approach would be a visual departure from our previous store in favor of an aesthetic that would encapsulate where we currently are as a brand and the direction we hope to continue to pursue. Since it’s not often that we open retail stores, we wanted to make sure that this new buildout would be impactful and could communicate our values to customers both old and new.
The space was tall with enormous east-facing windows that allowed morning light to pour in, but was otherwise nondescript: a blank canvas for us to transform into the new retail space of our dreams. We decided to accentuate the height of the 22 foot ceilings by building huge walls to dissect the space and staining them in a deep multi-hued Sienna brown. We sought to highlight the craftsmanship of our friends at Fraction Handbuilt, who also built out our previous LA shop, by employing thoughtful woodworking details and joinery throughout the space. We count ourselves fortunate to have the opportunity to once again work with the same contractor who built out our previous space almost a decade ago. As the brand has grown and progressed over the years, so has Mackenzie and her team. We were impressed with how they were able to handle every curveball we threw at them along the way, surprising us with solutions that often exceeded our expectations.
Anton wanted to bring warmth and texture into the space, so we commissioned floor-to-ceiling drapes to be woven and mud-dyed in India, with a meticulous ladder stitch detail running up the center of each. They’re especially beautiful at that time of the day when the sun is piercing through them, yielding a warm diffused light. Dressing rooms have always been a main focus of our retail stores and the one we had built in our original LA store was one of my favorites. The new dressing rooms, along with the mirror room, are meant to be intimate and peaceful with latticed overhangs to enclose the spaces. There are thoughtfully designed wooden pegs for hanging clothes and military green back satin drapes held by blackened brass hooks. In the mirror room, a Noguchi Akari lamp hangs perfectly midway through a cutout in the lattice ceiling with brass sconces by our friends at Allied Maker flanking the sides. Each dressing room is dimly lit with Allied Maker’s dark smoked glass sconces. Ryden and his team have provided lighting for each of our retail and showroom spaces for over a decade now and we are thankful for their continued friendship and partnership.
To bring some life to the space, we procured a ten-foot-tall Brachychiton Rupestris which sits prominently in the front window and is accompanied by a large Philodendron and other greenery throughout. Plants have always been a key component to our retail spaces, adding color and vibrancy to the shopping experience, and the massive windows of the new store provide for a great environment to grow fauna.
This past year, we’ve started to host record nights in NYC under the moniker of “3sixteen Records.” When planning our new space in LA, we knew that the audio experience would be something that we would want to pay special attention to. We’re excited to announce a new partnership with two hifi audio legends: UK-based Bowers & Wilkins and US-based Marantz. Our space features six Bowers & Wilkins AM-1 speakers powered by a Marantz M4 amplifier for daily usage. For special occasions and record listening sessions, we’re further equipped with a pair of Bowers & Wilkins 703S3 loudspeakers paired with a Marantz 70s stereo amplifier and TT-15S1 reference turntable. We plan to highlight this partnership more in the coming year through dedicated listening events.
As independent shops continue to close all around us and the industry further retreats to online-only sales, we are proud to invest in a retail space that can serve as a place for face-to-face interaction and experience. Our new LA flagship has now been open for five months as we’ve settled into our rhythms and become a part of the ROW community. We’re looking forward to hosting you in our new home and hope that you can experience first-hand all of the intention and detail that we’ve built into the space. Stop by and see us soon.
3sixteen LA
1320 E 7th St #114
Los Angeles, CA 90021