Lekach says he is working on a friendly merger with an action sports retailer, and it's not Active.

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

I had a short but interesting telephone conversation yesterday with Ilia Lekach, the CEO of Adrenalina.

Adrenalina, based in Miami, is an action sports retailer with four stores - three in Florida and one in Texas. Its stores feature a wave pool where customers can surf and ride waves. Lekach has been in the news lately after making unsuccessful bids for retailers Pacific Sunwear and West 49.

Lekach had expressed interest at one point in bidding for the bankrupt Active Ride Shop chain, and I wanted to find ou...  Read More...     Email to Friend

I find some surprising brands at Tilly's; Urban Outfitters is overrun by plaid wovens and flannels.

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

I spent a lot of time at a Tilly's store yesterday, and I must say it was time well spent.

It's an interesting time at retail, with summer goods competing with the first fall arrivals, and some retailers struggle with the balance.

I thought Tilly's, however, had a nice mix of "wear now" goods that didn't look like leftovers mixed in with fall goods.

Windows show newer brands

The windows of Tilly's really caught my eye because I saw brands I have never seen before displayed there - G...  Read More...   

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

A bankruptcy judge approved the sale of Active Ride Shop Tuesday to Active Sports Lifestyle USA, LLC, according to Active Sports Lifestyle's attorney.

Joseph Eisenberg also told me today that a few unresolved issues with the landlords of the Thousand Oaks store and Active's Mira Loma headquarters have been resolved. The present plan, he said, is for the new Active Ride Shop owners to go forward with 21 stores and remain in the Mira Loma offices.

I asked if Active's current management would stay with the company and he said that is being evaluated now.

The sale is expected to close today or tomorrow, Eisenberg said.<...  Read More...     Email to Friend

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

Sport Chalet appears to saved itself from the brink of disaster with help from vendors and landlords and by internally revamping operations, cutting costs, and managing inventories more effectively.

The company put out a press release touting its accomplishments in the face of the recession and said it hopes to return to profitability soon.

CEO Craig Levra previously talked to Shop-eat-surf about the initiatives Sport Chalet has taken and how Bank of America is backing the retailer, one of the industry's largest customers with 55 doors.

U.S. Immigration officials say 1,800 American Apparel employees may not be legally working in the U.S.

The eligibility of 200 manufacturing workers in Los Angeles cannot be verified because of discrepancies in their records, American Apparel said in a press release. Another 1,600 do not appear to be authorized to work in the U.S.

American Apparel prides itself on its manufacturing workforce and its relatively high pay for garment workers. But, because of an inventory backlog and a long list of potential applicants, the company does not believe its business will be impacted if the 1,800 hundred employees - approximately one-third of its manufacturing wor...  Read More...     Email to Friend

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

Frank Delgadillo's new brand Comune hosted a party Saturday for the industry and media at the brand's headquarters in Costa Mesa.

Bands Woven Bones from Austin, Texas and Tender and the Ragbones from Portland and Los Angeles performed. The party also celebrated the opening of the Drop City art gallery, housed in a recycled steel shipping container at Comune's headquarters. The idea was inspired by the original Drop City artist commune in the early 1960's.

I was not able to go the party, but followed up with Frank and asked him a few questions about how business is going for Comune. Comune first major line arrives in stoes f...  Read More...     Email to Friend

Photos of the new arrivals, plus other action sports brands and copycats at the mall. And, a jaw-dropping sale at PacSun.

By TIFFANY MONTGOMERY

Fall goods are beginning to trickle into stores so I thought it would be a good time to visit JC Penney to see how the new young men's action sports merchandise looked. JC Penney announced in April it was adding several action sports brands to its clothing mix.

I did find a small grouping of action sports brands, with most of the clothing so far from RS by Sheckler. Since it is early in the fall s...  Read More...