Los Gatos Weekly-Times
Business
Local businesses are making fashion statement this spring
By Sue Cristallo
This is the month for clothes, from funky to couture, for "designer meals" and for casual and fine dining. New stores are popping up for spring women's and men's fashions.
AZADEH COUTURE IS HERE ON MAIN STREET with a new ready-to-wear line. Fashion mavens will be thrilled to know they need go no farther than 262 E. Main St. for their original clothing designs and now will be privy to clothes by Azadeh on the rack. Azadeh Riaz, previously head designer of Bebe fashions, just took over two floors in town for the second store bearing her name. The original store is in Union Square, San Francisco.
On the ground floor of the Los Gatos store, which opened March 1, there is a salon devoted to the custom designing of wedding and ball gowns, dresses and suits during the two to three days each week Azadeh's in town. The upper floor is home for her ready-to-wear jeans, tops, dresses and suits. The new line will be featured at a fashion show luncheon in the store on April 26. Call store managers Ladan Mohajer or Ariana Delima at 408.354.4845 for information about invitations. Learn more about the fashions at www.azadehcouture.com.
BLANEY AIKMAN MAKES ONE-OF-A-KIND HANDBAGS TO GO with anything you wear. They're fuzzy, flamboyant and a great antidote to chain store products that lack heart, she says. Aikman is a hometown girl, a graduate of Los Gatos High, class of '96 (her father, Dave Aikman, was in the class of '61).
She says she's "a 5-foot-2, redheaded, triple-threat survivor of five open heart surgeries spanning 28 years." Her congenital heart defect didn't hold her back. In fact, it gave her more reason to express herself.
"My heart condition has given me the drive, the courage and the appreciation of the opportunities life presents," she says.
Sewing became her hobby at an early age and has evolved into her creation of fuzzy purses made of yarn. Warner Brothers bought some of her B. Aikman line of originals that were used by sitcom stars Melanie Griffith, Sarah Gilbert and Molly Stanton on Twins. The handbags have appeared in feature and short films and in fashion and designer shows. They can be seen where she does business--on her website, www.baikman.com, or by calling Aikman direct on her cell at 818.469.4956.
JoS.A.BANK CLOTHIERS IS ENJOYING AN "AWESOME" RESPONSE from the town, says new manager Max Verduzco. The 150 Main St. men's clothing store opened last November in a 4,000-square-foot space. It features "Nordstrom and Brooks Bros. quality, only at better prices," he says. The main source of the store's business is customers reached by mail with sales promotion offers. "We do promotions and sales year-round," Verduzco says. As a result, folks can expect to pay from $299-$699 for a suit on sale as opposed to $450-$1,295. February, normally a slack month in the trade, made a very good showing here.
"In fact, our CEO wanted to know, 'What's going on in Los Gatos?' " Verduzco grins. The former owner himself of a classic clothing store, he quotes an old clothier's adage referring to the sport coats and suits hanging along the wall, "If you're doing well on the wall, you're doing well overall." The Baltimore, Maryland-based JoS.A.Bank has been a classic clothing store for 102 years and now has nearly 400 stores. Go to JoS.A.Bank.com for a better look or call 408.354.1451.
DREAM DINNERS MEAN WELL-FED FAMILIES and a lot fewer headaches for Mom. There are three new owners of the local Dream Dinners meal assembly store at 14107 Winchester in Vasona Station. It's a homey storefront where busy people may go regularly and put together in one session a week's worth of family meals.
The meals are built according to recipes and with all the fresh ingredients at hand. Palo Altons Jeannie Llewelyn, 48, and her mother-daughter team of friends, Kamini Patel, 45, and Krupa Patel, 23, celebrated the opening of their new business with a membership sign-up campaign and open house last month. They donated a portion of the sign-ups to the American Cancer Society.
Former owners Susie Mason and Terry Sweeney have moved on to enjoying more time at home. They opened Dream Dinners in 2005. To learn more, visit Dreamdinners.com and select menus and sessions, or call 408.871.6858.
ATTENTION ALL FOODIES: The casual Italian restaurant and bocce ball court, Campo di Bocce, is open again for lunch and dinner. The 565 University Ave. club, which welcomes the public, has been closed during renovations needed after 10 years of operation. Call 408.395.7650.
Dio Deka, the fine dining Greek restaurant in Hotel Los Gatos at 210 E. Main St., is now open for lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 2 p.m. Call 408.354.7700 for reservations.
Got a business story? Call Sue Cristallo at 408.354.8353.
