OK, you'd have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to have noticed that streetwear label Von Dutch is everywhere. From trucker caps covering actor Ashton Kutcher's pretty head to oil-washed jeans on every downtown dude in Sohos around the world, to ubiquitous, logo-bearing T-shirts on everyone between, the Von Dutch name is inescapable.
Now, to capitalise on the mad success of their mid-priced jeans line, the Von Dutch crew is set to open the by-appointment-only Sample Room by Von Dutch in Los Angeles. The store - all 7,000 square feet of it - will be located in a loft-like space on La Brea and Willoughby, one block up from the famous Pink's hot dog stand.
Far from a standard retail operation, Sample Room is set to be a sort of incubator, or test space for new ideas. The brainchild of owner Tonny Sorrensen and Von Dutch designer Christian Aguadier, the concept store will include custom clothing, such as jeans priced from US$700 to $1,500, plus everything else from custom motorcycles to cars to dinner ware. The concept is based on the tried and tested ideals behind Von Dutch: freedom, style, sex and power, and the shop and its contents will espouse the Von Dutch lifestyle in spades. 'In an ideal world,' says Sorrensen, 'this is exactly how we would dress someone, how we'd want them to live.'
Clothes will be made as well as sold in the store. 'There will be all sorts of things going on,' according to Aguadier. 'There will be photo shoots, people painting, working on cars ... all in one open space.'