Workout clothes that work outside the gym too
Tracy Anderson
Given all the buzz last month around the opening of fitness guru Tracy Anderson’s flagship super-studio in Brentwood — a partnership with Gwyneth Paltrow, who is Exhibit A for Anderson’s handiwork — it comes as no surprise that the celebrity trainer is extending her lifestyle brand into fashion. Just weeks ago, the Tracy Anderson line debuted with compression-fit capri leggings ($60) in three eye-catching fabrics: red tartan plaid, oversize multi-color polka dot and glittery metallic.
This isn’t Anderson’s first foray into fashion. Last June, she partnered with online fashion platform and product development agency Edition01 to create the Tracy Anderson + ED.01 legging collection — a basic black legging with mesh paneling ($125) that comes in four styles designed to flatter four body types, inspired by Anderson’s Metamorphosis workout.
On Tuesday, Anderson debuted a second Edition01 collaborative collection, featuring a cropped legging ($60), tank tops ($60), a cropped sweat pant ($130) and a sweatshirt ($175). The pieces are decorated with colorful, Pop Art-inspired graphics of dumbbells, cassette tapes, headphones and an “I [heart] Tracy” motif, while the limited-edition, mesh-lined “I [heart] Brentwood” sweatshirt is specifically designed to please Anderson’s new Angeleno recruits. All items are available at tracyandersonmethod.com.
Anderson says that the new collection is intended for “women who are looking for comfort, style and motivation through their wardrobes.”
Harley Pasternak
Harley Pasternak, who owns a private West Hollywood training studio and counts Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Kanye West among his clients, has served as a New Balance brand ambassador since 2009. Pasternak gives the fitness brand product feedback and for two years has collaborated on a namesake athletic shoe for men and women that’s been spotted on some of his star clients, including Amanda Seyfried and Rashida Jones.
The 2013 version of the New Balance Harley Pasternak 997v2 cross-trainer ($89.99) features energizing shots of neon color and is available exclusively at newbalance.com. An updated 2014 version of the sneaker is in the works.
Equinox
Upscale gym Equinox boasts nine fitness clubs in the L.A. area and four private label apparel lines: De Rigueur quality basics, Mercer & Taylor trendy casual wear, Fulcrum menswear and Orange Label support bras and tops.
This fall marks the introduction of two more Equinox brands. The first is 895, a “fashion-meets-function” line of men’s and women’s apparel named for the Equinox corporate headquarters building at 895 Broadway in Manhattan.
“Offerings will include body-conscious tees and sweaters, to be paired with sexy jackets and fun, printed leggings,” says Karyn Riale, the company’s national retail buyer.
Pivot, the sixth Equinox label and second fall launch is “our collection of women’s essentials [that] will include super-soft tees, tanks and sweats,” Riale says. “Pivot will be for everyone, all the time, allowing [them] to ‘pivot’ through the various parts of their day.”
Riale says the company is “aggressively expanding our exclusive collections, due to the overwhelming and increasing interest from our members and guests. We are constantly getting requests for new styles and updates to old styles.”
Like a fashionable fitness buff’s dream closet, the extensive and expertly curated mix in the Shop at Equinox also includes exclusive, co-branded merchandise with labels such as Splendid, Three Dots, Falke and David Lerner that have partnerships with Equinox. New co-branded products include three styles of Hudson x Equinox jeans in a patented stretch fabric that just hit shelves, MZ Wallace handbags that are due in stores next month and two new apparel lines by labels Elisabetta Rogiani and Te Verde, coming this fall.
Soul Cycle
Soul Cycle, the veteran spinning studio with locations in West Hollywood, Brentwood, Santa Monica and a Beverly Hills site slated to open this summer, has made a name the last seven years for its stylish, branded line of workout wear and accessories. Currently, the brand (which was purchased by Equinox in 2011) introduces 12 retail lines every year, each with its own color palette and theme, designed by founders Julie Rice and Elizabeth Cutler. Customers can pick from offerings such as a bandanna for $11, a tank for $48, a hoodie for $78 — there are even onesies for babies, priced around $20.
Gabby Etrog Cohen, Soul Cycle’s public relations and marketing director, says the apparel part of the business has grown by about 126% since 2008 and as of 2013, issues about 30,000 pieces of merchandise each month. “[It] started as an ancillary business and has quickly developed into a robust business and our customers are walking Soul Cycle billboards,” she says.
There are also to expand the breadth of the offerings by adding more accessories, such as handbags, cosmetic cases, lunch boxes, iPhone cases, water bottles and even skateboards. Products are available in the studios and at soul-cycle.com.
Flywheel
Rival indoor cycling company Flywheel, started by third Soul Cycle founder Ruth Zukerman in 2010, is also competing on the fashion front. The company has studios in Larchmont Village and West Hollywood and has hugely expanded its branded apparel line this year by teaming with 13 fashion and fitness labels to create exclusive merchandise. In the mix are local brands Lauren Moshi, Solow, Strut This, Rebel Yell, Nux, Dirtee Hollywood and Beyond Yoga, which all launched collaborative apparel for Flywheel this year; pieces by the last three brands just hit shelves this month. Exclusive Havaianas sandals and a Hanky Panky logo thong panty are due by Memorial Day, and tank tops designed by Los Angeles-based Junk Food Clothing Co. will land in Flywheel studios in August. The company also plans to launch e-commerce on its website, flywheelsports.com, later this year.
While Flywheel also offers merchandise from other companies, before this year’s fast and furious expansion, the in-house product line consisted of a limited assortment of American Apparel T-shirts emblazoned with the company’s logo and a “Never Coast” slogan, branded Sock Guy socks and a few non-branded hair accessories.
“There was a high demand for more fashion-forward apparel and many of our new items sold out the day that we got them in,” says Natalie Cohen, Flywheel’s newly appointed director of retail. She added that Flywheel plans to introduce a new retail collection every month that will include at least one brand collaboration.
The Sweat Shoppe
The Sweat Shoppe, a heated spinning studio in North Hollywood that opened in 2011, also offers its own branded apparel line. What started out as a few tops quickly morphed into an apparel line that includes tees, hoodies, sweat pants, leggings and even maxi dresses, priced from $30 to $75. There are 12 pieces in the new summer collection, and an e-commerce site is scheduled to launch June 15.
“We treat our line like any clothing retailer would,” says Sweat Shoppe founder Mimi Benz. “We look at seasonal trends in colors, fabrics and styles and create merchandise that is fashionable. We use slogans that many of our riders use — for example, ‘shut up and ride’ and ‘some like it hot.’
“[The line] took off immediately and riders constantly asked when we were going to be getting new items in,” Benz says. “As a new business owner, I did not expect to have our branded merchandise become such a [large] part of our overall revenue … a reflection, in part, of the pride associated with being a part of our community.”
Pure Barre
Ballet-based Pure Barre, with studios in Beverly Hills, West Hollywood and Brentwood, has recently added some fashion-forward pieces to its mix of mostly logo-branded tops and accessories. A ballet-neck sweatshirt with striped detailing ($44) and a burnout baseball tee ($45) that launched last month make great weekend staples with jeans.
“We started carrying Pure Barre branded apparel soon after I launched the company 12 years ago,” says founder Carrie Dorr. “We had some T-shirts created when we had about 10 loca-
tions, and we printed all the locations down the back, like a rock band tour. We had to stop be-
cause we couldn’t keep the back of the tee updated, since we were adding locations all the time. It’s amazing how far we’ve come with 127 locations across the country now.”
