Charlotte Russe in South Coast Plaza : Women’s Store Debuts With a Splash

When she’s working, flight attendant Janet Britton is on her feet all day. So it could have been expected that she’d kick back and relax when her flight was canceled last Friday.

But a day at the beach wasn’t in the cards--not with a grand opening sale scheduled for a hot new clothing store. Instead, Britton--who appropriately bought several pairs of shoes--was the first paying customer at Charlotte Russe, a splashy designer clothing store at South Coast Plaza.

She had plenty of company. And if customer traffic from Friday through late Monday afternoon is any indication, the store, a division of San Diego-based Lawrence Merchandising Corp., may become one of the most successful clothing shops to hit South Coast Plaza since Banana Republic, the eclectic safari clothing store, opened there in May, 1984.

‘They’re taking a huge risk and trying to go neck and neck with the big chains like The Limited,” said Steve Ginsberg, Los Angeles bureau chief at Women’s Wear Daily. “I think they’ll be very successful.”

In a mall with 38 women’s clothing stores--including eight within sight of its own front door--Charlotte Russe has its work cut out for it.

But unlike most competitors that tend to open small boutiques, Charlotte Russe is going for the big splash with an opulently outfitted, 20,000-square-foot store--more than twice the size of any of its other shops. Inventory at the Costa Mesa store is valued in excess of $300,000, a substantial sum for a specialty chain.

“Everything we’ve done is for the customer’s psyche,” said Larry Lawrence, co-owner of the Charlotte Russe chain. “We have many of the same things that the other stores have, but here the customer is visually stimulated.”

Jamie Mounts, a sales clerk at New Times Clothing Co., a nearby competitor, agreed: “When you see the marble (on the floor), you want to walk in there. Their quality is about the same as everyone else’s, they’ve just spent a lot more on look.”

Success, according to Frank Lawrence, 42, the company’s president and an equal partner in the chain with brothers Danny, 46, the purchasing vice president, and Larry, 33, the merchandising vice president, will depend on volume--the Lawrences hope to move about $3 million worth of merchandise in the store’s first year--one reason for the sizable inventory.

The task is formidable. Charlotte Russe’s seven other stores--all located in San Diego--posted combined sales of about $12 million last year.

The chain’s prices are in the high-to-moderate range, but the stores attract the budget-conscious with numerous promotions and sales.

Dresses, which make up nearly 30% of the Costa Mesa store’s stock, sell for $30 to $300. Fur jackets selling for up to $1,000 contrast with costume jewelry earrings for a mere $4 a pair.

But display is what clearly separates Charlotte Russe’s $1-million Costa Mesa store from its competitors.

An Italian marble walkway encircles the interior and a huge display--decked with manikins and mirrors--sits like a stage in the store’s center. The clothing racks are spaced widely apart, as if each is its own exhibit.

“They’re showmen, not retailers,” said Women’s Wear’s Ginsberg.

Still, the Lawrences have been in the retail clothing business all their lives. The family owned several small garment shops in New York City from 1927 until 1972. The three brothers moved to San Diego after the New York stores were sold and opened the first Charlotte Russe in 1975--naming it after a whipped-cream-and-cherry-topped dessert popular in New York eateries.