Dapper Duds for Riley’s Successor

Lakers Coach Mike Dunleavy faces a tall order: Not only must he succeed Pat Riley on the basketball court, he also must fill his shoes on the fashion front.

“It just so happens I’m following the fashion king of the NBA,” Dunleavy groused good-naturedly during a visit to his tailor.

Dunleavy has chosen David Rickey & Co. of Costa Mesa to supply most of his court-side wardrobe. David Rickey--named for owners Rick Lamitie, David Heil and David Schwartz--specializes in what its owners call “custom wardrobing.”

“What we do is completely put together our client’s wardrobe--his suits, his shirts, his belts, his socks, even his cuff links,” Lamitie says.

This isn’t a place to buy a suit off the rack. Rather, the customer is shown fabric swatches and sketches of suits from which to create his wardrobe--with a helpful hint or two from the tailors.

Clients include prominent Orange County businessmen such as Carl Karcher, chairman of Carl Karcher Enterprises Inc., which owns the Carl’s Jr. chain, and sports luminaries Magic Johnson, Wayne Gretzky and Bo Jackson. One customer, John Elway of the Denver Broncos, sent the tailors this note after they put together his wardrobe:

“Thanks for helping a guy who needed a lot of help.”

David Rickey can outfit a customer for the golf course or for a black-tie gala. Custom-tailoring would especially appeal to athletes because garments are made to fit their bodies--tall or short, heavy or slim. In a back room, for example, hung an elegant dress suit for Willie Shoemaker.

Dunleavy had stopped into David Rickey on a recent afternoon to pick up four outfits he will be wearing on the sidelines this season.

The walls inside the shop are lined with polished cherry wood, and a wall of built-in shelves hold bolts of silks and woolens imported from European mills. Silk ties stick out from cubbyholes like so many colorful tongues.

Some customers need coaching from the tailors to help choose the pieces for their wardrobes. Not Dunleavy.

“I pick out what I like, and they make it for me,” Dunleavy says confidently. On this afternoon, he is wearing an olive silk suit and a chartreuse shirt by David Rickey.

“He knew what he wanted right away,” Lamitie agrees.

Dunleavy’s selections are spread out on a table: two navy suits, one with a single-breasted jacket with patch pockets for a non-traditional twist, the other a classic double-breasted gabardine; a silk-wool blend sport coat in a tan and taupe glen plaid with coffee-colored slacks, and a silk sport coat in an olive-toned glen plaid.

“I like darker suits and lots of solids,” Dunleavy says.

His ties, however, are another matter. With the olive sport coat, he’ll wear a silk tie with a large olive, rust and raspberry floral print. For the navy suits, he chose a silk tie of royal blue and white that looks like an abstract watercolor.

Although many assume that Riley’s reputation put extra pressure on the new coach to beef up his wardrobe, Dunleavy says, “I’ve always had an interest in looking nice.” In fact, Gentlemen’s Quarterly named him 1990’s best-dressed coach in its December issue.

Despite the similarities, though, Dunleavy and Riley have different styles of dressing as well as of coaching.

“He’s more severe. He wears mostly Italian. I’m more conservative than Pat,” Dunleavy says.

Dunleavy’s suits are more structured than the loosely constructed, soft-shouldered Giorgio Armanis Riley favors.

David Rickey & Co. had already been outfitting Magic Johnson when the tailors offered their services to the new coach.

“They called and asked if I’d be interested in seeing their clothes,” Dunleavy says. “They brought samples. I liked the workmanship and material.”

Lamitie, Heil and Schwartz are all in their early 30s--and always impeccably attired in their custom suits. They joined forces to open their store three years ago.

“We’re three young guys who started this with no capital. Almost everybody thought we’d fail,” Schwartz says. Today, they say, they have about 2,000 customers from San Diego to Los Angeles, with most in Orange County.

“It’s hard to have three high egos in partnership and have it work, but we have an incredible amount of synergism,” Schwartz says.

Lamitie, who sports flamboyant ties and a short ponytail, favors contemporary styles and works well with the young athletes. Schwartz, himself a more traditional dresser, works primarily with conservative dressers, especially attorneys. Heil likes both styles and feels comfortable with customers with either traditional and contemporary tastes.

Most of their business is conducted not in the Costa Mesa store but rather in clients’ homes and offices. Typically, a representative will bring a book of fabric swatches and drawings of different styles to the client. From there, measurements are taken and patterns developed.

Clients receive portfolios with their wardrobes that has each garment and accessory numbered. With the number system, those who have trouble coordinating outfits themselves can refer to the portfolio to put pieces together.

“This way they know if they want to wear coat No. 7, they can wear it with pant No. 3, shirt No. 6 or tie No. 2,” Lamitie says. The portfolio also states whether a suit is appropriate for winter or summer, day or evening, formal or informal wear.

Customers can choose from three collections: the David Rickey, which offers suits made by machine for $400 to $700; the Executive Collection, with suits made half by machine, half by hand for $600 to $1,100, and the Platinum Collection, with suits entirely made by hand for $1,100 and up.

In return for their investment, clients might feel they’ve joined an exclusive sports club. Pictures of the star athletes who have frequented David Rickey hang on the wall as a not-so-subtle reminder that the store does business in the big leagues.

“Clients feel like they’re part of a fraternity,” Schwartz says. “They tell their friends, ‘My tailor makes clothes for Wayne Gretzky.’ ”