L.A. Brand D?en Opens First Brick-and-Mortar Store
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Margaret and Katherine Kleveland, who built their direct-to-consumer, priced-right Los Angeles brand of romantic, vintage-inspired ditsy floral blouses and ruffle-trim dresses through a collective of female tastemakers with social media reach, have opened their first permanent brick-and-mortar retail store at Brentwood Country Mart.
The 900-square-foot space stocks the full range of women’s and children’s clothing, chunky knits, denim and T-shirts, as well as mary janes, ballet flats and accessories designed by the L.A. sisters, who were fashion industry veterans working at the brand Joie before they launched their own label in 2015, with pieces retailing for $115 to $598.
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“We want the customer to be touched on all levels and senses upon entering the store. From the scent we burn and warm lighting to the comfortable rugs and kid corner (with toys for the little ones!), we want it to feel comfortable and easy while shopping,” the Santa Barbara-born designers said in a statement. “Every piece is unique and inspired us in some way. We hope to evoke the feeling when you stumble upon a hidden gem in a small alleyway outside of Paris, from the hand-painted walls to the special wrapping paper.”
The brand’s dreamy, visual style begins with seasonal look books photographed by founding partner and creative consultant Hilary Walsh in destinations around the world, such as a chateau in the South of France or a beach in Byron Bay, Australia. Curated by content director and partner Phoebe Dean, an online journal spotlights women of the D?en community (sometimes photographed with their children, and always wearing the brand), such as chef Lori Stern, surfer Tori Praver, home accessories designer Heather Taylor, and actress Ricki Lake. Female empowerment and motherhood have also been brand touchstones, with past imagery featuring pregnant and breast-feeding women, and many of the free-flowing dresses doing double duty as maternity wear.
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The store follows a pop-up last summer at the open-air Country Mart on the west side of Los Angeles, where neighbors include Capitol and Irene Neuwirth, Goop and Jenni Kayne. The designers — who count hairstylist Tracey Cunningham; stylist Samantha Traina; actresses Busy Philipps and Michelle Monaghan, and more as fans and muses — collaborated with L.A. studio Nickey Kehoe on the interior.
“We sought to design a space that embodied the spirit of D?en’s essence — ethereal, grounded beauty. D?en’s inherent femininity guided our selection of the palette, materials and light fixtures…sconces with scalloped edge details, pendants made of raffia with a fringe detail as well as the delicate ceramic pendants in the window,” Todd Nickey and Amy Kehoe said.
The airy backdrop is a grounded by several substantial reclaimed wood tables, blackened metal hanging fixtures and antique cabinets. The interior designers added, “By weaving in vintage accent tables and rugs, we aimed to evoke D?en’s world of inspiration and travel.”
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The Kleveland sisters, whose brand is self-funded, teased the store back in April at a party to fete a limited-edition capsule collection they designed for Net-a-porter.
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