Unhappily Ever After
(NEW YORK) Not all Vera Wang weddings appear to end in matrimonial bliss.
The designer's two-year old Waikiki boutique, launched through a brand partnership with Hotels & Resorts of Halekulani Corp., will shutter following a liquidation of the store's inventory, confirmed Donna Bebber, the boutique's owner and a 25-year Hawaii resident who leases the space from the resort. Bebber cited Wang's decision to discontinue her high-end jewelry line, and the subsequent significant drop in sales, as the reason for the store's closing. Bebber, who mains a licensing agreement with Wang's company, has three years left on a five-year lease with the hotel whereby she can only stock Vera Wang merchandise, specifically, its crystal, lingerie, home products, apparel, and what is left of the jewelry collection.
She is currently in talks with management about potentially changing the lease so that she can modify her product line--otherwise, the boutique will close permanently.
The 600-square-foot shop debuted in 2006 following the success Wang achieved when she designed a $5,250-per-night oceanfront, one-bedroom suite marketed as the Vera Wang Suite. The store at Halekulani was the first to carry all of Wang's lifestyle offerings.
According to Bebber, sales have fallen more than 30 percent since Wang stopped her jewelry collection a year ago. A top seller at the store, the pieces often had price points north of $1,000. "What our customers seem to think is, she's spread herself very thin," Bebber told Pacific Business News, citing the award-winning New York-based designer's recent fashion collaboration with Kohl's and the selling of her china and crystal on costco.com. "Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to make the same changes to bring in other merchandise."
Wang was not available for comment. Halekulani management, which didn't return a call seeking comment, issued a statement that read: "Halekulani Corp. has received no formal or other notification to such effect, either from the tenant or from Vera Wang Inc."
