Hit By A Brick

West Hollywood’s Brick and Mortar store

by James F. Mills

Carving out a niche is essential for any small business, and for Brick and Mortar, a men’s urban fashion boutique in Boystown, that niche has turned out to be “modified basics.”

Whether it’s a henley shirt with a colored trim, a polo shirt made from a unique fabric or a T-shirt done with an unusual cut, these “modified basics” are proving they’re hot sellers.

“People like the basics, but with a little something extra,” says Chord Bezerra, Brick and Mortar’s managing director. “We like to spice it up with a little extra element to make it stand out. But nothing overdone; we keep it simple, but refined.”

Be they jeans or T-shirts, swimwear or polos, flip-flops or underwear, Brick and Mortar has them, both designer items and its own line, and all at reasonable prices.

“We’re one of the few places in West Hollywood you can come and get a T-shirt and pair of jeans for under $100,” brags Bezerra. “And they’re good quality items too.”

“My goal in opening the store was having something that appealed to the community in which we lived, but also to have something for people who might be visiting from out of town,” owner Evan Hughes explains.

Brick and Mortar seems to be navigating that local vs. tourist appeal expertly. During this reporter’s recent visit to the store, one customer from the East Coast came in saying, “show me something I can’t find in D.C.,” while a few minutes later a WeHo customer came in asking, “I’m going to a party in Malibu tonight. What have you got that will look good on me?” Bezerra quickly pulled out items to satisfy their requests and both men left happy with their purchases.

The store’s name comes from retail industry jargon for having a physical location, a “brick and mortar” store as opposed to an internet site or mail-order business. The first Brick and Mortar opened in 2006 in a tiny 200-square-foot location on Santa Monica Boulevard at Kings Road.

“My original concept was a lifestyle boutique with a mix of fashion and housewares; someplace to get a cute gift and a card, but also a pair of designer jeans,” explains Hughes, an Orange County native, who also teaches new media at the University of Southern California.

Customers gravitated toward the fashions more, so in 2007 when a 1,000-square-foot space opened up in a historic building on Santa Monica at Westbourne—a building that once housed the Douglas Fairbanks Studios and until recently housed the Jonathan Antin hair salon—the boutique moved there and greatly expanded its fashion lines while also keeping a few gift items. A Hollywood store on Sunset and Gardner carried both men’s and women’s fashions but was closed at the beginning of the year to concentrate on the more profitable WeHo location.

Hughes and Bezerra, who joined the store a year ago, try hard to create a neighborhood feel for the store, a place where people will drop by just to say hello. In keeping with that philosophy, they keep sales low-key and honest. If Bezerra doesn’t think something looks quite right when someone tries it on, he’ll tell them. “We want people to look good and feel good. I tell people if they don’t feel good first and foremost, then it’s probably not a good fit,” he says. “Confidence has a lot to do with your style.”

the details

Brick and Mortar
8713 Santa Monica Blvd., WeHo
(310) 652-6605
bamlifestyle.com