Fashion Brand KkCo Just Got Their First LA Storefront

Despite the LA-level cold (read: not at all, by East Coast standards), the city’s most fashionable showed up in gauzy dresses and voluminous sleeves to celebrate the opening of KkCo’s first brick-and-mortar location, right above their studio operations. After all, weather never hinders fashion.

While undeniably cool, the event was more quirky than pretentious—the crowd spilling out onto the Chinatown sidewalk, gawking at potential Oscar contenders, and also sampling the mushroom microdoses. The real stars of the show were KkCo’s clothes and accessories. A twisted metal clothing rod wrapped around the perimeter of the small space, displaying a rainbow of color-coordinated garments in vivid nylons, knits, and organzas that felt more art exhibit than a traditional storefront.

On this night, I was lucky enough to chat with KkCo founder and creative director Kara Jubin, the voice for one of the coolest emerging designer labels, one that is both API- and woman-owned.

KkCo's new LA storefront

Courtesy of KkCo

Amanda Walujono: KkCo’s current collection is named Apricity, which means ‘the warmth of the sun in the winter.’ Could you explain the decision behind choosing the name apricity and how it is reflected in this collection?

Kara Jubin: The collection was inspired by winter in California, specifically the ‘90s in Venice Beach. I’m from the East Coast originally, but I moved to California 10 years ago. Our winters are so different, so the idea was to celebrate the winters here; we pulled washed-out hues but mixed greens and blues together. There are strapless things, wool blend skirts, and low-rise, wide-legged utility pants—a balance of warmth and showing skin. You don’t have to wear a coat necessarily, but whatever you’re wearing should still be warm. Afterward, I discovered the word ‘apricity’ and it was fitting. All of our winters here in California are based on the warmth of the sun.

Part of the FW '22 collection

Courtesy of KkCo

AW: One of the many admirable aspects of KkCo is that all design and production are based in Los Angeles. How has LA inspired and influenced your work?

KJ: After graduating from school in New York, I moved to LA, so my background and experience have been with independent brands and localization. My experience has been with small, family owned factories that I’ve worked with for years, and they are my community. It’s this manufacturing community I built amongst our factories and vendors that influences and inspires KkCo.

AW: Do you think KkCo would have been different had you decided to stay in New York?

KJ: When I lived in New York, I only wore black, which is so stereotypical. When I moved to LA, I took on color and embraced it. If you look inside the store and see the vivid colors, that’s LA showing through. It’s become a part of me and the creative process without me even knowing, embracing color and those different textures.

AW: KkCo’s mission statement is to build and support a creative community. How do you see KkCo supporting and integrating itself as part of the Chinatown LA community?

KJ: We are already a part of it. We’ve been [operating from our studio] here for almost a year, and we’ve been doing First Fridays with local businesses. Chinatown has such a communal and collaborative aspect to it. From the galleries across the street to some of the age-old restaurants, everyone stays open late and promotes as a community. We have a great draw.

Aside from that, KkCo is not just a retail shop. It’s also a platform for friends, collaborators and other artists to come in and utilize this space.

Kara Jubin of KkCo

Courtesy of KkCo

AW: The Nine-Twenty seven dress, is one of my favorite pieces: it's a very pretty and feminine dress, but the sheer organza fabric and vivid colorways make it a cool statement piece. What are some of your favorite KkCo pieces and why?

KJ: Right now, I’m obsessed with the Pack Dress. It’s a nylon taslan dress, which is traditionally used in all camping and outdoor wear. It packs itself up into its own pocket—great if you are traveling or on the go. I wore it to the Mandarin Plaza market last week, and it’s a beautiful dress with so many pockets, a perfect balance of form and function.

AW: And that makes it more sustainable in a way too. You can use it for more things.

KJ: Exactly, you can wear it from formalwear to camping. Because who says you can’t camp in a dress?

AW: KkCo started in 2019 which means that a vast majority of its history so far has been during the pandemic. How do you think the pandemic has impacted KkCo’s direction and designs?

KJ: We’re adaptable. We just adapt and evolve. We launched initially as DTC (direct to consumer), so we didn’t have to deal with the stress of wholesale and stores canceling. But it was still stressful. We were asking ourselves: what do we do, how do we adapt, and what do we want to wear now?

When the pandemic first hit, our instinct was sweats. I was bored in my garage, so we just started tye-dyeing them and the sweats took off.

We’ve been adapting through COVID, and that is what KkCo is. There are no rules. We will just do it the way we want and evolve in a way that makes sense for us.

AW: The first physical store opening is a huge milestone for KkCo. What do you see next for KkCo?

KJ: I have no idea. KkCo is about evolution. I would love to do a pop-up in New York. But I’m a go-with-the-flow type of person, not a long-term planner. Let’s see where this takes us. We have a store now; what happens next?

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.