Homegrown Goods

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Homegrown Goods
On Display: MOCA pop-up second location for LA Original.

LA Original, a pilot program backed by the mayor’s office that supports Los Angeles’ creative economy and manufacturers, launched its second pop-up retail space downtown last month.

The initiative promotes locally designed, assembled, or manufactured goods through a line of L.A. Original branded products.

The new pop-up store is located inside the Museum of Contemporary Art store on 250 S. Grand St. and will run through Sept. 3.

The MOCA Store was a natural fit to host the LA Original pop-up and has long been a champion of L.A.-based artists and makers, Andrea Urban, director of retail operations at MOCA, said in a statement.

The newest collection features everything from accessories, food items, housewares, and apparel by L.A.-based designers and makers, including chocolates from Culver City-based Chocovivo, aprons for adults and children by Hedley & Bennett based in Vernon and skateboards from the Garage Board Shop in East L.A., among others. Items can also be purchased on laoriginal.com.

Products are branded with the L.A. Original logo, a pencil-thin, connected L and A with space between the two letters, representing creativity, Vicki Curry, chief public information officer at the mayor’s office told the Business Journal earlier this year when the first pop-up retail store at the Westfield Century City was launched in April.

The initiative is supported by the Mayor’s Fund for Los Angeles and the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development. In addition to the branding and pop-up shop, there’s also a promotional campaign highlighting local manufacturers and creators.

“The creativity in Los Angeles is unrivaled anywhere else,” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a statement. “LA Original celebrates that legacy, brings support to a new generation of entrepreneurs, and raises awareness of the extraordinary makers who fuel the city’s creative spirit.”

Playa Vista-based creative agency 72andSunny designed the MOCA pop-up shop. The company has led the marketing campaign for L.A. Original from the get-go and separately worked with the city for the 2024 Olympics bid, along with Century City-based brand studio and talent agency CAA-GBG. The new logo is part of that initiative.

“We wanted to make something that would be akin to ‘I heart N.Y.,’” Curry said. “Something that would unify L.A. makers and creators.”

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