Lulu and Georgia has opened its first-ever physical showroom at 8735 Melrose Avenue in West Hollywood, a more than 3,000-square-foot space designed as a series of residential rooms rather than a typical retail floor. The direct-to-consumer home decor brand, which built its following entirely online since 2012, is marking the debut with a grand opening scheduled for October 24, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The showroom is designed as a home-like environment. The space includes living and dining rooms, bedrooms, lounges and an outdoor patio, and it features traditional and modern pieces spanning the brand's bestsellers and recent collaborations. A curated library of swatches and materials is available for visitors to browse and take home, alongside complimentary design consultations with in-house experts covering floor plans, color palettes and material selections for both homeowners and trade professionals.
The showroom was designed in partnership with Los Angeles-based designer Kevin Klein and includes an immersive courtyard featuring a mural by designer Sarah Sherman Samuel, per the trade publication's report. Avaline will serve as the exclusive wine partner for public-facing happy hours, and the space is slated to host product launch events, designer-led panels, intimate gatherings and brand collaborations going forward.
A Family Business Comes Full Circle
Founder and CEO Sara Sugarman said the showroom marks a major milestone after more than a decade of operating as a digitally native brand, noting that customers have long wanted to engage with the brand in person, feel materials, understand scale and get real-time expert guidance, the outlet reports. Sugarman also said the Los Angeles location carries personal weight because it keeps the brand rooted in the city and sits near where her family's own business once stood.
That connection runs deep. As Forbes has reported, the Lulu and Georgia name is drawn from Sugarman's grandfather Lou and her father George, who ran Decorative Carpets, a West Hollywood rug company founded in 1955. Before joining her family's interior business and eventually launching her own brand, Sugarman worked in magazine publishing in New York City at O, The Oprah Magazine under Gayle King, according to the same Forbes profile.
The brand's online-only era had a rocky but promising start. Per Business of Home, when Lulu and Georgia launched its e-commerce site in 2012, heavy traffic crashed the site on its very first day, an early sign of consumer appetite that eventually grew into a company employing around 110 people. In the years since, the brand built a celebrity following in Los Angeles that included clients such as Mandy Moore, Kate Hudson, Nina Dobrev and Este Haim, according to LAmag. The company has also collaborated with designers including Jake Arnold, Eny Lee Parker, Heidi Caillier, Disc Interiors, Ginny Macdonald and Aimee Song.
A Showroom for In-Person Shopping
Lulu and Georgia's move into physical retail complements its online business by giving shoppers a way to assess fabrics and scale in person.
Melrose's Flagship Boom Continues
The showroom's debut adds to a wave of direct-to-consumer brands claiming space on Melrose Avenue this year, including NYC denim label Still Here, which opened its first West Coast store at 8627 Melrose Avenue.
Lulu and Georgia's showroom will keep regular hours of 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday following Saturday's grand opening event.
