A tired building at the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Hill Street in Downtown Los Angeles rarely warrants a second look. It could soon become the crown jewel of a bustling new sub-neighborhood within Los Angeles’ city center with Erewhon the building’s new owner.
As reported by Urbanize and DTLA Insider last month, an entity that shares the same address as the upscale grocer’s Vernon headquarters bought the 24,432-square-foot building at 940 S. Hill St.
An Erewhon store would be a boon with the purveyor of all things organic and good for you offering something new for a corner that currently counts Chipotle as its draw.
Part of Erewhon’s popularity has been its link to Hailey Bieber, Kourtney Kardashian, Kendall Jenner and other celebrities. That’s made it an “it” tenant, helping set the tone for retail centers or streets. The 2022 opening of North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills is a good example. The Shops at Sportsmen’s Lodge in Studio City offers another.
The Downtown Los Angeles parcel would be a blank slate for Erewhon with a built-in shopper base.
The property sits across the street from Onni Group’s new Olympic + Hill apartments, which is being billed as a private club-like experience for renters. The 54-story building has 685 apartments, townhomes and penthouses, which start at about $2,500 per month for a 584-square-foot apartment. A three-bedroom, three-bathroom home of about 1,800 square feet starts at $8,759 per month.
Erewhon’s property is also across the street from an existing apartment community in South Park by Windsor and a block away from the Broadway Palace Apartments.
Erewhon Growth By the Numbers
The company’s riding a wave that didn’t come overnight.
Erewhon got its start in Boston by Michio and Aveline Kushi in the 60s, drawing inspiration from Samuel Butler’s 1872 book of the same name.
The brand made its way to Los Angeles in 1969 but floundered and filed for bankruptcy in 1981. It wasn’t until 2011, when Tony and Josephine Antoci bought the store on Beverly Boulevard in the Fairfax District, that Erewhon gained traction with a rebrand to what shoppers know today. Since then, Erewhon’s $20 smoothies have made the rounds on social media. A $200 membership offering free delivery on orders of $150 or more, discounts and first dibs on product launches solidified the grocer as more than just a place to buy milk and eggs.
The business has spun itself into a lifestyle brand, which sells everything from Erewhon-branded spring water ($80 for a 24-pack) to candles, reusable shopping bags and apparel. Collaborations with Balenciaga and Ugg have also extended Erewhon’s relevance and reach.
In 2019, the company sold a minority stake to private equity firm Stripes Group, with the capital investment fueling the current growth.
Erewhon has 11 stores, including doors in Silver Lake, Venice, the Grove, Pasadena and its newest in Manhattan Beach. It also made waves recently with plans to open its first New York store in Kith founder Ronnie Fieg’s members-only club Kith Ivy.
Elsewhere, there are stores planned for West Hollywood, Thousand Oaks and Glendale.
Erewhon and a Downtown Revival?
For Downtown Los Angeles, Erewhon could write the newest chapter in the saga of the neighborhood’s many starts and stops at revival.
For as much buzz as some sub-neighborhoods generate, it hasn’t been a straight trajectory for downtown as a whole.
Glimmers of excitement come and go. Bottega Louie opened its doors in 2009 on Grand Avenue in South Park. The move made Bottega Louie an early adopter in downtown and was followed by Whole Foods Market in 2015, along with the Eighth & Grand apartments. The buzz there has largely been contained to that block.
Then there’s the Arts District. The gallery Hauser & Wirth opened in 2016 in what was supposed to be another revival of the area and it was for a block on 3rd Street that now has Salt & Straw, Breadlam, Prince Street Pizza and other eateries.
Around that time, questions swirled around whether downtown was ready for luxury tenants. In 2017, Louis Vuitton teamed with Supreme on several pop-up shops, including an Arts District door. Little happened after that.
Then there’s Broadway in the Historic Core, which held the most recent potential.
In 2021, Apple opened its store in the historic Tower Theatre on Broadway.
The pandemic made things tough on retailers and other businesses. Vans closed earlier this year, although that was mostly related to the footwear brand’s own struggles. Acne also closed this year. Other brands that left Broadway include Paul Smith, A.P.C. and Theory.
For now, it’s a waiting game on Erewhon.
At minimum, a downtown store would diversify the grocery mix for area residents. Best case scenario it could offer another block in Downtown L.A. a shot at a reset in the area’s patchy revival.
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