Bed | Stu keeps it real.
And nowhere is that more apparent than at the handmade footwear brand’s new flagship location in Malibu, Calif.
“You can’t have fake plants when you’re genuine — it’s just not right,” Bed|Stu co-founder and president Nora Orozco said while speaking to Footwear News at the label’s new digs.
“We’re into the whole natural everything, down to the leathers and threads where possible,” Orozco said, adding that co-founder and creative director Roger Orozco is “fighting to find alternatives to poly-cotton threads.”
Bed|Stu has taken over Juicy Couture’s space at Malibu Country Mart; the retail store’s setup aligns with the sensibilities of Bed|Stu’s surrounding coastal community and the brand’s natural living philosophy.
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Handmade signs, crates and plants line the brick white walls and merchandise shelves.
There are comfortable leather couches within the spacious layout; Orozco said some guests enter for the ambiance. “We’ve had people come in for Wi-Fi,” she noted.
Bed|Stu’s loft space offers more seating and serves as a space to host events, including a recent charity event for Children Mending Hearts and a pop-up manicure session for customers.
Photos that line the loft’s “story wall” inspire the brand’s designs.
“Some of it represents who we are and what we are,” Orozco said of the images, which include framed pictures of artisanal breads, cityscapes in Amsterdam and Beijing, recycled tires — which are used on Bed|Stu sandals — and manhole covers, a pattern that’s replicated on the label’s shoes.
“Roger likes manhole covers,” Orozco explained. “Wherever he travels, he takes manhole cover pictures. He does a lot of travel for inspiration purposes.”
