Jakes Vintage - New LA Vintage Store Article

I've been in there once, he's a swell guy, very happy to meet guys who know vintage and who appreciate dressing well. The overall feel and vibe of his store is very post war, it's not my cup however, he does it well and I do admire and appreciate his efforts in doing it so well. He knows his onions and loves to share his passion and knowledge with others who feel the same way. Had a great talk with the guy and wish him lots of luck.

I can't bring my self to spend what he's asking on a pair of pants but, he does carry the finest he can find which is understandable especially in that area of LA.

It's sad to see, but it appears that Jakes has closed down shop. I was speaking with him early January and he was talking about opening up a pop up shop at Hotel DeVille Eyewear next door, but I have yet to see that happening.

It was quite the place, he went with the Mad Men aesthetic before mad men hit the airwaves. The shop will be missed.

.
Another Southern California victim of the recession. First, "Aardvark's Odd Ark" (the granddaddy of California's vintage clothing store chains) closes forever ... and now "Jake".

Dang. I never made it to his shop. I certainly intended to when I next visited Los Angeles.

They've been dropping like flies up this way as well. I think that in some cases (most, maybe) it's not that the shops weren't making money, they just weren't making enough money to make it worth the time and effort, and that there was no apparent way to increase sales to a point that it might be. I've seen it happen in a wide array of small specialty retail businesses. The owner/operators have a real passion for the business, but after a few years of 12-hour workdays and six- or seven-day workweeks they start thinking about how they aren't putting away anything for their own retirements.