Downtown L.A.’s Fashion District, just a couple of miles from ALTA Lofts, buzzes with the bustle of ground-floor storefronts filled with apparel, shoes, handbags, menswear, women’s wear and kid’s wear. There are over 4,000 businesses spanning over 100 city blocks that make up Los Angeles’ fashion-forward apparel industry.

For the average consumer – the Fashion District can be a bit intimidating. But, if you’re willing to practice patience and perseverance – LA’s fashion district is a thrifty way to get the latest en vogue styles at bargain prices!

Santee Alley

There are about 150 stalls on Santee Alley. Known best for its designer knock-offs, vendors sell everything from denim to imposter bags that mirror the season’s latest lines. Santee Alley is a fun and thrifty way to get the latest looks for less. It’s a bustling, busy street with the look and feel of a foreign bizarre and is a crazy strip of sidewalk and stalls that runs from Olympic to Pico -and is filled with fashionistas looking for what’s hot.

Shops and Storefronts

There are literally hundreds of stores in the fashion district, which are efficiently grouped across the area by category. So if you are looking for women’s wear – you can target the area you want to hit. Some stores are open to the public – and some are just for retailers and wholesalers so you want to have a good idea of what you are looking for beforehand. The website for the L.A. Fashion District is a great tool for shoppers and helps you find almost any business in the area so you can have a solid plan of attack.

Monthly Sample Sales

If hundreds of storefronts seem too overwhelming, you can always head to the once-a-month sample sales held at the wholesale showrooms of the New Mart, Cooper Design Space and California Market buildings, located at 9th and Los Angeles streets. These sales are the only time the showrooms are open to the public and with items going for up to 90 percent off retail. The sales (on the last Friday of every month) can get extremely hectic with customers digging for the cream of last season’s crop. The showrooms open at 9 a.m. and generally stay open until about 2 p.m.

If you are looking for a fashion bizarre, a cluster of sample sales or a general look into LA’s fashion industry, the fashion district is a great way to explore fashion-forward LA – just around the corner from ALTA Lofts!