By Meaghan Brophy
“The company was started over 20 years ago by my uncle Jay,” explains Allan Nealis, Co-Owner of Cali Kind Clothing Company. “We started out as one roadside store on highway 101 in Northern California.” Cali Kind now operates three of their own retail locations in California, and wholesales their products to other retailers across the United States. They can be found at Magic, ASD, Champs Trade show, and Big Industry Show. Their products consist of unique hand-dyed clothing garments that are produced adhering to fair trade guidelines. “We create boutique and designer style tie dye garments,” says Nealis. “When most people think of tie dye, they think of t-shirts. But we’re much more than that.”
Cali Kind offers primarily women’s clothing including dresses, skirts, pants, and accessories. “Since everything is done in-house, from cutting, sewing, and dye work. We have close control over the quality,” says Nealis. “Each color is laid out on the garment one at a time. Each piece is unique. No two are alike.” Their best sellers include women’s tops and dresses, specifically the plus size collection. “Once customers catch on that the sizing is actually plus size, and that it fits them properly, people tend to come in and buy multiples because you can’t get something that fits like this anywhere else,” explains Nealis. For popular styles like the dresses, they typically have between five and eight colors available at any time. Though popular colors and patterns would vary based on individual store demographics, Nealis has found that for their retail stores, “the traditional rainbow spiral sells better than any other color. We tend to sell out of those every time.”
For first time buyers, Nealis recommends that you “get your feet wet with an assortment.” There are no pre-packs, so garments and colors can be mixed and matched to create the perfect selection for your store. Each spring, Cali Kind introduces up to 30 new styles to their collection. Some garments are limited edition, some stay for the full year, and then their staple items stay consistent. “Limited edition items do really well in the stores,” says Nealis. “It creates appeal to the consumer because they might not be able to get that item again.”
Wholesale orders have a very low minimum, so it is easy for retailers to build a starting inventory, and refill orders. Many of their customers include mom and pop shops, local boutique stores, smoke shops, fairs and festivals, resort and destination areas. “Our goal is to produce high-quality clothing that generates sales for our business and yours,” says Nealis. For wholesale catalogues and pricing, call 707-894-9460.