Fifth Annual Photo Picnic Party!
FIFTH ANNUALPHOTO PICNIC PARTY: FREE PHOTOGRAPHY AND FAMILY FUN By Lindsey Goodrow Friends, families, and beloved pets gathered for The Whipple Group’s highly anticipated Fifth Annual Photo Party in El Dorado Park West on Sunday, July 25th from the hours of 2-6 PM. This outdoor festivity attracted hundreds of local citizens with food, drink, and fun. Those who came to the picnic hungry left with bellies full as there was an abundance of food offered to them. From hamburgers to chicken sandwiches to shaved ice desserts, these sweet and savory treats were enjoyed by children and adults alike. To work off the picnic feast, guests were invited to participate in a variety of exciting games and activities including: an ultra-bounce house and obstacle course, an arts and crafts station, a raffle for gift cards from local businesses, competitive water-balloon tossing, cornhole, and a DJ set for everyone to dance to. The picnic’s main attraction was undoubtedly the free professional photography, in which families of all shapes and sizes could sit for a timeless portrait to be cherished for the years to come. Couples sat with their children, children sat with their grandparents, friends sat with their dogs, and all other combinations of humans and pets. Local photographer Veronica Guzman made sure to capture the perfect moment with your family, no matter what family looks like to you. Ryan Ford was the videographer running around but blending in, making sure to record every candid second of the day. Families promptly received a gallery of photos and video from the event via the email they provided to Whipple’s team. Beatrix Whipple, CEO and Realtor of The Whipple Group, enjoys putting on this joyous event year after year because it allows families to take a break from their busy schedules and enjoy each other’s company while also introducing community members to each other, forming new connections and friendships. The Whipple Group and the community they serve look forward to this Photo Picnic Party every year. A satisfied client waiting in line for a free burger with a toddler in tow remarked how easy The Whipple Team made the transition from living in Newport to moving into a Mid-Century home in San Pedro. “Beatrix Whipple is one of the friendliest people I have ever met but also a hardline negotiator. I continue to feel so taken care of and am in love with the home she found us. It’s a dream!”
Local Business Highlight: House No. 23
MEET HOUSE NO. 23: HAND-WOVEN FROM THE HEART By Lindsey Goodrow Behind House No. 23 are twin sisters, Melis and Melda, whose blood runs deep in the Turkish textile business. It is as they were predestined to start the business they now run, as they can trace their trade back to their grandfather, who opened a wholesale towel company in a small Turkish town some 75 years ago. Lucky for Long Beach, it is here that these sisters use their inherited knowledge and refined taste in all things woven to run House No. 23. An appreciation for fine Turkish cotton was instilled in Melis and Melda at a young age, with their grandfather having sole access to lush cotton fields around Çeşme, a coastal town along the Aegean Sea. This hometown of theirs is an ancient city, home to an Ottoman castle, crystal blue water, and breathtaking views of both sea and mountains. Their memories growing up in Çeşme as well as their continued visits no doubt offer a well of inspiration for the textures and colors they choose for their hand-crafted towels, throws, and robes. But the sisters’ journey to owning their own business was not handed down to them. Instead, it was earned with time. The twins left their small Turkish town and headed west to The United States in 2000, where they quickly jumped into retail. Having both studied merchandising, Melis and Melda began working for famous designers and well-known clothing companies. They proceeded to gain knowledge on the ins and outs of retail and between the two of them, they handled all merchandising, buying, and ordering for their respective companies. For many years, the idea of having their own business felt like a far-off dream. The seed idea for House No. 23 was always there, planted with the hands of their grandfather, growing stronger and evolving while Melis and Melda developed their trade and earned wisdom and respect in the industry. It wasn’t until 2012 that Melis took a huge leap of faith by quitting a job that she knew in her heart was unfulfilling. She desired something grander - a job and a purpose that would allow her more freedom to grow a family and provide for them. When asked what advice she would give to anyone else who might be considering starting their own company, she said “Ask yourself if you’re happy. If you’re not, go and do what makes you happy. And most importantly, learn to be adaptable”. Although she was working in the right industry, she sought out a greater challenge that would allow her to make her own mark in the world. She felt confident that she had the necessary skills, an indisputable and refined taste, and the drive to launch her very own project and company, so that is exactly what she did. The meaning behind the name House No. 23 comes from the fact that Melis and Melda started their business from their home (House) and that their birthday date, April 23rd (No. 23), also happens to be their lucky number. So lucky, in fact, that Melis began to see this number everywhere when she started to consider going off on her own. The number 23 would be on shipping dates and orders, beckoning her to branch off into unfamiliar but exciting territory. The final push for her to leave her job came on a fateful night in Las Vegas, where she bet on 23 in a game of roulette and won what would be her budget to begin her own business. With a small budget but big dreams, Melis took off on a six month journey to travel the coast of Turkey in search of quality organic cotton as well as the perfect manufacturer for her endeavor. She roamed through small towns along the Aegean coast similar to that of her hometown, using a scrupulous eye. At first, Melis only sold Turkish towels through House No. 23. But due to the explosion in popularity of their soft and resilient towels, as well as bringing her sister Melda on to the business to help with design, their company quickly expanded its products to throws, towels, bedspreads, and artwork. Their highly curated Turkish cotton, featuring earth tones and geometric patterns, caught the eye of and was featured on websites such as Madewell, Food52, and Lulu and Georgia, allowing them to not only survive but thrive during the pandemic as their online sales tripled. With Melis and Melda’s inherited knowledge of Turkish cotton, their education in merchandising, and the heart of sisters who love what they do, House No. 23 will continue to impress and satisfy their clients. Their towels, throws, and blankets are impeccably soft and tasteful, giving your home a feeling of indescribable luxury. You can learn more about House No. 23 at their website!
Long Beach Landmarks: The Kress Building
THE KRESS BUILDING: REPURPOSING THE DEPRESSION-PROOF DIME STORE, KRESS & CO,INTO LUXURY LOFTS IN DOWNTOWN LONG BEACH. By Lindsey Goodrow The five-and-dime department store S.H. Kress & Co. was built on Long Beach’s Pine Ave in 1923, two years after the city struck a vast underground pool of oil on Signal Hill. This specific store marked location number 152 in the Kress empire - which would eventually grow to over 250 nationwide, with no town too small nor city too large to open one. While this dime store had fierce competition with the famous Woolworth’s, it was wonderfully unique in that each building displaying the Kress name had incredibly ornate architecture. Kress buildings were so mesmerizing, in fact, that they became demolition-proof, with many cities repurposing the buildings that once housed them. Imagine what it must have been like to walk around the now Historic Pine Avenue in the 1920s, dropping into the city’s own Kress & Co. to buy an ice cream cone for one penny. Or maybe you would splurge on a sundae for five cents. Better yet, go crazy and grab a banana split for a dime. Then you’d eat your cold treat at the counter or perhaps take it outside in the Southern California heat and walk down to the Pike, which was then fitted with a wooden boardwalk, a two-track rollercoaster, a string of a thousand lights, a bathhouse, a fortune teller, an arcade, and more. The Roaring Twenties swept through western society with all of its glitz and glamour, boosting the United States economy with the creation of mass consumerism. Along with the rest of the west, Long Beach was thriving with explosive growth in retail and merchandising. Everyone had money to spend, and this ultimately led to a surge in variety store franchises such as Kress & Co. Samuel H. Kress was a business entrepreneur as well as avid art collector who opened his first variety store in Nanticoke, Pennsylvania at the turn of the century. Shortly thereafter, Kress stores were popping up in large cities and small towns all across America. Samuel H. Kress made the prescient decision to build his stores in cities that were on the verge of major development, often making it a town’s main attraction and therefore a wildly successful business. In order to set his stores apart from competitors, Kress employed an inhouse architecture firm to dream up, design, and build beautiful, streamlined stores that would make a lasting impression. And last they did. Few businesses could imagine positive growth after Black Tuesday in 1929. But two months into the Great Depression, Kress & Co. celebrated opening ten more stores and hitting record sales. Kress & Co. became a safe haven for those hit hardest by the Great Depression, offering everything they might possibly need at incredibly low prices. The amount of disposable income any given person of this time had was little at best, so stores like Kress allowed them to spend sparingly but efficiently. A century later, Kress & Cos around the country have survived threats of demolition and destruction due to not only their historical significance but their ornate wonder. Kress’s love of art and all things beautiful meant that each store was an architectural treasure. These buildings showcased sleek modernity with streamlined form, strong verticles, curved glass, sleek marble, and an ornate typeface on the classic Kress sign. As department stores moved out of buildings on main street and into large indoor shopping malls in the 1980s, the great era of Kress & Co came to an end. Because of their architectural splendor, however, these depression and demolition-proof buildings have been repurposed as bookstores, movie theaters, bars, restaurants, business spaces, antique markets, and condos. Long Beach has repurposed and reinvented their own historical Kress & Co into luxury loft apartments. In 1992, developers Peter Janopaul and Anthony Block transformed the Kress building downtown into 49 spacious and sleek luxury lofts. The intricate Kress sign was repainted with bold colors, pointing down now to a communal rooftop patio with enviable views of the downtown harbor. The next time you are strolling down Historical Pine Ave., look up at the ornate cornice of the Kress Building, kept intact with attentive care. Gaze at the painted mural enticing you to schedule a viewing of the dreamy lofts that the building is now home to. An appreciation for Long Beach’s colorful history shines bright from this building as does a desire to continue to build and live boldly. Painting by Jamie Tablason
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