Agave's giving it a go

Jeff Shafer, owner of Agave, puts the final touches on a new discount retail outlet in Ridgefield. The store opened Saturday. (Photos by Zachary Kaufman/The Columbian)

Jeff Shafer, owner of Agave Jeans, puts the final touches on a new retail outlet in Ridgefield. The store opened Saturday. (The Columbian/Zachary Kaufman)

You may think Ridgefield is hardly the place to shop for cutting-edge fashion. Well, think again.

Agave clothing founder and owner Jeff Shafer has opened a discount outlet to sell his designer denim and knitwear in the middle of Ridgefield's warehouse and manufacturing district, off Interstate 5. The shop's industrial decor takes a cue from surroundings. Its Italian-style fixtures reflect the upscale brand, said Shafer, 49, who moved Agave from Los Angeles to Ridgefield in 2006.

The company's 22,000-square-foot headquarters houses the new 1,000-square-foot retail outlet. Shafer expects the site will attract shoppers from Portland to Seattle, after word of the store's discount prices gets around.

The shop will sell excess inventory, priced at between 40 percent and 60 percent off retail. Agave jeans normally sell for about $200 a pair at shops and department stores such as Nordstrom, Bloomingdale's and Barney's.

"Frankly, (the jeans) are a little expensive for people from around here," Shafer said

But he said the outlet store would put the expensive labels within reach for Pacific Northwesterners, who pull in less income than his typical Beverly Hills customers.

The store also will test his products on a new demographic.

Agave, which sells about 100,000 pairs of jeans annually, has not been immune to the economic downturn, Shafer said.

The company's sales slipped by 10 percent to $8.9 million in 2008. Shafer expects Agave sales to drop by another 10 percent to 15 percent in 2009, to between $7.5 million and $8 million.

In 2007, Agave sales totaled $9.9 million.

Slumping sales of high-end merchandise indicate that even the wealthier consumers are cutting back, Shafer said.

"They still have the money, but they're just not spending it. They're being more cautious and frugal."