Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1538245
10 FALL 2025 around the entertainment industry and it shows. Simms said, "In a perfect world, the work should be here. The artists are here, the actors are here, the stuff is here. The weather is nice. All the resources are here." Elizabeth Estervig, Men's Tailor, explained, "It's efficient. This is where my tools are and where I can get the resources that I need. I went to grad school in the middle of nowhere in Ohio, where you have to plan so far ahead to get anything. Here, if a producer changes their mind at 6 a.m. on the day of the shoot, we can just do it. We have the resources here. Like haircloth—I only know of two places to get it, and one is in London. The other is B Black and Sons." "Because of the density here, we can get the more specific things," Estervig continued. "If I was in the middle of nowhere and broke the tip off a seam ripper, I better have brought extras. Here, I can go through a whole box in a day, and it wouldn't matter. You can find Jukis to rent in most places, but for very specific things, like specialty machines, glove-making machines, or buttonholers; they are very rare. Here, in LA, if you need a suit buttonhole, you can just bring your suit to Western to get it done. It's all part of a much bigger economy. We are a small part of a much larger economic ecosystem, and it's really hurting right now." And it's not just the entertainment industry that's hurting from the lack of work. "The sheer amount of fabric stores closing down is terrifying," Estervig told me. Kahn continued, "Last year, when I was at Junk for Joy Costumes and Vintage, I talked for quite a while with the owner about how much her business has been devastated because Costumers are her favorite customers, and we're not going. And Fields Market in West Hills, which had a good amount of income from renting as a filming location, had to shut down at the beginning of this year." With the loss and closures of businesses throughout Los Angeles, we are also in danger of losing vast amounts of institutional knowledge and resources available, making all productions more difficult. Last year, Valentino's Costume closed down after a series of struggles, and Costume Rental Corporation announced it's selling its rental business this year. These represent losses not only in the availability of costumes to be rented, but also in decades of expertise in specialty costumes such as uniforms and patches. Valentino's was also a common resource for student and theater productions, a common pipeline for Costumers learning the trade and perhaps seeking to enter the union. Despite the promising news on tax incentives coming from the Statehouse, more work needs to be done locally to keep productions in Los Angeles. At a meeting with LA City Council member Adrin Nazarian, a common theme that was brought up was permitting issues. "I think the permitting one is a really big issue. I've been speaking with people in locations and production and they say in other states, the permitting process is really easy, but in