Scott Studenberg is flying solo at Baja East. His longtime partner, John Targon, has moved on to his own “creative pursuits,” as Studenberg put it. You might have been able to predict the creative split, with Targon getting, and then unceremoniously leaving, a post at Marc Jacobs while Studenberg moved to Los Angeles in August, but you probably would not have guessed that this bit of change would help center Baja East’s vision. But that’s just what happened with Baja East’s Resort collection.
Instead of amping up the graphics or clinging to a strict theme, Studenberg used Resort to refocus on the unfussy, easy pieces that made Baja East popular in the first place. There are tracksuit and knit top-and-bottom sets as well as an expanded range of easy jackets, now in silks and lamés, to keep the Baja East woman looking glam while she’s lounging. Menswear was presented separately for the first time, not that there’s anything really different about the men’s and women’s lines, but more to encourage buyers to consider these raw silk tees and cashmere sweatpants as true menswear.
Baja East’s tongue-in-cheek spirit remains. The blonde heroines of Beverly Hills, 90210 and Melrose Place served as loose muses, and while their catty spirit comes through on slogan tees that announce “Donna Martin Graduates,” their ’90s version of dressing up is rethought in several more easygoing day-to-night options. Take a snakeskin-print silk blazer that, with palazzo pants, is pure poolside, but sans bottoms, is suited for an evening jetting around the hills in a Porsche. With a lower price point—one of those easy wrap dresses rings up at $395—Studenberg’s new collection has legs. And the women who wear it will have plenty of options for how to show off their own legs.
