A Tailored Return: Thom Browne Opens His First L.A. Flagship

The evening began with a lively cocktail hour on the Chateau’s rooftop terrace. Guests—naturally dressed head-to-toe in Thom Browne, their looks tagged with his signature red, white, and blue grosgrain ribbon—sipped Champagne and admired each other’s sharply tailored ensembles. From pleated skirts and shrunken gray suits to breezy seersucker and polished black-tie, the crowd delivered an unofficial runway of Browne’s greatest hits.

As chairman of the CFDA, Browne made the rounds graciously, greeting guests including Teyana Taylor, a devoted fan of the brand. He also huddled with Jenkins, Wang, and filmmaker Janicza Bravo before catching up with Leighton Meester, one of the first celebrities to wear Thom Browne on the red carpet. “My friend and stylist said, ‘You should wear this Thom Browne suit,’ and so I did,” Meester recalled, referring to the 2010 Gotham Independent Film Awards. “It was perfectly made and so timeless.” Meester, accompanied by her friend, jewelry designer Jaime Hargreaves, praised Browne’s role in ushering suits into women’s red-carpet wardrobes—and for helping men embrace skirts with similar ease.

Ke Huy Quan, the Oscar-winning actor from Everything Everywhere All at Once, shared that he’s worn more Thom Browne than any other designer during his recent awards season. “I’m not a big guy, and I just love that his clothes fit me really well,” Quan said, dressed in a double-breasted pinstripe suit. “It’s classy, it always looks great, and now that there’s a store here in L.A., it’s even better. I used to have to drive all the way to Costa Mesa!”

As the sun set over the hills, guests including Yara Shahidi, Bob Harper (The Traitors), writer Gary Janetti, singer Maggie Rogers, and stylists George Cortina, Brad Goreski, Thomas Christos Kikis, and Erica Cloud were ushered into the penthouse suite for a candlelit dinner of roasted salmon and petite filet. Before the meal began, Browne stood to toast the room: “Being here with so many people I’ve known for a long time—you’ve all inspired me, both through your work and through who you are,” he said. “The work I do exists because of the work you do. Indirectly, you inspire me more than you know, and I want to thank you.”

The evening ended with berries and cream for dessert, a sweet send-off for a crowd clearly eager to visit the new boutique. With nearly 120 stores worldwide—including recent openings in Palm Beach, the Upper East Side, and an upcoming location in Tokyo—Thom Browne’s world of disciplined tailoring and conceptual cool is more accessible than ever.

“I love what I do,” Browne said. “But more than anything, I love seeing how people wear it. That’s the real magic—how fashion lives.”