Torrid

Are you tired of looking for trendy clothing only to find yourself face-to-face with a size-zero culture? It's bad enough that there is a size zero. But worse is the perception that trendy clothing is for thin people.

Hot Topic (City of Industry, Calif.), which has carved a niche selling clothing and accessories to alternative-lifestyle teens, is introducing Torrid, a similar retail concept for trendy but full-figured 15- to 30-year-olds.

The retailer tapped JGA Inc. (Southfield, Mich.), the firm that recently designed the new Hot Topic prototype to create Torrid's empowering store environment at the Brea (Calif.) Mall. Designed to mimic an energetic New Orleans club, Torrid is about unbridled passion.

The motif begins at the entrance, where translucent red glass panels and a flamed heart icon set the tone. Inside, whimsical features and bright colors reinforce the concept: mosaic porcelain tile flooring inlaid with jewel tones and metallics; armoire fixtures; bronze metallic drape dividers; overscaled red sculptured chairs; hand-blown glass chandeliers; and a boudoir-like cashwrap.

Six Torrid stores are currently open, and more are in the works.

Client Design: Hot Topic, City of Industry, Calif. — Orval Madden, founder; Betsy McLaughlin, president and ceo; Jerry Cook, coo; John Gatturna, construction and facilities manager; Cindy Levitt, vp and general merchandiser manager; Karen Talley, divisional vp, accessories; Mark Bertone, vp, real estate and construction; Tom Rail, general manager, Torrid

Design Team/Environments and Graphics: JGA Inc., Southfield, Mich. — Kenneth Nisch, chairman; Kim Abruscato, senior designer; Brian Eastman, graphic design director; Stephanie Bourdon, creative resource manager; Arvin Stephenson, project manager Design Collaborator: June Lester Design, Berkley, Mich.

General Contractor: Deforest Construction, Riverside, Calif.

Lighting Consultant: Gary Steffy Lighting Design, Ann Arbor, Mich.

Suppliers: Crossville Ceramics, Crossville, Tenn., Ann Sacks Tile, Troy, Mich., Quarry Tile Co., Spokane, Wash. (flooring); Lightolier, Fall River, Mass., Legion, Brooklyn, N.Y., Global Lighting, Irvington, N.Y., Artemide, Farmingdale, N.Y. (lighting); MDC Wall Coverings, Elk Grove Village, Ill., Tower Wall Coverings, Hackensack, N.J., Vin-L-Fab, Louisville, Ky., Vicratex, Columbus, Ohio, Anaglypta & Lincrusta, Lancaster, England (wallcoverings); Dauphine, Baton Rouge, La. (decorative mirrors and frame); National Products, Louisville, Ky. (mirror tambour); Space Wall, Atlanta (tin slatwall); DePavo Silkscreening, Fairfield, Ohio (mini slatwall); Temeka, Temecula, Calif. (wall cabinets/cashwrap/storefront sign); Hamrock, Santa Fe Springs, Calif. (floor fixtures/hardwood); Birmingham Glass, Birmingham, Mich. (storefront glass); Brian Russel Designs, Arlington, Tenn. (storefront metal silhouettes and flaming heart); Gage Decorative Metal Ceiling, Sparta, Wis., Hunter Douglas, Norcross, Ga., Plasterglas, Omaha, Neb. (ceiling); Barney Judge Visual Arts, Ann Arbor, Mich. (painted mural); Allan Green, Hackensack, N.J. (fitting-room mirrors); Richard Gage Design Studio, Royal Oak, Mich. (furniture); Pemberton Upholstery, Berkley, Mich. (upholstery); Dazian, New York (drapes); Benjamin Moore Paint Co., Montvale, N.J. Pittsburgh, Paints, Pittsburgh, Ralph Lauren, New York, Sherwin-Williams Co., Cleveland (paint)

Photography: Laszlo Regos Photography, Berkley, Mich.