Outfitters Wig, the Hollywood wig institution, changes era
Outfitters Wig is an institution in Los Angeles. Opened on Hollywood Boulevard at the corner of Highland Avenue, before moving to 6626 Hollywood Boulevard, Outfitters Wig has recently been officially taken over by Rebecca Sikora known as Bebe Mcphereson, a former employee of the house, now “ready to continue the legacy of the house and add a few new fancies.”
“Outffiters Wig was created by Miss Angie and Mr. Kim in 1969” explains Bebe. A time when the wig was king in Los Angeles with buffonts and beehives and Farah Faucet styles. If since then, the number of specialist stores has dropped, the appeal of Outfitters Wig has spanned generations. The windows entirely dressed with wigs have remained the same. And the merchandise has even gained a new popularity in recent years with the craze around drag queen reality TV show Ru Paul’s Drag Race. “The wig has gone mainstream and celebrates performance, creativity.”
Originally from Arizona, Bebe arrived in Los Angeles in 2004 in the Hollywood area. “I arrived with a bike and a pair of shoes. After a decade-long tour with my show Bebe & Serge, a surreal duo of songs and humor that took us all over Europe, I went in to Outfitters Wig to purchase a wig for my new avant-garde musical performance acts “The Department of Descriptive Services” and for my stand up comedy routines. I found wigs and discovered that I belong at Outfitters Wig, forever hair brained, in an enchanted Hollywood Wig store in Hollywood as the successor to Ms Angies.”
Eighteen years later, she has bought the store. “During the pandemic period, the store closed and we were a little worried that Mr. Kim would close down,” explains Bebe. “I started by buying back a number of wigs until the owners offered me the chance to take over the store. I gladly accepted with one primary ambition: to protect and save this Hollywood institution.”
A few weeks after the handover, nothing here has changed. In the windows sits a Marie-Antoinette wig, amongst others with ’80s tones; rock; punk and retro vintage styles.”We have kept all the images of celebrities who moved here from Joan Collins through Boy George, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Rip Taylor, Dita von Teese
On the store’s shelves, hundreds of wigs, most of them synthetic, come in all possible styles, and at all prices. And a section devoted to wigs made from human hair is being installed. Also, Bebe previously worked as a yoga instructor prior to Outfitters Wig, and believes in service to the community by offering free community yoga classes and works with a woman’s trauma survivor group on Sundays.
Surrounded by her team of custom wig artists, Rufina Garcia, the master wig stylist of Outfitters Wig for over 40 years, as well as wig artists Tony Valdez, Amandatorimeating, Jimmie Aquila and Marlene Espinoza, Bebe offers her customers a range of wig services from direct sales to customization, adjustments or tailoring, with each model going through the “oven” before being given to the customer to get the best fit. Recently, the new owner has even launched a recycling program for old wigs, offering her clients cleaning and reshaping of their models.
In addition to the recent expansion of the offer and the arrival of mustaches, false eyelashes and chest or body hair made by local artists, Bebe will celebrate in a few months her official arrival as owner with the organization of a drag show with pop music, performances, karaoke in partnership and beauty contest to. “I want to give back to the Hollywood area, glamour and glitter,” explains Bebe.
