Yet another of our favorite Eagle Rock institutions closed it’s doors Sunday. Regeneration opened in 2006, providing many of the sustainable products one might travel to locate. Owner Kelly Witmer forged contacts with vendors from all over the world bringing a cultural context to environmentally responsible living.

Eagle Rock, an almost suburban small town located at the north most tip of LA proper, was the anticipated site for an urban revitalization. Slowly a handful of niche boutiques made their way into the area drawing visitors from all over the the city. Almost as slowly as they settled in, one by one many have closed their doors. Obvious changes in the spending habits of Angelinos have taken a toll on this small town, leaving it more vacant than it’s been in decades. Empty store fronts, half finished condo developments, and boarded up foreclosures are sprinkled throughout one of the most desirable areas in town.

Blue Heeler was among the first to close.
Far too many Los Angeles boutiques have loaded up with overpriced unreasonable items which, in today’s economy, are no longer affordable let alone practical. Support of local business needs to be match by appropriate pricing on the the business end. Regeneration was the exception to this rule, they maintained very competitive pricing for almost all it’s items, and despite all of their efforts failed to survive. Regeneration and a few other Eagle Rock businesses were recently feature in this NY Times article focusing on economic slowdown and business closures in Eagle Rock.
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Two thirds of the Neu Black team live in a tucked away little enclave of the San Gabriel valley called Eagle Rock. This place is a small community of neighborhood gems and one of our favorites is Blue Heeler. This fantastic little boutique of designer imports from Australia has made it apparent that the land down under is surprisingly stylish.
We found a few perfect little Christmas goodies here last month as well as a few things for ourselves. A little bird just told us that Blue Heeler is having a year end sale in the new year the entire month of January with 20% to 60% off throughout the store. If you aren’t in the Los Angeles area, you can check out the offerings from their online store. We particularly like the laptop bags.