Kohl’s to open design center

Kohl’s Corp. is opening its first-ever California design center in Santa Monica with an eye toward spotting West Coast trends while also expanding its New York design office.

The 6,000-square-foot design studio, opening Monday, will house a team of 20 graphic designers who will focus on creating prints and embellishments for a variety of brands for the department store chain.

“We will be on the ground gathering trend information, and we certainly respect L.A. as a major fashion hub,” said Peggy Eskenasi, Kohl’s senior executive vice president of product development. “We felt it was important to represent a California sensibility and aesthetic.”

The team will “be providing support primarily for our contemporary brands, our younger brands, our more fashion-forward brands,” Eskenasi said.

The Wisconsin chain will also double the size of its design center in New York to 100,000 square feet by 2014.

The retailer, like many of its competitors, has put special emphasis on expanding the quality and relevance of its exclusive brands, which make up about 51% of its revenue.

Last fall, Kohl’s unveiled the Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony collections, adding to its stable of brands that include the Food Network, Candies and Simply Vera Vera Wang.

Kohl’s shares rose 40 cents to $46.41on Thursday.