When Urban Outfitters left its 12,000-square-foot store at The LAB anti-mall, owner and operator Linda Sadeghi decided to bring more small businesses to the 30-year-old Costa Mesa shopping center.
The New York-based retailer had accounted for 40% of The LAB’s tenancy. Sadhegi began renovating the space in 2025, dividing it into smaller storefronts designed for independent brands. Six businesses have taken up space, with one vacancy remaining.
“Retail has changed,” Sadeghi told the Business Journal. “You don’t need 12,000 square feet.”
Sadhegi looked for small businesses with strong online presences, several of which wanted to establish their first brick-and-mortar locations.
The LAB has since added the first physical storefront of SAD Eyewear, a locally owned vintage retailer called Landers Supply House and a newly founded Pilates studio known as Casa Caia.
This fall, Los Angeles-based denim brand Berlinc will open its first store, while fellow L.A. apparel brand Cotton Collective, which specializes in custom screen printing, will also make its debut.
Long Beach-based Studio One Eleven helped design the new spaces. Servco Builders in Irvine was the general contractor.
Sadeghi also designed a new paseo, or walkway, to go through the former Urban Outfitters entrance. While she searches to fill the sixth vacancy, artist, urban designer and landscape architect Matthew Beehler, recently used the space as an artist-in-residence.
The changes reflect Sadeghi’s effort to return to The LAB’s original mission: providing an alternative to traditional retail by giving independent businesses a place to grow.
Urban Outfitters was the first tenant to sign on when Sadeghi and Shaheen Sadeghi opened the anti-mall in 1993. They converted a night-vision goggle factory into a retail center, promising the young skaters and artists it attracted that they wouldn’t be pushed out.
The LAB’s name stands for “Little American Business.”
“I’m going back to our roots because I think it’s still meaningful and it’s still a relief from traditional retail and other shopping centers,” she said. “I want to still be the anti-mall.”
The LAB has also added The Fleuria bookstore, Eyla salon for brow and lash services and Ambitious Ales brewery this year. It has 25 stores and restaurants as of October.
Three Eyed Tiger, a restaurant from Zach Scherer — known for Darkroom Restaurant and Wine Bar in Santa Ana — is also under construction in the former Gypsy Den space, which closed in late 2022. It is expected to open in early 2027.
Sadeghi hopes the new concept will provide the same energy as longtime tenant Habana.
From Artist to Retailer
Sadeghi credits her three sons, who recently joined the family’s real estate firm LAB Holding, for helping improve operations.
“I’m shocked,” she said. “But now that I see them in action — they are exactly what their parents need right now.”
She said her oldest son, Sebastian, has been “instrumental” in redesigning The LAB to make room for the new tenants. Dominic, the youngest, has helped identify prospective tenants, while Nikolai has assisted in upgrading back-of-house systems.
“I think COVID was just a big stop sign — ‘everybody stop and think about what you’re doing, be more thoughtful and watch your pennies,’” Linda Sadeghi said about what led to the recent changes.
She also noticed that Urban Outfitters was losing its appeal. The company’s departure finalized her decision to remodel the space because she knew “that smaller footprints were better.”
Beyond The Lab, Sadeghi is involved in several other properties in Orange County.
In Garden Grove, she is also repurposing 12 homes near city hall into a collection of family-centered shops called Cottage Industries. Smoke Queen Barbecue is the anchor tenant.