BEVERLY HILLS—Rodeo Drive recently honored the late Fred Hayman while celebrating its 50th birthday on August 12. The Rodeo Terrace of Beverly Wilshire hosted the celebration during a fashion soiree. This was Beverly Wilshire’s fourth annual Rodeo Drive Celebrates Fashion event.

Hayman was a notorious visionary retailer who helped transform Rodeo Drive into the iconic shopping center. Hayman died in 2016, but his legacy continues to live on as pedestrians walk Rodeo Drive daily. 

In 1961, Fred Hayman opened Giorgio Beverly Hills, the street’s first high-end boutique. Following suit, Aldo Gucci opened a store in 1968, catalyzing the process by which the street began to take on its present form. Van Cleef & Arpels opened in 1969, followed by a Vidal Sassoon salon in 1970, The Polo Store was established in 1971, and the 1976 arrival of Bijan Pakzad’s legendary showroom cemented Rodeo Drive’s standing as one of the world’s premier addresses for luxury retail.

“The Rodeo Drive Committee started to form in 1976 and was founded in 1977, with Fred Hayman as its driving force. He became chairman of the new association and president of Giorgio, the legendary boutique he had built into a cultural institution. But Hayman did not build the Committee alone. Among the founding circle was Donald Tronstein, a property owner and developer on the 400 block who would go on to serve as Committee President from 1984 to 1987, and who became so synonymous with the street’s growth and wellbeing that colleagues simply called him the ‘Mayor of Rodeo Drive,'” Rodeo Drive BH states on its website.

The reception followed the Rodeo Drive Celebrates Fashion events, which were held from August 3 until August 9. These events and activations highlighted the street’s fashion boutiques and the committee’s 50th anniversary. The reception included various speakers who discussed Hayman’s life and legacy,

Rodeo Drive Committee President Kathy Gohari kicked off the remarks and praised the late Rodeo Drive visionary during her speech, “Nearly 50 years ago, Fred Hayman recognized something extraordinary about Rodeo Drive. Not simply its potential as a luxury shopping destination, but its ability to become one of the world’s greatest streets.”

During the celebration at the Rodeo Terrace, Fred Hayman’s son, Robert Hayman, accepted the honor on his father’s behalf during the reception. Robert thanked everyone for the honor bestowed on his father.

“Rodeo Drive and Rodeo Drive Committee, I’ve been hearing those names for 40, 50 years,” he said. “And in the beginning, we had people like Aldo Gucci, Herb Fink, Jerry Magnin; they all got together — they were members, or they were involved somehow. And they were all engaged passionately in what they were doing. They didn’t always get along, but it was like a family arguing with each other, figuring out what’s the right thing to do.”

Five decades after Hayman and other business leaders came together, the Rodeo Drive Committee continue to promote and preserve the street as a luxury shopping destination.

President Kathy Gohari ended the reception with a speech honoring Fred as well as the efforts of the Rodeo Drive Committee as they continue to preserve the image and spirit that was first captivated by Hayman.

“Tonight, we’ve celebrated not only one extraordinary vision, but the spirit of collaboration that has defined Rodeo Drive for half a century,” Gohari said. “For 50 years, the Rodeo Drive Committee has carried that vision forward, and it is now our privilege to steward it into the future.”