Celebrity power in Target collection

What do Paris Hilton, Shirley MacLaine, Miley Cyrus, Nicole Richie, Halle Berry, Reese Witherspoon, Heidi Klum, Vanessa Hudgens and Kate Moss have in common?

They've all shopped at Jaye Hersh's Intuition boutique in Los Angeles. Hoping to capture some of that celebrity magic, Target debuted Hersh's new accessories collection -- HollywoodIntuition -- in all 1,698 of its stores and online this week.

"This is my dream -- to have my collection at Target. It's the culmination of everything I've done," Hersh said recently at a cocktail party in her honor at the Golden Valley home of Jean Wright. The room was filled with glasses of blueberry-infused champagne and happy anticipation of the Target deal. The guest of honor was surprised when her sisters -- Dana Asher, a personal shopper/celebrity stylist, and Mindy Weiss, a sought-after event planner -- flew in from California for the fête.

HollywoodIntuition will be around for at least three seasons, through spring 2010. It has a stand-alone display in the accessories department with Hersh's portrait and the entire line: jewelry, handbags, makeup bags, headbands, hats, HollywoodIntuition Fashion Tape and "HollywoodIntuition," a book penned by Hersh and writer Karen Salmansohn.

According to Khanh T.L. Tran, West Coast manufacturing and textile editor for Women's Wear Daily, Hersh's singular boutique offers cachet to the mass retailer. "She has access to Hollywood and celebrity land and proximity: She's a lot closer to the celebrities, such as Lindsay Lohan, than the Target people in Minneapolis," said Tran. "And she has an eye. She can detect the next thing."

Indeed, Hersh made her reputation on knowing what people will want. "Intuition -- it's about being able to pay attention to my hunches; trying to anticipate what my customers are going to want before they know about it," said Hersh.

The next big thing

Hersh, 52, has always had a passion for fashion. Growing up in Los Angeles, she and her sisters would watch their mother get dressed. "She looked like Elizabeth Taylor. We would dress our Barbies to be like our mom," she said. That attention to detail carried over to the girls' own appearance. "We always had to look a certain way. It was part of our existence."

She was voted "best dressed" in high school by never wearing the same thing twice and carefully coordinating every ensemble, such as red-and-white gingham plaid espadrille wedges with a matching gingham skirt and bow in her hair. "Everything told a story," she recalled.

After high school, she worked in a fashion marketing and buying office, writing reports on the denim and T-shirt markets. From 1985 to 1993, Hersh had her own children's line, Baby Boxers, which started with tie-dyed tees and shorts and became a $30 million business. She lost it in a divorce.

In 1999, when the first of her two kids was going to college, she decided to do something related to women's wear. Five close friends lent her part of their credit lines, giving her 26 days (when those payments were due) to buy and sell merchandise. Then she called everyone she knew and asked them to throw shopping parties.

Going from home to home in Beverly Hills and Orange County with her designer merchandise, Hersh started Intuition as a way to pay tuition. Her home was the boutique, and Tori Spelling and Heather Locklear would stop by to shop. In 2001, Hersh found an 800-square-foot space on an obscure street and officially opened "Intuition."

After Paris Hilton dropped by, the real frenzy began. "The paparazzi started to hang out in front of the store," said Hersh, who has a photographic record of countless celebs carrying her shopping bags.

"Intuition is just this little boutique," Tran said. "It's not in a central area ... but [Hersh] transcends the limitations of that location. She gets her name and her face out."

After doubling in size in 2006, the store is known for having "the best jeans, the best tees, the best panties, the cute hostess gift. It's a general store with a lot of tchotchkes," Hersh said.

On Target

In 2006, Hersh made her mark in Target lore by creating Targèt Couture (pronounced "Tar-zhay"). It put the infamous bull's-eye on high-end products such as a cashmere sweaters and diamond necklaces. That was the first time in the corporation's history that the logo was allowed outside of its purview. The line was available only at Intuition, online and at the internal company store. Sophia Bush, Kristen Bell and Lara Flynn Boyle came to the launch party, and Gabrielle Union showed up in a bull's-eye-emblazoned tee. Hollywood and Target seemed to go well together.

"The collection with Jaye ... plays on the trends that our guests are seeing in magazines and makes them attainable and affordable," said Target spokesman Joshua Thomas. At $3 to $30, the line is less expensive than recent designer accessories collaborations, which ranged from $15 to $60.

"I'm most proud that it's not just a six-week in and out. So people can come back and see what's new," Hersh said. "It gives me the opportunity to give a full collection and a taste of what my style is. The Target guest has a better chance to have a piece of Hollywood."

Sara Glassman • 612-673-7177