Micro-chips to miniskirts: he's Kookai for fashion, but computers bring home his bacon.

Micro-chips to miniskirts: He's Kookai for fashion, but computers bring home his bacon

Some might call it "kooky," but Marc-Victor Ganouna, 33, just calls it "Kookai."

Ganouna is the American distributor for the Kookai brand of French clothing, which is manufactured in Italy, Portugal and, of course, France.

Kookai caused a bit of splash in Los Angeles fashion-advertising circles -- and even roused the somnolent Los Angeles Times to comment -- with its racy billboards which featured French "Kookaiettes" out to steal American boyfriends.

But what most rag mavens don't know is that Ganouna makes his main living manufacturing personal computers, as chairman and chief executive of Los Angeles-based MGV International.

"We have a plant in Huntsville, Ala. It is highly automated, and we use just 0.4 hours of labor in making each personal computer," says Ganouna, a Tunisian native of French extraction. "And in Huntsville, we pay $4.25 an hour."

Bel Air resident Ganouna manufactures basic computers for others to label. To date, he is meeting the challenge of South Korean and Taiwanese manufacturers -- and recently received an inquiry from a Taiwanese company about buying his Huntsville-made hardware.

"That was an interesting call," he says. "We are also increasing our efforts to sell to Europe."

With all this going on in personal computers, why then distribute Kookai clothes?

"It is best to diversify," answers Ganouna. "You never know what is going to happen."

PHOTO : Ganouna and Kookai clothing: Imports are in fashion, exports are in computers