Los Angeles and its wealthy playgrounds should be immune from the Recession, one might think. But if the Dow Jones Industrial Average is an accurate measure, the economy continues to reside in the cautious side of pessimistic. A few weeks ago, when it began climbing towards 8900, I thought that finally, people would stop freaking out. And I want to tell all the idiots who keep making it hover around 8100, stop it! Stop freaking out! You're in this for the long haul, that's why you bought stocks in the first place, so stop making it artificially roil! But no, I believe it was Keynes, though it might have been Friedman, who said that while markets act rationally, once they begin to fall freely, they behave irrationally. Or, in other words, instead of anthropomorphizing markets, let's be real. Markets reflect the people who are buying and selling stocks. And they behave rationally as long as things seem to be going well. But once these people get spooked, guess what? So does their behavior in selling and buying stocks. Hence a spooked market.
At any rate, this recession has continued to shutter small businesses that provide goods to locals and tourists alike. The first lament is for the Eastside Book Cafe in Big Bear City, which is different from the more touristy Big Bear Lake. This gem of a bookstore was not simply replete with a great selection of books, but also offered a great little cafe next door, as well as free wifi. And on the weekends, the parking lot provided a venue for locals to sell their wares while they reconnected. The link to the article says that Gail Sefl, the owner, renegotiated her lease to remain open. Unfortunately, that didn't work. As a matter of fact, there was another story published in the Big Bear Grizzly newspaper by Brian Charles, but interestingly, that story can no longer be located on the web. At any rate, this was the only decent bookstore not just in Big Bear but for the surrounding area, including Lake Arrowhead. That bookstore, located at the downtown "mall" was turned into a clothing store because, as the owner confessed, no one was interested in books. Evidently. So no more gems from Ruth Prawer Jhabvala John Berger, or Rex Stout to be bought anywhere in the mountains east of Los Angeles. Evidently, after skiing or shopping at the local antique shops, people just want to watch television.
I hope that the economy improves and that this trend of small stores closing ends. Especially small bookstores. As it is, with Midnight Special closing in Santa Monica four years ago and then Dutton books (though that wasn't nearly as good), there are very few good bookstores in L.A. that aren't overly specialized. I often looked forward to going to the mountains just to visit that bookstore and now it's gone.
A different kind of store in Redondo Beach will also be sorely missed and I'm guessing not just by me. This is the Harari Off outlet store located in the Riviera across from the local Trader Joe's. This has been a mainstay not just for those who live in the South Bay, which included Palos Verdes just up the hill, but for anyone who has appreciated elegant, comfortable and extremely well-made clothing at a good price. Normally Harari designs are sold at a price point that favors their Neiman Marcus clientele. But at the outlet store, these same designs, with printed silks that were not only daring in design, but were also graceful and rendered in tasteful and sometimes bold palettes, could be had at prices ranging from $10 to $100.
Sadly, Harari has decided that they can make a better profit by changing their market strategy. They will be decreasing their patterned designs which were probably expensive to make, in conjunction with using using different manufacturers who emphasize plain fabrics, as well as carrying additional lines. They will also be decreasing their inventory, making less of their own designs with their new contracted manufacturers. That will be in conjunction with carrying other lines they don't have to spend money producing, thus diversifying their smaller inventory. So they will no longer need an outlet store to move sale items since there will be less of it. They can sell what little they have in store, for a larger profit.
Tant pis. I know I won't be going to the Montana, Santa Monica store anytime soon. The staff there are so overly impressed with themselves. Ditto for the store in Beverly Hills. The women at the Redondo Beach outlet store were polite, helpful and nice, all characteristics that are sorely in need in our Post-Bush society.
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