Businesses Struggle in Fire’s Aftermath : Famous Amos Among the Companies Adjusting After Calabasas Park Blaze

A fire at the Calabasas offices of the Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookie Co. two weeks ago not only forced the company into temporary quarters at the Oakwood Apartments in Sherman Oaks, it also cooked the books, destroying records that included orders for more cookies.

“We’ve had to wait patiently for people to call back,” said Mark Harris, the company’s vice president for administration.

Famous Amos is one of 13 businesses burned out by the fire in the two-story Calabasas Executive Park office building on June 14. There were no serious injuries in the fire, but many companies were hurt, and ever since that calamitous Friday morning the wounded businesses have struggled to recover.

“Trauma city,” said Perry Diller, president of Computer Data Control, which does record-keeping for escrow and title companies. “I was just sawing my wrist with a rusty razor blade.”

Fire Under Investigation

Two of the shopping center’s tenants distributed some sexually oriented videos, and the fire, which is under investigation as one of three to strike such distributors, is estimated to have caused $4 million in damage. That figure, however, does not include lost business, and for some companies that was the most serious loss of all. Some had business-interruption insurance, but others either didn’t, or didn’t have enough.

The landlord, a partnership called Calabasas Executive Park Ltd., says it sustained $2.5 million to $3 million of the fire loss. Its insurance will cover rebuilding the 40,000-square-foot office building.

Partner Jeff Allwine said the owners plan to rebuild as soon as possible, but probably will lose tenants anyway. He said there is so much office space available around Calabasas that the displaced companies can get landlords to offer several months’ free rent in exchange for a lease.

Allwine said insurance will cover fire loss and lost rent during the rebuilding, but not rent lost from vacancies after reconstruction.

Occupancy in November

The building should be ready for occupancy again in November, he said. Meanwhile, several tenants have moved to other spaces provided by the partnership.

Computer Data is one of those tenants. When the fire struck Diller’s 2-year-old company, it nearly claimed a couple of employees, Diller said. One had hair singed from his arm while escaping.

After firefighters arrived, Diller persuaded them to let him try to salvage as much as possible, since the entire business consists of data.

Much was lost anyway, including the mainframe computer, the terminals, software and other vital materials. Diller said his company took advantage of the long July 4 holiday weekend to re-establish the business.

“We’re starting from square one,” he said, adding that the company has witnessed an outpouring of sympathy and assistance, including the offer of an interest-free loan, from friends and customers. “It’s real heartwarming to see that there are some real stand-up people out there,” he said.

Started in Video Business

One business that won’t return to Calabasas Executive Park is Top Stop, which sells videotapes to rental outlets. The company has moved to Van Nuys, and John Rosenfeld, one of the owners, said it was unable to wait for its old landlord to rebuild in Calabasas.

The fire started in Top Stop. Rosenfeld said he believes it was deliberately set. Authorities have labeled the fire suspicious but have not yet said it was arson.

They are trying to decide whether there was any connection to two earlier fires, one in Hollywood and the other in Tujunga, that also struck dealers in adult videos.

Rosenfeld said only a small percentage of Top Stop’s videos are sexually oriented. The same building housed Xcitement Video, which also sold some sexually oriented tapes.

Travel Agency Lost Sales

Rosenfeld said Top Stop was effectively out of business for about a week and a half, losing about $150,000. It lost another $160,000 or so in videotapes, computers and phone equipment, he said. Top Stop was insured for only about 75% of its losses, he said.

Let’s Talk Travel, a travel agency displaced by the fire, salvaged much of its equipment but suffered a greater blow in lost sales, since much of its business came from other tenants in the office building. Jackie L. Jones, one of the owners, said the 9-month-old company had just started to break even but that the fire cost it 40% of its $150,000-per-month sales, a devastating blow in a business based on small margins and large volume.

“I’m killing myself day and night looking for new sources of revenue,” she said.

Jones said the business from fellow tenants probably is lost for good and that her firm was underinsured. Nevertheless, she vowed to rebuild.

“I’ve been in this business for 32 years,” she said. “I’m not about to let a fire get me down.”

Vendome Liquors Affected

The list of enterprises displaced by the fire also includes the headquarters of Vendome Liquors; Quadrep Central Inc., which sells computer chips, and U.S. Administrators Inc., which administers health and pension benefits for the United Mine Workers.

Most were either wiped out or suffered severe damage. Losses were particularly heavy because of damage to computers and other advanced equipment in the offices, said Gordon Pearson of the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

National Technical Systems, a testing and engineering company, was lucky.

“We had the least damage of all,” said spokesman Ann Thryft. “Nothing was actually destroyed.”

Company Back in Action

Thryft said that, by the Monday after the fire, the company was back in action at nearby offices on Arwolinda Way.

Not so for Synergy Industrial Finance Corp., a consulting and loan brokerage that lost everything, said its attorney, Judith Wong. She said the company is trying to rebuild in nearby offices and that losses are still being tallied for Synergy’s insurer.

Famous Amos’ offices also were wiped out. Aside from equipment, the losses were literally paper, and the company still is scrambling to reconstruct vital records. Both accounts receivable and accounts payable were lost, Harris said. Shipping records are being used to re-create the accounts receivable, and vendors are cooperating to replace the accounts payable, he said.

The flow of flour, chocolate and other ingredients has not been interrupted, Harris said, and no one is likely to get away with free cookies. Orders also were lost, he said, but replacement orders are expected to filter in.

“Fortunately it didn’t affect the baking,” which is mostly done in Van Nuys, said Harris.