THE ‘BUY AMERICAN’ PUSH : The Consumers’ View : Patriotic Purchasing Gains Favor, but Buyers Find Choices Limited : REGIONAL REPORT
Hollywood talent agent Mark Stroh considers himself a smart shopper, but when it comes to buying a car, he doesn’t look only at price. Stroh decided to purchase a rugged-looking Ford Explorer XLT last month because it had a feature most competing Japanese vehicles couldn’t duplicate: It was made in the USA.
“I figured that with the CD player and all the extras, I’m spending in excess of $30,000,” said Stroh, 35, who traded in a Nissan four-wheel-drive truck when he bought the Ford. “I wanted to put that money into the American economy.”
Stroh’s attitude reflects a “Buy American” sentiment that cropped up in interviews with Southland consumers Friday. Lauren Reisel of Culver City said she checks inside the clothes she plans to buy for “Made in USA” labels. Ron Adams of San Diego said he decided against a Japanese-made Lexus, narrowing his choices to a Lincoln Continental or a Cadillac. A service department representative at a Los Angeles Acura dealership drives a Chevrolet truck because she prefers it to smaller Japanese models.
It’s too early to gauge how widespread “Buy American” sentiment is or whether it may have an impact on sales of Japanese-made products. From cameras to cassette players to camcorders, Japanese manufacturers cut a huge swath in the American marketplace. Consumers who want to purchase American-made electronic equipment, for example, find their choice is limited.
“I try to (but American) but . . . there isn’t an American brand,” said U.S. Navy Seaman Jason Hendrickson of San
Diego as he loaded a newly purchased Japanese-made stereo into his car on Friday. “I still need a stereo.”
But not all consumers are caught up in the “Buy American” spirit.
Emma Riazi, a Los Angeles clothing store owner, follows this simple shopping maxim: “Whatever I like I buy.”
“If you buy American products it helps,” she said. “But I don’t really think about it.”
“Buy American” fever has been building since President Bush returned from an Asian trade mission that resulted in no written agreements to reduce the $41-billion U.S. trade deficit with Japan. The lack of progress in Tokyo led Chrysler Corp. Chairman Lee A. Iacocca to denounce his Japanese rivals as predators and urge consumers to buy American-made products.
A showdown over a Metro Green Line contract fueled anti-Japanese sentiment locally. On Wednesday, the Los Angeles County Transportation System severed its controversial contract with Japanese-owned Sumitomo Corp. to build an automated train.
In recent weeks, U.S. employers from chemical giant Monsanto to a small-town Ohio ear surgeon have climbed on the bandwagon, offering employees incentives to buy American-made cars. Despite such incentives and patriotic sentiments, analysts say that so long as the recession continues, many consumers won’t be buying much of anything--regardless of where it is made.
Without doubt, the nation’s auto makers could use a shot in the arm. Sales figures released earlier this week showed that for the first 20 days of the year, North American cars and trucks sales by the Big Three declined 5.8% compared to last year. Meanwhile, sales of Japanese vehicles made in North America rose 12%.
In Costa Mesa, where Japanese and American auto dealerships pack a section of Harbor Boulevard, managers are closely watching sales as an indication of whether the “Buy American” sentiment is taking hold.
At Connell Chevrolet, sales manager K. C. Connell said earlier this week that a customer, concerned about Americans losing their jobs, was trying to trade in his Honda for an American car.
But Cory McNutt, assistant sales manager at nearby Atlas Chrysler Plymouth, said he hasn’t seen any significant response from consumers.
Further down the boulevard at Harbor Mitsubishi, managers are bracing for a wave of anti-Japanese sentiment among consumers. “For the next nine months, until the presidential election, all that people are concerned with is Americans losing their jobs,” said Marco Rasic, general sales manager. “They’re going to realize that they have to start looking at themselves” to buy American products.
Among those seeking American-made products is Michael Haddad, 31, general manager of Acura Metro dealership in downtown Los Angeles. “I feel we need to buy more American products,” said Haddad, who looks for “Made in America” labels in clothing and on other goods.
Haddad isn’t about to mothball his Japanese-made Acura, though, and he doubts his customers will, either, because of what they consider the superior quality of Japanese-built cars. “People who want these cars are still going to buy them,” he said.
Take Joseph Lee, 34, a Los Angeles real estate consultant. He purchased an Acura after years of driving American-made cars. Compared to his Acura, “they were terrible, really bad,” said Lee, who disagrees with the “Buy American” movement. “We shouldn’t blame Japan for our problems,” he said.
Contributing to this story were Times staff writers Chris Kraul in San Diego, Cristina Lee in Orange County and Crissy Gonzalez in Los Angeles.
