Restaurant, Retail Chains Assess Riot’s Toll

Orange County-based restaurant and retail chains assessed the toll of two days of rioting on their businesses Friday and took precautions in case the violence spills further across the county line.

Restaurants and stores in Orange County were largely untouched, but it was unclear whether fewer shoppers ventured to local malls and eateries. Chains based in Orange County saw big losses and numerous closings in looted areas, but most kept Orange County outlets open.

“I think this is going to be bad economically for the whole region, including Orange County,” said Patricia Murphy-Kessinger, a retail consultant and partner at the Irvine office of accounting firm Ernst & Young. “It’s almost like the impact on retail at the beginning of the Persian Gulf War, when everyone stayed home and watched TV rather than go out shopping.”

Fullerton-based HomeBase, a chain of 80 do-it-yourself hardware warehouse stores, shut a store in Gardena on Friday morning at the request of police. But company President James Halpin said they tried to operate normally in its 18 Southern California stores, including six in Orange County.

Halpin said two stores, one in Inglewood and another at Slauson and La Brea avenues in Los Angeles, closed early on Thursday for the safety of employees. But at the request of law enforcement, the stores were reopened Friday morning to supply plywood and nails to those who needed to repair or protect their businesses.

“We have to balance safety with public service,” said spokeswoman Carol Elfstrom.

With all the broken glass, Sam Scharaga thought the phones would be ringing off the hook at his 15 All-Star Glass locations in Southern California, including stores in Fountain Valley and Irvine. But Scharaga, president of the San Diego-based company, said that business was below normal on Friday.

“It’s surprising. We closed a location in Hawthorne because we couldn’t get people to come to work,” Scharaga said. “I think people are too afraid.”

Meanwhile, businesses that board up broken windows found themselves with lots of work. A spokesman for AAA Speedy Board-Up in Irvine said his company was so busy its six crews were booked through Sunday.

“You wouldn’t believe it,” said the spokesman, who did not give his name. “These are like the earthquake days.”

Irvine-based Taco Bell Corp. lost at least four restaurants to fire, and an unknown number were damaged in Los Angeles County, said Jack Daly, vice president. Hundreds of Taco Bell restaurants had to be closed or shut early to ensure employee safety, Daly said.

“We’re still assessing the damage, but it’s extensive,” Daly said. “The way we’ve handled closings is to err on the side of caution and make sure our people have time to get home safely.”

Irvine-based Wet Seal, a junior women’s wear retailer, closed nine stores in California, including six in Los Angeles County. Most of those closures were due to mall closings, and no stores were damaged, said spokeswoman E. Lesly Martin.

Carl Karcher Enterprises Inc. in Anaheim closed 26 of its Carl’s Jr. restaurants early on Thursday in the curfew areas. One restaurant was burned and two others were vandalized, said Patricia Parks, spokeswoman for the 630-unit hamburger chain.

But on Friday, all but two of the restaurants in the curfew area were able to reopen during the day. As a precaution, Parks said the restaurants in the affected areas would close at 6 p.m. Orange County restaurants kept normal hours, Parks said.

“Most retailers are insured. But for the quarter, I think you will see some impact on revenue for chains like Carl Karcher and Circuit City that do a lot of business in Southern California,” said David Rose, a retail analyst at Cruttenden & Co., an investment banking firm in Irvine. “But the mom-and-pops will probably be hurt the most.”

In Orange County itself, some shopping mall schedules were affected by concerns about safety. On Thursday evening, the six major department stores at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa closed early at 6 p.m. to allow workers who live in Los Angeles time to get home before the dusk curfew.

However, on Friday, foot traffic was normal at the mall and normal hours of 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. were observed, said Jan Roberts, director of marketing.

Westminster Mall, however, decided to close at 6 instead of 9 p.m. Friday. Shoppers were out during the day, but 15 of the mall’s 175 stores did not open Friday, said mall general manager Nancy Feightner.

“There are at least people out,” she said. “In that way, it doesn’t compare to the Persian Gulf War. The deadest night we had was at the beginning of the war, when the stores were open but there wasn’t a shopper in sight.”