Shoppers supporting neighborhood stores during recession

For two decades, Terri Silver and Rick Huey have lived in a tidy bungalow in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood. They walk to a nearby coffee shop or bookstore about once a week to chat with neighbors and enjoy Fremont's distinctive vibe.

So while the global recession claims storefronts elsewhere in Seattle, they say they're doing their part to keep local businesses alive.

"I don't want to see a big black empty box here," Silver said, entering Ophelia's Books on Fremont Avenue North on a recent morning. "It would be really sad to me if these little businesses went away."

Silver, a communications manager at HomeStreet Bank, and Huey, an environmental biologist with the state's transportation department, might have moved to a neighborhood with a nicer view than an asphalt plant awhile ago, if not for the familiarity and convenience of Fremont's shopping district.

"I know my shopkeepers, and I love that we can walk to things," Silver said.

Most economic data suggest people are pulling back on their spending as they lose jobs or forgo pay raises and bonuses, worry about shrinking retirement funds and adjust to a new era of tightened lending standards.

But local shopkeepers say they're also seeing people like Silver and Huey who are financially stable and want to help.

"People really want to support their local stores, because if they don't, we'll all go away," said Muriel Monteiro, owner of the Lola Pop clothing store on North 35th Street in Fremont.

Although large, national chains dominate the headlines about the U.S. retail sector, small shops are more at risk of going under, experts say. They tend to operate on thinner profit margins, with little room for error, and cannot afford to slash prices to the extent that many cash- and credit-strapped shoppers have come to expect.

Local shopkeepers say they hope to survive the recession by paring orders to reflect their diminished outlooks, carrying more products at the lower end of their price ranges and asking customers for their support through tough times.

It's difficult to know how many independent shops have called it quits since the recession began more than a year ago, but hardly a week goes by without a report of some closure.

In Seattle's Ballard neighborhood, shopkeeper Craig Keister recently hung up signs saying "Uncle." His Mandrakes Antiques store will close at the end of this month after 20 years in business.

Other recent Ballard closures include Annabelle's Consignment and All the King's Flags.

"I've had it. I give up," Keister said. "You see signs everywhere for 60 to 80 percent off, and I've never liked doing sales. I've always tried to be fair and price my stuff where I think it belongs."

Ballard businesses are joining together on a "Buy Local" advertising campaign they hope will prevent additional store closures. Similar efforts are under way in West Seattle and Federal Way.

"When you buy goods and services in The Junction, your money stays here in your community, supporting neighborhood businesses, schools and local charities (and it feels good)," states a flier in West Seattle's Alaska Junction neighborhood.

Jeff Green, a San Francisco Bay Area retail consultant, says "Buy Local" sentiment tends to be strong in the Northwest, especially compared with Southern California and the East Coast, but many shoppers feel tapped out.

Independent retailers can't offer shoppers the bargains of a large national discounter, so he recommends calling or e-mailing them.

"They haven't necessarily had to be this aggressive in the past, but they do now," Green said of independent retailers. "People need a good excuse to shop locally."

Linda Walsh, owner of the Clementine shoe store in West Seattle, says she's taking the "high-touch" approach Green recommends — placing special orders and calling customers when she receives new merchandise she thinks they'd like.

Still, she also laid off two part-time employees after sales dropped last year.

"I think people are shopping those incredible sales, because why not?" Walsh said. "But they're still making an effort to support their local merchants. They're coming in and maybe making a small purchase."

In Fremont, Silver spent most of a recent two-hour outing talking with shopkeepers about things such as weight-loss tips, Italy and the recession. At Fremont Place Books, she gently pleaded with owner Henry Burton to hire her 16-year-old son, Avi.

At Ophelia's, she picked up an Italian cookbook that owner Lisa Perry found for her, knowing she loves Italian food.

"Sometimes, when my husband and I feel hesitant about buying something, we justify it by saying, 'Oh, let's support our local community,' " Silver said, noting that she splurged on a pair of leather boots at Lola Pop a couple months ago.

Still, Perry describes business at Ophelia's as "horrible," saying fewer people seem to be out and about. "No one's coming in," she said.

Overhearing Perry, Li Ravicz pulled a book from a shelf and walked to the cash register. Ravicz, who works nearby as a psychologist, often passes time between appointments at Ophelia's.

"OK, now I have to buy a book," Ravicz said, holding a copy of "Baksheesh and Brahman Indian Journal 1954-1955," by mythologist Joseph Campbell.

"Being near all these businesses is one of the great pleasures of my work."

Amy Martinez: 206-464-2923 or amartinez@seattletimes.com