A VICTORY FOR MOM AND POP STORES.Byline: DENNIS McCARTHY Dennis McCarthy may refer to:
Vonda Lim had never heard of a ``mom and pop Mom and Pop An adjective denoting a small-scale and family-like atmosphere, often used to describe these types of businesses and investors. Notes: A mom-and-pop business is typically a small family-run business. store,'' so Rocky Karbel explained to her Wednesday Wednesday: see week. morning what the term meant. ``In the old days, families owned most of the stores in a city - not the chains, like today,'' Rocky told the 20-year-old Cambodian woman, who helps her mother run Classic Donuts donuts - (Obsolete) A collective noun for any set of memory bits. This usage is extremely archaic and may no longer be live jargon; it dates from the days of ferrite core memories in which each bit was implemented by a doughnut-shaped magnetic flip-flop. in Sherman Sherman, city (1990 pop. 31,601), seat of Grayson co., N Tex., near the Red River; inc. 1858. Originally on a stagecoach route, it is a highway and railroad junction. Manufactures include electronic equipment, processed foods, military equipment, and metal products. Oaks. ``They were called mom and pop stores. That's what your store is.'' So what happened to all those mom and pop stores, Vonda wondered? Most of them couldn't compete with the chains and went out of business, Rocky told her. But some - like Classic Donuts - managed to thrive. Meet the Lims - Vonda, along with her mother and father, Linda and Hongeang. They came from Cambodia about 10 years ago and opened a couple of mom and pop doughnut shops in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. - one in Pacoima in 1996, another on Riverside Drive A number of cities around the world have a Riverside Drive. In the United States:
Last year, when a Starbucks opened a couple of doors down from the Lims' Sherman Oaks location, the talk around the neighborhood was that another mom and pop store was surely going to fold. The talk was wrong. The Lims are still doing great business, thanks to customers who stayed loyal to their neighborhood store. The line for coffee at Starbucks on Wednesday morning was almost out the door, but so was the line for coffee and doughnuts at the Lims' place. ``We were afraid when Starbucks came in,'' Vonda admitted, looking around her doughnut shop where every seat was taken. They're not afraid anymore. John Barakonski sat at the same window table he's had for almost five years - starting his day with a cup of coffee and a newspaper. He likes the Lims, Barakonski said. Friendship and loyalty should account for something, so he's staying put. A few tables away, Karbel, Amy Ram, Linda McManus and Kitty Hung start their day the same way - by placing their order with Vonda and her mother. ``They're just so friendly, always smiling, and asking how you're doing,'' McManus said. ``I respond to that. We all do. It feels like home around here.'' Some parents and teachers stop by regularly to pick up a couple dozen doughnuts to bring to nearby Notre Dame Notre Dame IPA: [nɔtʁ dam] is French for Our Lady, referring to the Virgin Mary. In the United States of America, Notre Dame High and Riverside Elementary schools Riverside Elementary School may refer to
``I can't tell you how many times the Lims donated do·nate v. do·nat·ed, do·nat·ing, do·nates v.tr. To present as a gift to a fund or cause; contribute. v.intr. To make a contribution to a fund or cause. doughnuts and pastries to the schools in the neighborhood for special events,'' said Karbel, who retired last year as a teacher at Riverside Elementary. ``We were all worried for them when Starbucks came in, but their customers stayed loyal, and I think that says a lot about the kind of people the Lims are,'' said Kitty Hung. ``You know that song from the TV show 'Cheers' - 'everybody knows your name?''' Karbel added. ``Well, around here, everybody knows your face. The neighborhood has stayed loyal to its mom and pop store.'' Well, almost, says Frank Genero, who's standing in line at Starbucks for his morning coffee. He used to get it at Lims. ``I'm kind of torn,'' he says. ``I like Starbucks, so I come here for the coffee. ``But I like the Lims' pastries, so I go there for the doughnuts. I like 'em both.'' So there you have it. A mom and pop and a chain store co-existing a few doors apart in the Valley - peacefully and profitably. Maybe there's hope yet. Dennis McCarthy, (818) 713-3749 dennis.mccarthy(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Vonda Lim, 20, daughter of the owners of Classic Donut Shop in Sherman Oaks, pours coffee for customers Wednesday morning. Tina Burch/Staff Photographer |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion