RETAILERS BRACE FOR CRUSH OF HOLIDAY BUYERS.

Byline: Enrique Rivero Daily News Staff Writer

Judging from early indications, retailers say they expect the sound of money to ring loud and clear throughout this holiday shopping season.

Shoppers already have begun flocking to local stores in higher-than-usual numbers, jumping the gun on Friday's day-after-Thanksgiving rush that traditionally marks the start of the shopping season, retailers and mall officials said.

At the Woodland Hills Toys `R' Us, shoppers have been crowding the aisles in noticeably higher numbers since the weekend, said store manager Stephen O'Keefe.

``This week you can see that the Christmas frenzy is just starting to happen,'' said O'Keefe, who has more than doubled his staff in anticipation of a heavy season. ``You can really see the incline in sales.''

In addition, merchants at the nearby Topanga Plaza in Canoga Park are reporting that customers aren't waiting until Friday to kick off the rush - a promising sign indeed, said Mary Lankester, marketing director for the 125-store mall.

``That's a good sign that sales will be up,'' she said.

And to help swell Friday's post-Thanksgiving crowds, some stores are offering some early-bird extras to pack them in.

At Toys `R' Us, customers will get special discounts on selected items between 6 and 11 a.m., O'Keefe said. ``Those who are willing to get up early and rise with the roosters will have an opportunity to pick up some really special deals,'' he said.

At each Mervyn's California store, the first 500 customers will get a Disney holiday stocking filled with discount coupons and a Disney travel package offer, said Anne-Marie Reid, a spokeswoman for the Hayward, Calif.-based chain.

``People line up for this stuff,'' Reid said. ``These giveaway items have become a real trend.''

Overall, merchants reported a positive outlook for the coming shopping season, according to a holiday retail survey released earlier this month by the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche LLP.

According to the survey, 90 percent of Southern California retailers - the same percentage as last year - expect consumer purchasing to be as good as or better than the prior year. Nationally, 91 percent of retailers feel the same way, compared with 83 percent last year, according to the report.

However, retailers are less optimistic about their profit expectations, with 65 percent in Southern California anticipating higher profits compared with 80 percent last year, when the state was emerging from a slump.

And while consumers are somewhat less confident than retailers that the economy will improve, shoppers across the nation still expect to spend about 2 percent more on gifts than they did last year - $779 on average compared with $764 in 1996, according to the survey.

Los Angeles consumers expect to spend an average of $759, compared with $710 for the rest of the Western states, $804 for shoppers in the Northeast, $770 for the North Central states, and $772 in the South, according to the report, which was produced in affiliation with the National Retail Federation.

``I am very optimistic about this,'' Richard Giss, a partner with Deloitte & Touche's trade retail services group, said about the coming season.

One independent store that expects to do gangbusters is Classic Designs Fine Jewelers in the Glendale Galleria. Sales during the year have jumped by about 25 percent, said George Teter, who is in charge of marketing and advertising for the store.

``I think (the holiday season) will be a lot bigger than last year because this whole year has been a lot busier,'' he said.

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Photo

Photo: (Color) Roberto Fornoles stocks games at the Woodland Hills Toy `R' Us.

David R. Crane/Daily News