You actually might see a Prius hybrid on the lots of Toyota dealers these days.
With more production at Toyota Motor Corp., a shortage of Prius cars at local dealerships is easing.
“We finally caught up,” said Ray Daniels, general manager of Toyota of Garden Grove.
But the wait for a Prius isn’t over. The cars are selling as soon as they hit the lot, according to Daniels. If you want one, you’ll have to wait about two months, he said. For the past year or so, the wait has been about eight months.
Toyota of Garden Grove didn’t have any on the lot last week and was awaiting a shipment of two to four, Daniels said.
Now Toyota dealers are taking orders for the Highlander sport utility vehicle hybrid, he said.
De La Renta Eyes South Coast
Oscar de la Renta opened its third store at Steve Wynn’s new Wynn Las Vegas casino. But it would like its fourth store to be at South Coast Plaza, according to Women’s Wear Daily.
“Vegas has been a strong market for us with sales at Neiman Marcus, so we’re excited to be here,” Oscar’s Chief Executive Alex Bolen told the trade publication. “But Southern California is high on our list. If we could find the right place at South Coast Plaza, we’d like to be there.”
Other South Coast:
Champagne French Bakery Cafe is opening at the Costa Mesa shopping center Bellini, a baby and teenage furniture store, opened at the Macy’s Home Store wing Fendi opened its newly designed concept store at South Coast.
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Downtown Disney: Oakley has store at Florida version |
Oakley to Downtown Disney
Foothill Ranch-based Oakley Inc.’s Iacon Inc. retail arm plans to open two sunglasses stores this summer at Downtown Disney.
The store is set to be a Sunglass Icon, similar to one at Downtown Disney in Orlando, Fla., according to Iacon President Jeff Obstfeld.
“We plan to add a Southern California flavor to this Sunglass Icon as well as include a dedicated ‘store-within-a-store’ concept that will highlight and feature Oakley-branded product,” Obstfeld said.
Along with the store, Oakley plans a Sunglass Designs kiosk selling cheaper sunglasses. It’s set for near where the tram picks up people at Downtown Disney and shuttles them to the two neighboring theme parks.
Four for Jack’s
Jack’s Surfboards recently opened its third store, this one at Corona del Mar Plaza at Pacific Coast Highway and MacArthur Boulevard. A fourth store in Dana Point is on its way. Jack’s other stores are in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach.
Westminster Additions
Westminster Mall, owned by Simon Property Group Inc., recently added Torrid and Zumiez (pronounced zoomies). Torrid is a hip plus-size girl’s and women’s clothing store and Zumiez sells surf and skate clothing, shoes and accessories.
The Westminster store is Zumiez’s first in Orange County. The store is similar to those of Anaheim’s Pacific Sunwear of California Inc., only edgier. It sells brands such as Vans, Billabong, Volcom and Quiksilver. Teen boys and young men are its target market, though it does have a girls section. The store also sells skateboards and skate shoes, snowboards and related gear.
Zumiez, based in Everett, Wash., has about 140 stores in 20 states and went public earlier this month.
Space Issue
The biggest problem for retailers in OC is finding space, according to John Beaney, senior vice president of retail leasing and sales at Colliers-Seeley Inter-national Inc.’s Irvine office.
The market still is in favor of landlords and developers, he said.
For publicly traded retailers, Wall Street’s push for expansion can be a challenge, according to Beaney. He said he sometimes recommends that a retailer cut back the number of stores it opens.
“The last stores you open in the year aren’t you’re A locations,” he said.
In two to five years, second-tier stores may end up closing or relocating, he said.
Bits and Pieces:
The Lab in Costa Mesa now has free wireless Internet access Carters opened children’s clothing store No. 182 at The Market Place in Irvine.
