By Melonie Magruder
Lookout Staff

December 8, 2011 – Merchants along Main Street in Santa Monica are getting creative this holiday season in an effort to compete with retail chains offering big discounts.

The merchants, who kicked off the season Saturday with a festive tree lighting ceremony on the Heritage Museum lawn, are turning to everything from social media to catchy promotions to community service as they enter a shopping season that can mean bottom-line profits for many of the boutiques.

Holiday decor at the Main Street Edgemar

“I overheard one lady say that if a shop isn’t offering 30 percent off, she doesn’t show up,” said Laura Owen, vice chair of the Main Street Merchants Association and proprietor at Gioia. “We mom and pop shops can’t compete with the big chains and department stores who can afford steep discounts.

Although November had been generally lackadaisical, Owen said she had “the best holiday party evening” she’s ever enjoyed. “I had my best day of sales so far on Saturday,” Owen said.

Even with brisker sales, Owen said that she doesn’t count on the “Black Friday” crowds seen at Santa Monica Place after Thanksgiving.

“I discreetly send out offers to my regular customers and they always show up,” she added. “But I count on tourists to balance out my sales during the holidays.”

The number of “For Lease” signs on Main Street masking shuttered businesses is low, but still evident -- a reminder of the ongoing effects of the country’s economic downturn.

Shuttered shops-on Main Street

The rest of the merchants seem to be offering innovative and personable promotions to bring in shoppers, or tapping social networking media to get their message out. Clever, a gift and fashion boutique that features witty T-shirts and handcrafted jewelry, is offering droll seasonal gift items, inluding cocktail napkins with the logo, “Have Yourself a Merry Little Cocktail.”

“We always try to do fun windows,” said Bree Murphy, a sales associate at Clever. “This year, we’re taking Polaroid photos of customers who’ve tried on some of our clothes and put them on our Facebook page. Then, we’ll draw one of their names out of a hat for a free gift item.”

Other merchants are partnering up to offer community service. The Doves hair salon is opening their doors exclusively to families from Sojourn House, a shelter for abused women, for free pampering and holiday treats on December 12.

Andrea Skelton stylist at The Doves. (Photos by Melonie Magruder)

“We’re moving away from, for lack of a better word, an elitist type vibe and looking to develop clientele from and for our community,” Business and Marketing Manager Linda DiMariano said. “Our staff is very service oriented and we consider our customers like family.”

Other merchants look to offer something for the whole family. At Bike Attack, co-owner Andrew Smith has pedal-less “balance bikes” for toddlers as well as top-of-the-line, custom-built road racers for the professional athlete.

“I built a copy of a 1920s Crawford two-wheeler here,” Smith said. “But you can get anything from city bikes for girls to lightweight speed bikes. We’re doing lots of pre-orders for Christmas.”

Pebbles boutique

Pebbles boutique mixes vintage toys like gyro wheels and Little Helper Tool Boxes with unique women and children’s wear. But hand-knitted mukluks and distinctive crocheted shawls isn’t always enough to fill the cash registers.

Sales associate Elizabeth Lance said that the shop “went wholesale” during the downturn and has done brisk business at the local Farmers Market.

Scott O’Brien at The Green Life boutique said he has seen strong sales the past two weeks, but that their current 60 percent discounts have a lot to do with the traffic.

“We’re looking for a new location when our lease is up at the end of this year,” O’Brien said. “”But for now, we’re doing a lot of discounts on our social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.”

For the Main Street merchants, a steady reliance on regular customers, augmented by seasonal tourism seems to be the winning strategy.

Owen said that her business has been generally better this year than last (she opened her shop 16 years ago), but she doesn’t expect the crushing crowds seen in typical holiday malls.

“I’ve got some real one-of-a-kind gifts, like tagua nut jewelry from Brazil,” Owen said. “My customers know they can come to my place for colorful, environmentally-friendly and different merchandise. And they just keep showing up.”