Adray’s Abruptly Closes After 30 Years

Adray’s appliance and electronics store, an institution in Orange County for 30 years, has unexpectedly closed its doors in the middle of the heavy holiday shopping season.

It was not immediately clear why the store, which sold goods ranging from cameras and refrigerators to lawn mowers and expensive cigars, was shutting down.

A telephone recording at the store says that Adray’s is no longer in business. Would-be shoppers who arrived Thursday at the Chapman Avenue site in Orange were greeted by a sign on the front door: “Closed for good.”

One observer said the store conducted a liquidation sale in recent days, but another said Adray’s simply shut its doors. On Thursday, some store shelves still appeared loaded with appliances.

“Something happened very abruptly, or if it was planned, it was not shared with anyone,” said Steven Weiss, a sales representative for Victor’s Lighting near Adray’s. “There was no ‘going out of business next week, buy now and save.’ ”

Owner Lou Adray could not be reached for comment. But retail experts said Thursday it has become increasingly difficult for family-owned businesses to survive in a consumer electronics industry dominated by huge discount retailers such as Circuit City and Good Guys. In addition to having a wider array of products and lower prices, these larger stores often have much larger advertising budgets, industry experts say.

Both Good Guys and Circuit City stores operate within a quarter of a mile of Adray’s.

“It’s a case where the big are getting bigger and the strong are getting stronger,” retail analyst Mark Mandel said. “You have deep pockets and well-capitalized companies that are expanding.”

On Thursday, would-be customers continued to stop by the store, peering inside.

The closure comes two years after the business regained the right to use its name throughout Southern California following an 18-year battle that fractured the family. The turmoil involved another chain that had operated under the same name in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The Adray family in June 1997 settled its trademark-infringement lawsuit against Adry-Mart Inc., a Van Nuys company that at one point operated 10 Adray’s stores but later went out of business.