Retail Roundup

Catherine Eberhard

The terrorism attacks that struck America last week have horrified and

saddened everyone. One way that this country is uniting is by purchasing

and flying the U.S. flag. Our native Stars and Stripes is a visible

symbol of our national pride. The American flag can be found on homes,

cars and just about everywhere else you go. There are several retailers

in Huntington Beach that have been overwhelmed with requests by customers

for flags in every size and shape and they are doing their best to meet

this sudden demand for patriotism.

Pageantry World, Inc., on McFadden Avenue between Graham and

Springdale streets, has had its phones ringing off the hook with requests

for Old Glory. Owner Leon van der Wyk estimates more than 1,000 calls in

the last week from customers wanting to buy American flags. The store has

sold 1,000 flags that attach to the glass of your car window, similar to

the Lakers flags that were recently in style. Pageantry World has also

sold hundreds of full-size flags, tiny 4- by 6-foot desk flags and even a

flag that was as large as 30 by 48 feet for the side of a building.

“People are grabbing up everything we have that is red, white and

blue,” van der Wyk said. “It is really great to see patriotism increase

and the general attitude of the public is wonderful. We have had large

crowds in here and there have been no complaints. Everyone is patient and

courteous, even when they have to wait 30 to 40 minutes in line.”

Pageantry World was sold-out of their 3- by 5-foot American flags when

I visited them Monday, but they were expecting a large shipment this week

and had many prepaid orders for flags already.

At Pageantry World, you can buy a lightweight aluminum flag pole for

the front of your home that is adjustable to be anywhere from six feet to

20 feet high and includes a 3-inch gold anodized ball on top. If you’d

like to mount a flag on your home, there are wall brackets for about $8

and aluminum flag poles that will hang at a 45-degree angle for $28. The

high-quality government approved flag has embroidered stars, a reinforced

fly-end hem, canvas heading with solid brass grommets and it is always

made only in the USA. Prices vary according to size. Pageantry World has

not increased its prices following the recent tragedy and it takes pride

in offering high-quality flags at the lowest price possible.

Pageantry World has been in business since 1979 and it has supplied

flags and banners for several Olympic games, sporting events and

amusement parks including Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure.

More information on the history of the company can be found by visiting

its Web site at o7 https://www.pageantry-world.com.

f7 To find out if the flag that you desire is in stock, call

Pageantry World, Inc. at (714) 373-1996. If you’d like to visit the store

in person, its at 5811 McFadden Ave. Suite B.

Another Huntington Beach business that is trying to keep U.S. flags in

stock is The Kite Connection, which is on the Huntington Beach Pier.

Owner Dave Shenkman says he’s had more than 500 requests for flags this

week. He’s pre-sold about 400 of his 3-foot by 5-foot flags, which retail

for $19.99. Shenkman is expecting a large shipment of flags this week and

he has 300 car flags on order as well.

Shenkman thinks that Huntington Beach residents are so eager to

purchase flags because. “It is one show of unity that everyone can

display.”

Shenkman has decided to donate 10% of the profits from each American

flag purchased at the Kite Connection to the Red Cross Disaster Relief

Fund in order to help the victims of these recent tragedies. Even though

his business is booming over the increase in patriotism, he doesn’t feel

it is right to profit from this disaster. He told me that the Kite

Connection will make a larger lump sum donation to charity in the

upcoming weeks.

A touching story that Shenkman shared with me was concerning a

Huntington Beach woman who recently ordered 100 flags from his store.

This woman is planning on setting up a table in a busy area and offering

the flags to people in exchange for a donation to charity. She has

invested over $2,000 of her own money in purchasing the flags from The

Kite Connection. This is truly an amazing story of one citizen who is

trying to make a difference.

To get your own U.S. flag, you can visit The Kite Connection on the

Huntington Beach Pier, or call (714) 536-3630. Flags can be ordered

online by going to o7 https://www.kiteconnection.comf7 .

A final place to consider if you’re out looking for an American flag

is Big K-Mart on Magnolia Street and Garfield Avenue. Big K-Mart in

Huntington Beach is expecting an astonishing shipment of 60,000 flags

this week.

Operations Manager John Scobey, Jr. told me that Big K-Mart’s

Huntington Beach store sold 800 flags on Sept. 11, the day of the

terrorist attacks. The shipment on Saturday of 188 flags was gone in only

an hour and a half.

When I asked Scobey, Jr. what he thought was the number one reason

that people wanted flags he said, “I think everybody feels a sense of

solidarity when they display the flag. It is uniting the country.”

Scobey, Jr. said that customers have quickly cleaned Big K-Mart out of

everything red, white and blue, from hair ribbons to gift wrap.

Big K-Mart in Huntington Beach is at 19101 Magnolia St. To find out if

they currently have the flag you desire in stock, you can call (714)

968-3388.

* CATHERINE EBERHARD is a Huntington Beach resident and her column

focuses on local businesses. If you have items for Retail Roundup, e-mail

them to RetailRoundup@aol.com or fax to (714) 965-7174.