BUSINESS WATCH:

Fashion Island isn’t too concerned about holiday sales this year, even while the Dow Jones average slips and pundits nationwide predict slow economic growth after Thanksgiving.

Instead, an official said the Irvine Co.’s biggest shopping center has more positive things to worry about — such as whether the mall’s new parking structure can accommodate enough cars, or whether the staff at the concierge desk can keep up with gift card sales. The National Retail Federation has predicted a holiday sales growth of 4%, the lowest since 2002, but Nina Robinson, the vice president of marketing for the Irvine Co.’s retail properties, said she expected most of the economic woes to flow by Fashion Island.

“Fashion Island is very well-positioned in the marketplace,” she said. “It’s got strong demographics and customers slightly more insulated from economic shifts in the local area. Taking a look at all that, we’re optimistic about the season.”

The day after Thanksgiving is traditionally known as “Black Friday” — which indicates retailers being in the black profit-wise, not something gloomier. Officials at Fashion Island and South Coast Plaza, both of which celebrated their 40th anniversaries this year, said they predicted another day of packed parking lots and busy stores Nov. 23.

South Coast Plaza plans to ramp up security beginning Black Friday by overlapping guards’ schedules during peak mall hours. From Nov. 23 until after Christmas, the mall will free up 3,000 parking spaces by having employees leave their cars in off-site lots and take a shuttle into work.

Debra Gunn Downing, the executive director of marketing for South Coast Plaza, said the mall usually gets more than three times as many customers on Black Friday as it does on an average day. She added that she wished the shopping day had a more upbeat nickname.

“We call it Fantastic Friday,” Gunn Downing said. “It’s always a very exciting day because for a lot of people, it’s a tradition that they come out and shop the day after Thanksgiving. People are very optimistic.”

Robinson said Fashion Island boosted its concierge staff during the holidays, because November and December brought in more than 40% of the mall’s gift card sales for the year. Fashion Island, she noted, declared the start of its holiday season the week before Thanksgiving to take some of the burden off Black Friday.

“People are really anxious and ready to get out and shop right after Thanksgiving, so we utilize the week prior to really kick it off so everyone’s in full swing and full gear,” she said.