Fixed-Up Mall Pins Hopes on New Swedish Super Store : Retailing: Shoppers flock to the renamed, made-over South Bay Pavilion at Carson. But few find their way beyond the walls of the flashy new IKEA.

By RANDAL C. ARCHIBOLD

Nov. 19, 1992 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

With the hope that it will swell city coffers with tax revenue, the Carson Mall, reborn as South Bay Pavilion at Carson, officially reopened Wednesday with its much-ballyhooed new tenant--furniture super store IKEA.

The grand opening after several months of renovation marks what developers and city officials hope will be a turning point in the troubled history of the mall, which has struggled to make a profit in the 18 years it has been open.

But amid the pomp of a marching band, a magician and a slew of speeches Wednesday, officials spoke only of what they believe will be a promising future.

“Carson’s motto is ‘Future Unlimited,’ ” mall developer John Winthrop said. “Today we are beginning to live that unlimited future.”

That future is heavily dependent on the success of IKEA, which on Wednesday drew thousands of shoppers who put up with long lines leading into the store and at checkout stands.

“It’s like Disneyland,” one shopper said as she waited to get in.

“I thought it was wonderful. I picked up a lot of ideas for the house. But it’s too crowded, so maybe I’ll come back and shop next time,” said Bonnie Tesoro of Carson.

IKEA, an acronym that combines the initials of founder Ingvar Kamprad with those of the area of southern Sweden where he grew up, sells inexpensive home furnishings, most of which require some assembly.

The company uses its foreign origin to set itself apart from other retailers, going so far as to sell Swedish food in its store restaurants.

IKEA, which took over the Broadway outlet in the mall, is expected to provide the city about $500,000 in sales tax revenue annually, based on the company’s projections of $50 million in sales, said Pat Brown, the city’s director of community development. In 1991, its most successful year, the Broadway paid the city $140,000 in sales tax revenue.

The city lent Carson Mall Partners $8.9 million for the refurbishing, which helped attract IKEA to the mall. The loan will be repaid through sales tax revenue.

Over the past 10 months the mall received a floor-to-ceiling make-over. Gone are the dark, 1970s-style decorations. It is now, in typical Southern California mall fashion, awash in pastels and neon, with skylights everywhere.

The new decor, the new name, and especially the new store are designed to woo shoppers who, according to marketing surveys, preferred to shop elsewhere, said Sharron King, marketing director for the mall.

Some retailers, however, are skeptical that IKEA will help. They complain that there is no way to go directly from the store to the mall. Some also question whether customers will head to the mall after an exhausting trip through IKEA, which is designed so that it is difficult to leave the store without passing through all three floors.

Clyde Townsend, manager of Paul Owens Shoes near IKEA’s mall entrance, said that despite the thousands of people who swarmed into the furniture store, he saw little increase in the mall’s pedestrian traffic, which is crucial to retailers.

“I don’t think it’s going to help the mall,” Townsend said. “Once they go in IKEA, they exit out in the parking lot. It certainly didn’t help this morning.”

Kap Yong, manager of Fashions Jr., “I hope it helps. But the economy is so bad, especially here, I’m not sure it’s going to.”

Officials stressed that residents have a stake in the mall and should patronize it.

Mayor Michael Mitoma underscored the need to patronize the entire mall to boost the sales tax revenue and to debunk critics who questioned the wisdom of lending the mall money given the history of Carson residents shopping in malls outside of town.

“The mall will be a success,” Mitoma told the throng gathered for the dedication ceremony. “They said we don’t shop at the mall. You have to shop at the mall. . . . I want you to go out there and shop until you drop.”

Winthrop and IKEA officials brushed aside the dismal economy and projections from national consultants that the West could face a weak holiday shopping season.

“We think our product is strong enough and our prices are strong enough and people are going to take advantage of that good times or bad,” said IKEA spokesman Dixon MacKinnon. “That’s part of the risks you take in business, but we are here for the long term.”

The store, IKEA’s 20th in North America and fifth in the Los Angeles area, will employ about 240 full- and part-time workers, company officials said. About 84 are former employees of Stor in Torrance, which IKEA acquired, along with outlets in three other cities, last March.

IKEA officials said the company is sound, reporting $337 million in U.S. sales in the fiscal year ended in August, a 19% increase over the previous year. Officials of the privately held company declined to release sales or customer volume figures for the other Los Angeles area stores.

The South Bay location also is consistent with the company’s strategy of making an IKEA store no more than an hour’s drive from anywhere in the Los Angeles area. The other stores are in Burbank, Tustin, Fontana and Industry. The Carson store is the fourth to open this year since IKEA took over Stor, its prime competitor, last spring.