Winners, losers emerge in tough times

Hotel Orrington

catherine gerkis contributing writer

Darryl Irby stood behind the front desk of Hotel Orrington, 1710 Orrington Ave., on Wednesday in a black suit and tie. As the front office manager, he would not normally check in guests, but Irby has had to assume extra responsibilities since the hotel has laid off employees to cut costs.

"The economy is bad, and the hotel industry is taking a huge hit," Irby said.

Evanston's hospitality industry has suffered in the economic recession, said Jonathan Perman, executive director of the Evanston Chamber of Commerce. He said a decrease in travel is a direct result of the recession, and Evanston is no exception.

"Traveling is one of the first things people cut out," Perman said.

The number of Americans traveling within the country this summer has decreased 2.2 percent from last year, according to the U.S. Travel Association. People are exercising more restraint than in past years when booking trips, said Elizabeth Schaaf, branch manager of STA Travel.

"The concern of possibly losing a job is keeping people from traveling," Schaaf said.

The occupancy rate at Hotel Orrington is 54 percent, a 30 percent drop from last year, according to Irby.

"Around this time of year, we are usually busy," Irby said. "This time last year, it was a whole different world."

To attract more vacationers, travel agencies and hotels have created special offers. Hotel Orrington has cut rates and started providing complimentary breakfast.

Despite the difficulties the hospitality industry faces, some workers have faith it will rebound.

"I feel like things are starting to get better." Schaaf said. "June was probably our best month this year."

Century Theatres

joseph rosales contributing writer

While unemployment was soaring and the country's spirit was at rock bottom during the Great Depression, many Americans, like Mary Fay, turned to the big screen to escape reality.

"We used to go see Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers," said Fay, an 83-year-old Evanston resident, as she finished watching "Cheri" at Evanston's Century Theatres, 1715 Maple St.

With the nation's economy once again in peril, history has repeated itself. Movie ticket sales rose 17.5 percent in 2009 to $1.7 billion while attendance has gone up 16 percent, according to Media by Numbers, a box-office revenue tracking company.

"The movie business is one of the few businesses keeping its head above water," said Gary Jacobson, the manager of Century Theatres.

According to Jacobson, his theater has been performing well in the hard economy, adding that the movie industry is "recession-resistant."

People have gone to more matinees, but the theater still does well with night sales, Jacobson said.

The idea that people see movies more often during times of hardship goes back to the 1930s when "escapist films" - flicks with optimistic plots and heartwarming stories - were popular.

"The movies are the cheapest entertainment value," Jacobson said. He added that instead of spending $50 to $80 on a play or a concert, people could spend $10 at his theater and gain the same feeling.

Having lived through the Great Depression, Fay has said she understands the importance of film.

"We went to the movies for sheer escape," she said.

Wild Tree CafÉ

kirstin leffler contributing writer

Talking with strangers is encouraged at the Wild Tree Café. A designated "gratitude" table sits against a bright blue wall under words that read, "Where neighbors become friends."

"This is not your typical coffee shop," Greg Bourgon, manager of the Wild Tree Café, 1100 Davis St., said.

The café serves a variety of healthy foods including vegetarian, wheat-free and vegan options which draw all types of eaters.

This variety is in demand by people with specialized diets. There are approximately 7.3 million vegetarians and 1 million vegans in America, according to a 2008 Vegetarian Times study.

Even with a shortage of money during the recession, vegans rarely change their principles, said Fran Horvath, owner of all-vegan general store Ethical Planet, 1110 Davis St. This mentality may be why eco-friendly and health-focused businesses like Wild Tree Café and Ethical Planet are performing better than other corporations during the recession.

"Bourgon said he has seen evidence of the economic hard times, but they have not been overly detrimental to the café.

"I noticed people who used to come for their morning coffee now walking by with a travel mug from home," he said.

At Ethical Planet, all of the products are researched and confirmed to be vegan beforehand. Money constraints will not stop vegans from purchasing the products, Horvath said.

"They'll make a special trip just to come," she said.

Signs of the recession are everywhere, but some customers said dining with strangers at Wild Tree Café's gratitude table provides a welcome escape from the stress.

"I've never seen anyone here talking about economic troubles," Beyer said.

Crossroads

alex chudler contributing writer

Coach, a luxury accessory company, sells a small handbag for $148 on its Web site. At Crossroads Trading Co., 1730 Sherman Ave., the same purse is $50.

This disparity in price partly accounts for the strong performance of Crossroads and many other second-hand stores despite the nationwide recession, according to shoppers and managers.

In 2008, retail stores cut more than 500,000 jobs, 20 percent of U.S. layoffs overall. It is predicted that 2009 will bring even more cuts for retailers.

For Crossroads, those numbers may actually mean more business, assistant manager Jessica Eboreime said.

"I think people are turning to more resourceful ways of saving money," Eboreime said. "We generally get new customers every day, and it can get pretty crazy in here."

"People save a lot - anywhere from 25 to 80 percent of retail value," Eboreime said. At Crossroads, where clothes are categorized by color, a Juicy Couture blazer sells for $45, a Free People dress for $22.50, and jeans are as low as $10.50.

The Evanston store is one of three Crossroads in the Chicago area, with 21 others in California, Oregon and Washington, all open seven days a week. For sellers, the store pays 35 percent of the selling price in cash or 50 percent in store credit.

"We look for clothes that are in style and in excellent condition, and we set the price based on what season we are in or what we think will sell right away," Eboreime said.

Helen Oloroso, assistant dean of the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, is a frequent shopper at Crossroads.

"The price is right," she said. "I'm always frugal, and I've always been big on reuse, reduce, recycle and economizing in general."