When Garibaldi Garcia talks about "days of yore," he doesn't realize that for many of us he is "days of yore."
Like so many Hispanic and other ethnic businesses, Garcia's "mom and pop" store has the feel of the 1950s for many Americans. Today, as gargantuan superstores and cookie-cutter franchises homogenize America like so much milk, little one-of-a-kind shops like Garcia's add a splash of color, personality and — yes — nostalgia.
"Many Hispanic businesses have a down-home feel to them," says John Renteria, director of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. "We have a very close-knit community, and the businesses are like a comfort zone with four walls. People speak Spanish there and socialize."
Most of the businesses have a short life-span, though the Garcia family has done rather well.
"I worked in restaurants in Los Angeles before coming to Utah," says Garcia. "We've been here eight years."
And how's business after eight years?
"Up and down," he says. "We've been through some slow months recently."
Located on lower 800 South, "La Michoacana" (it means "the store from Michoacan") is a cramped but colorful little place. The store's main item is clothing — sleek, silk shirts with flashy designs, embroidered ball caps, boots, blouses, hats and jeans. But Garcia has developed a feel for music and has added CDs and tapes to the inventory. He prefers selling — and hearing — the music of yesteryear.
"So much modern music in Spanish is about crime," he says. "Give me the old songs that talk about day-to-day life. The old groups bring back memories for people, good memories. As we say in Spanish, 'to remember is to live.' "
True to the model of a "mom and pop" store, Garcia and wife Maria Luisa share duties.
"We live here every day," says Maria Luisa. "We sell a little bit of everything and not a lot of anything. But I like it."
In other words, the Garcia business is an old-world model for small business, a model that America's newest immigrants bring with them from their homelands; a model that triggers memories of soda fountains and corner grocery stores in the minds of aging Americans. Along 900 West, you find bakeries, eateries, butcher shops. In that way, the nation's newest citizens have much in common with the nation's very oldest.
Among those who champion such thought is Salt Lake Mayor Rocky Anderson. In a meeting with the Hispanic Chamber recently, he commented that Hispanic businesses have added a welcome dash of spice to the community.
"The business district on the west side is growing," says Renteria.
As for Garibaldi and Maria Luisa Garcia, they're taking it one day at a time — a cultural tradition.
"I'd like to expand, sell a bigger variety of everything," says Maria Luisa, "but we're pretty cramped."
Adds Garcia: "When you start in business, you go slow. You can't be sure of the kind of customers you're going to get. But now I know what people want."
For many customers, what they want is to simply drop by, remember the old country and feel alive.
E-mail: jerjohn@desnews.com