Arab-American merchant Fawuzi Massa has carved a niche for his store in a predominantly African-American and Caribbean neighborhood.

Fawuzi Massa has some advice for fellow retailers struggling to stay afloat amid the recession: Keep your stores full of fresh merchandise that’s in touch with local trends.

Iraq-born Massa has plenty of experience keeping up with the trends in the predominantly African-American and Caribbean immigrant neighborhoods that surround his Tip Top Store at 6840 La Tijera Boulevard in South Los Angeles.

The Tip Top store attracts customers with its “Greeting Cards for 69 cents” and “Hats: 3 for $10″ signs.

Massa’s experience shone through on a recent visit to his store. A sign advertising greeting cards for 69 cents each caught my eye as I arrived in the parking lot. I was pleasantly surprised when I came across a tip top selection cards and a variety of other items inside. There was a large selection of beautiful hats, cosmetics, handbags, sunglasses, outerwear, and underwear — all at great prices. The place is arranged in attractive layouts, too.

“The credit goes to my wife Linda,” says Massa. “We want to create an experience that people want to return to,” he said.

Massa focuses on finding the right merchandise at prices that will translate to bargains at retail. The retail industry is constantly changing with every season, and Massa says he works hard to ensure a variety of stylish, up-to-date fashions that won’t put a pinch in his customers’ budgets.

Fawuzi Massa focuses on finding the right merchandise at prices that will translate to bargains at retail.

“Affordable prices, good customer service and great merchandise — I believe in making my customers happy,” says Massa.

Massa didn’t dream about a store in South Los Angeles while growing up in Iraq.

“My ambition was to be an attorney” but “circumstances brought me to open the store,” who worked for awhile as a journalist and TV anchor in Michigan, and spent time between customers writing stories in Arabic on diverse topics such as the economy, literature and politics.

But how does an Arab-American merchant carve a niche for his store in this African-American and Caribbean neighborhood?

Fawuzi Massa, owner of the Tip Top Store

“Love and peace,” says Massa, citing his recipe for making friends anywhere in the world.

The right merchandise at the right price helps, too. An African-American woman shopping at Tip Top on a recent afternoon said that she’s been a customer for a decade or so. She said that she regularly shops at the local 99 Cent Only chain, but always finds reason to make a trip to Tip Top.

Sheannette Virtue is a writer for Carib Press.