Filling niches

Just when you start to think the worst, things get better. At least, that seems to be the case with local retail at the moment. On the heels of the closure of Sears and Herreid Music in Chico, two local businesses are poised to take their places.

Last weekend, Hudson’s Appliance Center celebrated the grand opening of its second location, in Chico. The store, originally opened in Paradise over a half-century ago, specializes in American-made home appliances, from Traeger grills to indoor brands like Amana, Maytag and Whirlpool. Plus, they price-match!

The family business is also a proud veteran-owned one, with Vince Clarkson, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, running the show with his wife, Kristina. Check out the new showroom at 2525 Dominic Drive, Ste. D, and keep in mind the Chico store is not open on weekends (the Paradise shop, on Pearson Road, is open on Saturdays). Call 877-6312 or visit hudsonsappliance.com for more info.

Another expansion Apollo Piano, opened in 2011 by husband-wife duo Vincent Chambers and Nerissa Prieto, is expanding its scope and rebranding itself Apollo Academy of Music. Instead of focusing exclusively on pianos, the business now offers a wide variety of instruments and lessons, from guitar and ukulele to flute, saxophone and drums. For those whose instrument of choice is their own voice, there are lessons for that, too.

Apollo has moved its operations from Highway 32 to 936 Mangrove Ave. (next to La Comida). Find the store’s Facebook page for contests and website (apollo academy.net) for information on lessons and instruments for rent or purchase.

Food truck rally #2 As I’ve reported in this space before, the popular Fork in the Road food truck rally has moved, both physically (from Manzanita Place to DeGarmo Park) and temporally (from first Wednesdays to third Fridays). Apparently people want more. So, there’s a new rally taking over the place and time left vacant by FITR. It has yet to be named. The first incarnation was scheduled for after the CN&R’s deadline, 5:30-8 p.m. Wednesday (May 2).

Beware scammers I recently sat down with John Geiger, who runs Inday’s Filipino Restaurant and mobile kitchen with his wife, Inday. Turns out they were recently the target of a strange scam. Someone posing as a customer hoping to hire Inday’s to cater an event for 70 people apparently had ill intentions.

All seemed on the up-and-up (except for the bad sentence structure via text message) until the strange request—could Geiger accept payment in advance via credit card, plus $3,000 for an unnamed cake maker, then deposit the $3,000, in cash, for said cake maker? In an attempt to verify this was a scam, Geiger asked for a photo of his California ID and it came through as I was reading the text conversation on his phone. Geiger tracked down the victim, who lives in L.A. and had no clue what was going on. He immediately canceled his credit cards. So, beware this strange scam, everyone. And guard your cards.