After 40 years, Lonnys is still Lonnys, even online

When Lonnys opened its first store in Oceanside 40 years ago, jeans filled the shelves and it was not unusual to find teenagers hanging out with Ina Goldstein and her husband, Walter, who kept an ample stash of gumballs for his customers.

"Maybe the company grew up, but it has the same attitude and atmosphere my mom and dad created," said Gary Goldstein, the Goldsteins' son, and owner of the women's apparel and accessories retailer.

Lonnys, which has five boutiques on Long Island and an e-commerce site, is celebrating its 40th anniversary. And that's no small feat in a fiercely competitive industry, retail analysts said, especially with the proliferation of online shopping sites.

"The shining example in our area had been Fortunoff, and look at how much better capitalized they had been," said Joel R. Evans, a professor at Hofstra University's Zarb Business School, referring to the original Fortunoff chain, which went out of business in 2009. "Styles change and if you aren't constantly monitoring the market, it's hard."

Yet Lonnys -- with stores located in Merrick, Hewlett, Huntington, Great Neck and Woodbury -- has managed to maintain its reputation of being at the forefront of new fashion trends and its connection to its customers, while adapting to a changing retail landscape, analysts said.

"Long Island is a very discriminating crowd but it also wants a distinct conformity," said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst with the NPD Group, a Port Washington market research firm. "People want to dress within the accepted realm of products, but have their own personal touch to it. . . . So if I go to Macy's I am going to look like one 'of' a million. If I go to Lonnys, I am going to look like one 'in' a million."

Ina and Walter Goldstein opened the first Lonnys store in what had been a barbershop on March 21, 1971, their son said. They sold Landlubber jeans, the popular hip-hugging bell-bottoms, and even, at one point, the popular 1970s polyester Huckapoo shirts, Gary Goldstein said, adding that Lonnys became a second home for its customers, especially its teen following.

"Kids used to come in from high school and stay with my mom," said Goldstein, who worked alongside his dad for 32 years. "People used to come in and tell her their problems and she was everyone's mom."

Lonnys quickly became known as the place to find new trends or popular brands that were not available elsewhere on the Island, Cohen said. For a while, Lonnys was the only place on Long Island that carried the Guess brand when it first became popular, Goldstein recalled.

Ina Goldstein, 79, retired in 2001, and Walter Goldstein died last October at age 83, but the character and spirit the couple instilled in the company continues to be reflected by the staff, their son said. Customers like Regan Jacobson, 26, whose mother is a longtime Lonnys shopper, prefers Lonnys to department stores because of the distinctive merchandise and personal service.

"It's nice when you come into the store to know the people who are helping you," Jacobson said. "They know your style. . . . It doesn't take many different tries to find something that fits."

If an item doesn't look good on a shopper, Marcia Gaffner, a worker in the Woodbury location, said she won't hold her tongue. Her job is to establish trust with customers and help them understand the new styles, she said. During the recession, budget-conscious customers were comfortable letting her know how much they could spend and she was able to find outfits to fit their needs, she said. "I say, 'I don't care if you don't buy anything, but don't walk by my door without saying "Hi," ' " Gaffner warned with a smile.