It’s a Saturday afternoon, at the first house of this run of canvassing Redondo Beach’s Third District. Sam Kartounian just encountered a political candidate’s biggest challenge: an informed voter.
From the moment the door opens, he’s bombarded with questions and comments from the father of young, elementary-school-aged children: What’s his stance on Measure B? Are you going to keep tax money gained in North Redondo in North Redondo?
Kartounian navigated those potentially treacherous waters with finesse. He’s for Measure B, but he’s not convinced it’s the best option that the city has; he’s going to fight to keep the high quality of life that North Redondo enjoys; and he’s going to work to keep tax revenue generated in North Redondo in the area. After that, it was all listening. He walked away with a happy potential supporter.
“It’s all about listening,” Kartounian said.
Kartounian has had a hand in North Redondo for nearly 20 years, as long as his family has had a shop in the South Bay Galleria. As he’s grown, Kartounian has grown the family business, expanding to three shops (two in the Galleria itself) and gaining success by changing the business model from one that relied solely on timepieces to one offering “high-end wrist candy.”
That idea came while he was pursuing his MBA at Pepperdine, mid-recession, when he was considering moving along to a new industry entirely.
“My instructor asked why I’d want to do that when watches were what I knew,” he said. “That I should change the industry from the inside and pass up my competitors, rather than switch industries and get passed up by the guy behind me.”
That change earned Tic Time (now Tic Time Trends) the Redondo Beach Chamber of Commerce 2010 Business of the Year.
Now, he says, he wants to give back to the city that he says gave his family so much. “I’m not interested in politics, I’m interested in the city,” he said. “When a city has given you so much, it’s kind of your civil duty to give back.”
That mentality and going through Leadership Redondo in 2006 made him visible to political leaders such as Mayor Steve Aspel, former mayor and District 3 representative Mike Gin and outgoing District 3 councilman Pat Aust. “You start learning more and more from these people, you become more engaged and you want to serve. It all snowballs.”
Kartounian is hanging much of his candidacy on a few planks that he makes an effort to bang home as strongly, and as often, as possible: He’s a small business owner first and foremost; he takes inspiration from the District’s recent representatives, Pat Aust and Mike Gin; and he is all about “quality of life” for the residents of his district.
His campaign materials play off of his day job, claiming that it’s “Time for Sam,” a pun he explains to every constituent he meets in his canvassing. In one particular encounter, he used the phrase, “I bleed small business” at least three times, taking care to drive the point home. When a constituent claimed Aust neglected his district, Kartounian responded, “You can mark that I disagree highly with that.”
“A lot of the doors I’ve knocked on, the first thing they have to say is how happy they are with the great quality of life. Quality of life here is superior; the leadership Aust brought, the past leadership Gin brought, that kind of strong leadership has lead to the quality of life residents enjoy today. For me, it would be moving forward and maintaining the quality of life they’ve helped create.”
A conversation with a constituent who seemed ready to accept his materials and get back to her day was opened up after Kartounian hooked her into a conversation. He kept prodding until he discovered this particular woman’s interest (his family and his first child, due in a month and a half), explaining his positions in the process.
Kartounian’s work ethic became the theme of the day, from his MBA to his family business to what he plans to do for the district.
“I’m the kind of guy who’s going to roll up my sleeves and get to work. If I have to fix potholes, if I have to come here and do it myself, that’s what I’m going to do to make sure the quality of life of my residents is guaranteed,” he said. ER
