Signs of change in downtown L.A.: wholesale toy district is going retail.

There's a new message coming out of downtown's Toy district just in time for the holiday shopping season: "Never buy retail."

The district that traditionally hawks wares to wholesale buyers and distributors is launching a marketing campaign that will position itself as a family destination

The push comes on the heels of the area's clean-up efforts, which have slowly wooed more pedestrian traffic.

"It used to be people wouldn't stroll the area. They didn't feel safe to park their cars and walk on the streets. That perception is slowly changing and we trace a lot of that to the positive impacts that have developed following the formation of the Fashion Business Improvement District," said Tracey Lovejoy, executive director of the Central City East Association, which administers the BID.

Bounded by Fourth and Los Angeles streets, the area's BIll was formed in April. Some 40 property owners and 100 merchants will be assessed yearly to pay for maintenance, security patrol and marketing efforts, amounting to a $162,000 annual budget. The area got a promotional boost last Christmas with the stringing of 44 holiday banners.

The coming ad campaign has a budget of only $10,000, to be paid through BID funds. Though the dollar amount is small, Lovejoy said organizers hope to maximize the campaign through co-promotions with radio and cable TV stations that target the Latino audience.

"The majority of our clientele is Hispanic families and wives who want to bargain. They're in their mid-30s and come from Boyle Heights, Pico Rivera and El Sereno," Lovejoy said. "Maybe we'll expand our campaign to include higher incomes next year, but it's difficult to reach the suburban housewife in San Fernando who might not find it worth it to come here to save a few dollars."

Nearly all the merchants in the Toy District are Asian entrepreneurs from China, Hong Kong, Korea and Vietnam. Although most of the stores distribute non-brand-name merchandise such as lookalike Barbie dolls, some have brought in toys from such large manufacturers as Mattel Inc.

The shopping experience itself is a world away from the average Los Angeles mall.

Walk into a store, and you'll often see small Buddhist altars erected for good luck. The lack of real decor in the stores is meant to showcase the dozens of items that crowd the shelves, along with cardboard cartons stacked four or five high on the floor.