Downtown business owner Christian Ramirez is no rookie to natural disasters--when he was eight years old, the 6.7 magnitude Northridge Earthquake hit his native Los Angeles.

“My dad was bugging out and my mom was sleeping,” said Ramirez yesterday as Hurricane Sandy pounded outside. “We just rode it out.”

With all the bluster surrounding the storm on Monday, Ramirez, owner Coast 2 Coast Jewelry, didn't hesitate to close up shop.

Ramirez took refuge yesterday afternoon in a downtown café. He said October has been a slow month for sales and he was looking forward to making it up this week. Sandy put an end to his hopes, but he thinks it was best to stay closed.

“It's better safe than sorry,” he said, “especially if you've already seen what's going on around us.”

Ramirez was like most downtown shop owners in closing down Monday. Chris Williams of the Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce said Sandy's impact will vary depending on the business in question.

Businesses that depend on spontaneous patrons, like restaurants and small theaters, will feel the impact more than businesses whose services are less spontaneously needed, like jewelry shops and clothing stores, Williams said.

“In other words, a patron who was going to visit a restaurant for a business luncheon will simply cancel that visit, whereas a patron of a hair salon will simply postpone or reschedule his or her appointment rather than outright cancel it,” Williams said.

Since the downtown business community consists largely of restaurants, it will take a hit from the hurricane, particularly if shops stay closed Tuesday and Wednesday. But since New England business owners are used to dealing with inclement weather, he said the hit won't be more than usual.

“I don't think Hurricane Sandy will have a more detrimental effect on our hardy business owners than most typical snow or ice storms we experience in a standard winter,” Williams said.

Tom Lopez was let out early from work Monday afternoon and was hunkered down in a coffee chop. Lopez, who lives in South Nashua and depends on public transportation, praised the municipal transport system for staying open as late as possible, unlike its counterparts in New York City and Boston.

But he said the pre-storm reaction of downtown businesses was overkill.

“I think culturally we're sissies,” he said. “The Puritan hardiness has turned into 'I will beat you, Mother Nature, even if you're not doing anything to bother me.'”

“We turn things into metaphors for let's kick back and relax. “

Not everyone in the area closed shop in anticipation of what some forecasters called the worst storm in a generation.

Surrounded by half-built Harleys and countless mechanic's tools, Tom Vayo of Bush Hill Cycle worked at a set of custom handlebars as Sandy made landfall.

“It's funny,” Vayo said, looking up from his work, “sometimes you get a day like this and that's when you get all your traffic. People will be coming in left and right. Not today.”

Moreover, Vayo thought the storm was being blown out of proportion.

“Staying at home's not going to help me. I got a bunch of oil changes and work I got to do. If I lose power I'll go home.”

The shop was forced to close during last year's Halloween weather surprise, which would go down in history as “Snowtober.” For an entire week he was closed, and the last thing Vayo wants now is for another unanticipated vacation.

“I don't want a repeat,” he said with raised eyebrows.

Vayo said closing down for a day isn't a huge blow to his business. But it does hold him back a day's work.

“I don't want to fall behind, and that's the reason I just keep at it. I'll be here tomorrow morning too.”