Independent Manhattan Stores
 

There are indpendent stores in Manhattan that are part of the landscape that need to be supported. Today I stopped a few of them

Gerry Cosby
They are known for the hockey equipment and Rangers and Knicks gear. They sell high quality merchandise you will not find at a chains like Sports Authority or Modell's. I went there for a piece of hockey equioment I could not find anywhere else.

I started going to Cosby's when the had a store as part of the old Madison Square Garden at 8th and 50th. Until recently they were part of the entrance to the Garden off 7th Ave. The just mioved to 31 St between 6th and 7h. The owner told me he was optimistic about the future and that old customers are finding them and new one walking in off the street. Stop by if you a hockey or sports fan.

Donut Pub
This is a family run operation where the owner smiles and greeets children. The window is filled muffins and the place is filled with good will. The donuts are wonderful. The facade looks like a beat up, but go in any way.. Tell your friends, tell the cops you know. They are fighting a Dunkin that opened up the block. 14th Street between 7th and 8th.

Ai Friedman
There are a number of art supply stores in New York. We used to go to Pearl on Canal for almost everything. But it became hit and miss whether the shelves were not always stocked. We heard the owner was doing time for tax evasion. AI Friedman is more money than and it is smaller store but the staff are adults and it is well lit and it easy to find what you are looking for. 18rth Street off 6th

Gracious Home
On the walk back downtown from Cosby's I saw that a Gracious Homes opened on 6th Ave near 25th. They have been uptown for years. They specialize in things of all types for an apartment. They have scores of handles for cabinets, for example and bedding. Once again staffed by knowledable adults.

Support independent stores.

My daughter and I had a great time at that Gracious Home branch last weekend! What a wonderful mix of very basic stuff (Rubbermaid butter dish) and lovely exotic items (kids' bed sheets with animals hand-embroidered in Africa). It was quite a contrast to the funky flea market up the block.

Yea! Great post, aduchamp - here's some other suggestions for independent stores with experienced staff and a history and connection in NYC:

Bookstores : The Strand ( main outlet Broadway and 13th St) McNally Jackson (On Prince at Lafayette)
Women's Clothing: Arleen Bowman (Bleecker and 10th Street)
Men's Clothing: Gerry's (Eighth Avenue at 16th St.)
Kids Toys; Kidding Around (West 15th St. between 5th and 6th Ave)

Aduchamp1, thank you for bringing attention to this important topic. I own an independent store (although not in Manhattan) and I can tell you first hand how much support like this is appreciated.

For anyone who is interested in supporting their local stores or who wants to see firsthand HOW your support makes a difference, I urge you to look at the 3/50 Project www.the350project.org

The 3/50 Project is at the heart of a new nationwide movement to save independently, locally owned brick and mortar stores. It's called the 3/50 Project. Brick and mortar stores around the country are rallying their loyal customers to help support the local economy, three stores at a time.

One of my favorite shops in Manhattan is:

Bon Maison
at 140 9th Avenue. Nice home accessories, gifts, candles, bath & body etc. If you can't get there in person you can shop their website http://www.bon-maison.com/home.html

Gracious Home is fabulous! They have 3 stores in Manhattan; they run some good sales, too.

They really do stock everything for the home, from scented candles to toilets to cookbooks and everything in between. They also do lamp repairs, custom curtains and bedding, etc.

Another great independent store for hardware is Simons on Third Avenue.

I would never go to Home Depot!



http://www.simonsny.com/

MP-You are right the Strand is a New York Landmark.

I am not a shopper so my experiences are limited But:

Manhattan Eyeworks First Ave and 11 Street. They have a great assortment of hip glasses amd the staff is fun to work with.

Gracious Home is wonderful. They're not giving anything away, but they specialize in things that fit in real NYC apartments - as opposed to the large chain stores which try to fit house size stuff in an apartment. And if they don;t have something they'll try to find it for you - that is search for discontinued items etc.

Gracious Home opened a couple of big box stores but I wonder how they are doing against BBBY. Perhaps there's room for both, but all the family hardware stores are dying a rapid death.

I lament the loss of Coliseum Books - thank you very much B&N, Amazon and Borders.

Still exists:

Academy Records - yes a shop that still sells CDs and very knowledgeable staff. Some serious music lovers go here.

Paragon Sports - Not the best prices but it's got everything.

Tekserve - for the Mac people and not some slick shiny Apple store.

Patelson's Music House - Music scores, books, magazines. Get your urtext here. They handle your music with mittens (serious) and then you slime it with your oily fingers. Those grey folders are classic.

nstevey,
I wonder if you were able to make it to the closing week at the original Coliseum store...
I went there every day, and it was just the most amazing scene. I think every bookworm came out of their musty apartments for this passing of a NY Era. The aisles were crowded with well-read people acting almost like they were at a girdle sale...but discussing Books they had read! One of the last bookstores with staff most of whom actually read books.

The likes of this store won't be found again in New York.

About 2 years before it closed, the Umbrella Man across from the Russian Tea Room shut down. These were guys who built bespoke umbrellas for decades. I came out of the store on one of the last days with 6 one of a kind umbrellas given away for gifts) and the card of the guy in back who could do repairs from home. I still miss them!

Another fan of Tekserv here too.

Champagne Video on the Upper West SIde. (Both Kim's and B'way Video are gone now.) All these (esp B'way Video) have or had world class film/video collections.

For vintage records, another one is Record Runner, on Carmine Street
and one of the old indie record stores- tried and true Bleeker Bob's over on West 3rd St.

I browse sometimes at Gracious Home but usually find same stuff cheaper. They do good merchandising though I consider them more of a chain store. I have a tiny NY apartment have found excellent resource lists over years at http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/

If you have a tiny NY apartment, then another place that you should visit is "Tiny Living" at 125 E 7th. Lots of handy gadgets for small spaces and multi-purpose storage and functions, including an amazing number of ways to hang things on your walls, doors, ceiling and fridge. When I was there last weekend, they were having a big sale, maybe 30% off everything (I hope that doesn't mean they're in trouble):

http://www.tinyliving.com/store/content/30/location/

I don't understand promoting Gracious Homes. I live near four of them on the UES. Although they are lovely stores, they are a mini empire, charging beyond full retail in many cases. A store that sells bed linens for $1000+ doesn't need a promotion on Fodor's. They are not a mom and pop independent store.

Gracious Home's web site lists 5 locations, including the cluster of 3 at 1201/1217/1220 Third Ave which seem to each have selected departments (e.g., paint and electronics at one, bath and bedding at another, fixtures and plumbing at the third). Then the one in Chelsea and one in the Upper West Side. Hardly an empire.

I happen to shop there too, but I wouldn't consider them needing promoting and support from a fodor's thread. The square footage on the UES is huge. Not a chain, but as I said before, they are no mom and pop. I understand a store like Zabar's, for example, being mentioned here as a point of information to visitors who may not know about it or are inquiring about finding something on the UWS. But I wouldn't expect a thread to be started to support Zabar's. IMO, a small independent store (that could be struggling in this economy)needs different support than a Gracious Homes kind of business. I still think they're a mini empire.

Hi Anonymous-
yes Tiny Living--actually first heard about them when they started on Apartmentttherapy. I have shopped there a few times in the fast few years. Thanks for the reminder!

Hi CPW, re Zabar's...although it's larger than some it is a family owned business. Like Balducci's which became so successful and now has a branch on the UWS. I don't think either of these is struggling, although you never know- many large stores have shut down all over the city.

ALso wanted to add- the 350 project mentioned by Margo_Chester is an onteresting site-worth checking out.

bellastarr, I never went to the Coliseum closing - there were two locations though - the UWS and then Bryant Park, so technically, they had two, neither of which I had to opportunity to go to.

Gracious Home, at least the original one in the UES, has a small store feel to it. It literally feels small and cramped, but you got immediate service, or least you did before BBBY moved in, from people who knew what they were talking about and it felt like a small town hardware store, only bigger and more cosmopolitan than suburban. None of the big box stores give me this feeling.

Some other independents I like are Amy's Bread and Patsy's. Eli's, not so much. So overpriced. Actually Eli's, Balducci's, Gourmet Garage - all those overpriced foodstuffs - they bite. Yes, they do have good food, but it's like Whole Check, I mean Whole Foods.

<< from people who knew what they were talking about >>

As I said, I am a customer at GH, but let me tell you an experience that I had there. I needed a Lutron low voltage magnetic dimmer (certain wattage). I knew I could get it on line cheaper, but I was hoping to get it immediately. The salesperson looked on the shelves and in the computer to check the other stores. They didn't have the color I needed and he finally said he could it get it overnight. I knew Lutron couldn't ship that fast. Finally, he said he was going to disassemble the one he had and change the color. I passed. I thought that was a bit unethical with an electronic device that comes from a factory with a factory warrantee.

<< Eli's, not so much. So overpriced. >>

I so agree nstevey. Eli had a short lived fuel surcharge (added to everything at the register AFTER you've done all your shopping and first learn about it) earlier this winter. It got lots of bad press in the neighborhood and was discontinued.
There's a very interesting article about all the Zabar brothers in the latest edition of Edible Manhattan. And it addresses Eli and his attitude toward pricing (very different from the two older brothers).

There are scores of wonderful food stores in New York.

As far Balducci's being successful, they just announced they are closing their two stores in Manhattan.

I too do not think of Gracious Homes as an empire. If they open an suburban box store, however, I will join your ranks.

There is a cheaper and simpler version of Gracious Homes on 3rd 12th called Surprise, Surprise. About thress years the nastiest, most arrogant store owners sold it to nice reasonable people,

One of my favorite NY stores, Bridge Kitchenware, closed up shop and moved to NJ. It was for professional and serious amateurs cooks, they had six types of mellon ballers. It still exists in cyber world and some town in NJ.

I want to be quoted correctly, adu, 'mini empire, mini empire.' LOL

Mini Empire-a small kosher chicken.

When I was kid, a thousand years ago, Fortunoff's had maybe six or seven stores under the El on Livonia Avenue in Brooklyn. Just the way J & R has taken over most of the block on Park Row. It seems like an urban method to handle success.

BTW, even though I worked just a few blocks from J & R for many, many years and went there after 9/11 as act of economic patriotism, I cannot stand their staff and their return policies.

B & H is a wonderful independent camera/electronics store. They have adults who know their stuff and are trained in the kibbitz. I been going there since they were on 17th Street and they have alwasy been more than pleasant and honest. What a statement for an electronic goods store. Adorama is second in the category.