New York City is one of the fashion capitols of the world. It’s home to Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale’s, Barneys New York and a slew of other high-end retailers. But it’s also home to hundreds of consignment shops and discount retailers that are a bargain shopper’s dream. Here are a few of my favorite spots to shop for bargains around the city:
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There is never a lack of food to eat in New York City. Whether you’re a graduate student on a budget or gourmet food lover with your sights set on the bright stars of Michelin rated restaurants, you will find what you need to whet your appetite. In the bustling streets of Times Square, where tourists, workers and students need something tasty and fast, the wealth of street food is your answer for the New Yorker on the go.
Music: Smooth Theme by Teru
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Street vending is an integral part of the New York City landscape. According to the Urban Justice Center, the city houses more than 10,000 street vendors, ranging from food, to art, to clothes and music. I took to the streets of Manhattan to capture a small segment of the street vending community.
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East River Plaza, planted in the far reaches of East Harlem next to the busy lanes of the FDR Drive, has something common for most U.S. cities, but groundbreaking for Manhattan—big, national chain stores.
When the super-sized shopping mall officially opened this summer, it was a big change for the city with so many individually owned small storefronts, affectionately called “mom-and-pop shops.” New Yorkers have defended those smaller stores fiercely over the years as an integral part of the city’s character that could be ruined if large, national chain stores were allowed.
But Mayor Bloomberg was a proponent of the East River Plaza. He said residents want to have the variety and discounted prices that large, national chains like Costco and Target can bring. Of the few people who responded to a survey about chain stores in New York, 60% said that chain stores should be allowed and 40% said they were neutral: neither opposed, nor in favor of them. No respondents said chain stores should not be allowed.
Do you think chain stores should be allowed in New York City?
While big-box stores might be new to Manhattan, national chains have been spreading through the boroughs for many years. In fact, there is such a large variety and vast number of chain stores throughout New York City that there’s an annual report about the hundreds of chain stores led by the 429 Dunkin’ Donuts and a host of fast food, pharmacy and other retail shops.
The pervasiveness of these chains has sparked debate and reflection about the city’s loss of mom-and-pop shops that helped characterize the neighborhoods.
Almost everyone who took the survey said they shop chain stores, even big box stores, which would compete with the largest variety of mom-and-pop shops.
In which type of New York City chain stores would you be most likely to shop?
New Yorkers seem resigned to the chain stores, even if they are not always in favor of them. It does depend on the store. There is a feeling that if the chain stores must come, they should be socially and fiscally responsible. Some city residents have been active in protesting Wal-mart with specific campaigns because of what they see as questionable business and labor practices. But big-box retailers with higher ratings for social responsibility and service, like Target, seem to be more welcome by survey respondents. Target was the #1 chain store they shopped.
Where does all this leave the ever-smaller number of mom-and-pop shops that provide that character to the city streets? Most survey respondents agreed that they should have special protections to help them survive tough economic conditions and chain store competition, such as rent stabilization or tax breaks. These are some of the allowances respondents would like New York City’s mom-and-pops to receive:
| Business tax breaks | 86% | ||
| Rent stabilization | 86% | ||
| Payroll tax breaks | 43% | ||
| Restrictions on chain store locations | 21% | ||
| None of the above | 7% |
A few people added that the chain stores’ social and labor practices should be monitored closely and that they should be required to give back to the communities.
Reasons why respondents were for or against national chain stores in New York City ranged from, “I live for Target ’cause it’s cheap and has everything,” to the idea that chain stores, “…negatively impact New York City’s uniqueness.” Some added that national retailers like Ikea and Target do charitable work and provide necessary goods that are affordable, which makes them good additions to New York City’s retail landscape.
One of the many respondents who supports Target argued in favor of large chains saying, “New York is one of the most expensive cities on earth; who would object to stores with flimsy, foreign-made goods at rock-bottom prices?”
According to a survey, a majority of J-school students don’t consider odors as a pest of New York City. When asked, 73% of them said that odors are one of the most pleasant features of New York City. Even among those who answered the contrary, they were not more than 18% to consider that it should be considered as a public issue.
However, everybody already had a very bad experience with odor in NYC. According to the survey, garbage in the street and the metro are the places that smell the worst. They gathered both 45% of the students who answered. 10% answered that the street was the place that smelled the worst.
