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Earlier this month, Barnes & Noble's longstanding Greenwich Village store shuttered, and days later, the Wall Street Journal reported that the company plans to close around twenty stores within the next year. Now, Crain's wonders what kind of effect that will have on the remaining New York stores.
The article explains: "Barnes & Noble announced Monday morning that it is planning to prune between 189 and 239 stores by 2023, from its current total of 689. Local real estate brokers speculate that some of those locations will be in New York City." As for which, Crain's adds that the Union Square store's lease doesn't expire until 2036, but the lease at the 555 Fifth Avenue location is up in two years.
And some people just can't wait. An Executive VP of Lansco Corp told the paper: "We reach out to landlords quite often to inquire as to whether the space occupied by Barnes & Noble might be available. They are in great locations, their business is changing, and they don't necessarily need to be in these locations with large footprints." She adds that large apparel brands, like H&M, Zara, Uniqlo, and Topshop are all in "expansion mode," and on the hunt for new multi-level stores—just like the ones occupied by Barnes & Noble.
· Fate of Barnes & Nobles' 13 NYC stores at stake [Crain's New York Business]
· B&N Aims To Whittle Its Stores For Years [WSJ]
· RIP: Barnes & Noble on Sixth Avenue Has "Closed Forever" [Racked NY]
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