Our friends over at the Daily News are reporting that the Bronx has the fewest chain stores of any borough. The most shocking part of the report: the BoogieDown has only FOUR Starbucks! In a city where Starbucks franchises reproduce like cockroaches, that is truly insulting. Thankfully Dunkin' Donuts has seen the opportunity for success in the Bronx and has opened 49 stores here. So Starbucks can keep pandering to the yuppies in Cobble Hill, because Dunkin' Donuts has better coffee anyway. Suck on that Starbucks - boo yeah!Perhaps even more interesting than the actual report was the comment made by a particulary unintelligent Bronx resident:
BronxGalG Sep 9, 2008 7:29:31 AM It must be because the Bronx really is a zoo. I'm from the Bronx but I don't shop in any stores in the Bronx except supermarkets for groceries. For clothes, shoes, electronics or things other than groceries, I'll shop in New Jersey or Yonkers. I had the misfortune of going to the Target store on 225th street. What a catastrophe! Clothing items on the floor, security guards up and down the store and at the entrance, it's just plain nasty to shop there, and don't get me started on the stores on Fordham Road! It will be the same if chain stores open in the Bronx. Thanks, but no thanks!
Seems BronxGalG doesn't really understand the very simple concept that the very reason that the stores we DO have in the Bronx tend to be overcrowded is that we don't have enough stores. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to complain about overcrowding in the stores and then say, "Thanks, but no thanks!" to new stores coming to relieve the overburdened ones.
I think most residents would agree that chain stores are a necessary evil of sorts... it's the whole "Not in My Backyard" theory. You certainly don't want a Target opening up next door to you (well, actually this Target gal would because I do basically all of my shopping there), but the minute you need a Rubbermaid storage bin, or a 12-pack of Bounty paper towels you probably hop in the car and head for a big-box retailer.
I think most residents would agree that chain stores are a necessary evil of sorts... it's the whole "Not in My Backyard" theory. You certainly don't want a Target opening up next door to you (well, actually this Target gal would because I do basically all of my shopping there), but the minute you need a Rubbermaid storage bin, or a 12-pack of Bounty paper towels you probably hop in the car and head for a big-box retailer.
Hopefully the advent of the Gateway Center Mall to SoBro in 2009 will serve as a convenient and diverse new shopping district for the BoogieDown.
*Creepy anti-Starbucks pic courtesy of http://lehomeroom.blogspot.com/2007_03_01_archive.html*
~ErLu
4 comments:
Yes, and lets not forget Best Buy, Sears and Dallas BBQ are supposed to be coming to Fordham Road very soon. And Parkchester is a short drive (or bus stop away from most areas in the Bronx) for Starbucks, Macy's, Dress Barn, NY & Co, Hallmark, Zales Jewelers...(and much, much more!) And yes the Gateway complex near Yankee Stadium will be great! Things are very exciting these days for us Bronx shoppers! Simone Davis
While I understand your point about chain stores being a necessary evil, I would hope there would be a larger movement to support and encourage independent businesses in the Bronx. Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts don't provide people with bulk items. They do, however, deprive areas of independent businesses and the benefits smaller companies bring to local areas.
I would very much agree with the assertion that, in most small towns across this country, the Walmartization of America has brought about an insipid homogenization that we may never recover from. HOWEVER, I find the Bronx to be a different place altogether. I see such a dearth of ANY kind of retail experience that most people here (from newbies to long time residents) are begging for ANYTHING to come in to provide much needed service. Unlike other areas across the country (and other boroughs in NYC) it's not as though there are a ton of vibrant mom and pop shops that are going to go under due to chain stores coming in. There has been so little for so long, that I see even the middle-of-the-road big box retailers as a win-win for everyone. But that's just my take on it....
Simone Davis
I guess BoogieDowner's take on the chain store thing is that right now there don't seem to be a ton of actually usable independent stores. I'll take a Starbuck's or Dunkin' Donuts anyday over yet another 99 cent store or corner bodega selling products that look they've been on the shelves for 10 years. Independent as these businesses may be, I just do not see a huge upside to their contribution to the community as a whole. If someone wants to open a cute cafe, wine bar, or unique gift shop, I'll be the first on line to patronize them... The problem is that I just don't see that happening around the Bedford Park area (although could be different elsewhere).
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