Irony is something, isn’t it America? Retailers now say that New York City is the worst place in America to do business. Congrats Mayor DeBlasio, you just keep helping the people of New York, it’s amazing.
The following is from The New York Post:
National retailers — from Shake Shack, Applebee’s, and cap seller Lids — say their Big Apple stores are bouncing back more slowly than even neighboring states like New Jersey and Pennsylvania, which were also hard hit by the coronavirus.
The problem, sources say, is Manhattan, which used to be teeming with tourists and commuters — who have largely stayed away since the coronavirus pandemic hit in March. Wealthy Manhattanites also have more resources and flexibility to escape, indefinitely, to greener pastures, like the Hamptons, experts say.
The city’s ghost-town vibe has Shake Shack, which runs 162 restaurants in 20 states, reporting that its Big Apple stores will “take a longer period of time to fully recover than other parts of the country.”
The burger chain made the statement on July 7 as it reported that NYC same-store sales for the week of July 1 had fallen 58 percent compared to a year earlier — the steepest decline among all its regions. Sales in the chain’s Northeast and Southeast stores, by contrast, fell just 24 percent and 32 percent, respectively.
While Shake Shack didn’t mention Manhattan specifically, Zane Tankel, who owns 35 Applebee’s in the New York metro area, told The Post he’s reopened 18 restaurants in neighboring regions, including Brooklyn and Queens. But he sees no point in reopening his two Manhattan stores — not even for curbside pickup.
“I drive around the city all the time and it was an easy determination to see that there’s not enough traffic to open those restaurants,” said Tankel, CEO of Apple Metro. Prior to the pandemic, the Manhattan Applebee’s, located at 205 W. 50th St. and at 234 W. 42nd St., were his most productive locations — representing $25 million in revenues.
You can read more from our friends at The New York Post.
