Say goodbye to these bargains: Syms Corporation, including its subsidiary Filene's Basement, have filed for bankruptcy, and plan to close all 46 of their stores. Syms acquired Filene's Basement out of bankruptcy protection in the spring of 2009 for $62.4 million, but struggled to make the chain profitable again. “Blame the economy, blame the world. I wouldn’t call it expected, but I wouldn’t call it surprising,“ St. John’s University business professor Anthony Michael Sabino told the Post. more ›

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy, aka the Democrat who became a Republican to try to run for Governor, takes Thanksgiving very seriously. Which is why he's proposing a law that would force stores over 7,500 square feet—wink wink, Kmart and Wal-Mart—to close between 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving next year. Why? So employees can spend time with their families. more ›

It is sort of nice to get a blast of cool air while schlepping your way through the steamy sidewalks, but it's also wrong—very, very wrong. It's like enjoying a free hit of crack, basically. Despite that relatively new bill (passed in 2008) that fines air-conditioned establishments $200 per door/window left open, some companies are still risking it to lure in customers with their sweet manufactured breeze. (To clarify, under the legislation any business that's 4,000 square feet or larger, or part of a chain with five or more stores in the city, must keep their doors shut when the air conditioning is on.) more ›

Following an eight year battle, yesterday the city won a ruling that will strengthen its ability to keep adult video, theater and bookstores in check. Around 125 establishments catering to the triple-X set may be forced to close if they can't go legit. more ›

A recent non-shocking poll found that a majority of New Yorkers simply don't get why, in the year 2010, we're still living under the boot of Puritans and temperance scolds who want to inconvenience everyone by prohibiting wine sales in supermarkets. By a 58-39 percent majority, voters across the political spectrum support allowing grocery stores to sell wine, according to a Siena Research poll. [pdf] Governor Paterson proposed the change as part of his budget proposal, estimating it could bring in $250 million in taxes, but wine store owners and distributors fear losing business. The poll also found that voters (mostly upstate Republicans) oppose a proposed soda tax by a margin of 59 percent to 38 percent. more ›

Mom-and-pop stores are the main casualty of a huge blaze that overtook a block in Queens Saturday morning. It took 168 firemen to calm the four-alarm fire, which was under control by 1:30 pm. Meanwhile 54 apartments were evacuated in a nearby building. The fire got going at Acme Furniture in Jackson Heights around 10 am, reports NY1; people as far away as Long Island City could see the billowing smoke. It quickly spread down a row of shops on 37th Street to a dry cleaner, a shore repair shop, a liquor store, an art supply store, a packaging store and a purveyor of beauty supplies. "You have a lot of that wood furniture, finishings on the furniture. As it extended to the other stores, other materials got involved and let the fire escalate quickly," said New York Fire Department Deputy Assistant Chief Robert Maynes. more ›

Breeders and babies get a lot of bad press for being buzzkills at bars... but what about cute, adorable, little puppies? CityRoom's complain box was filled with grievances about dogs leaving the home with their humans this weekend; one woman was horrified that the Gap allows canines in their stores. Probably whilst fanning herself to not suffer a fainting spell, she ends her rant declaring: "My goodness, aren’t they afraid of being sued by a customer who has an allergic reaction, or claims to have been threatened or bitten by an unmuzzled animal on their premises? Perhaps what it will take to keep animals out of stores is a few too many paw prints on the merchandise, or a deposit by a dog that mistook a rug for a sidewalk." more ›

Say what? There's a study out that claims Manhattan shops are less likely to carry unhealthy snacks (candies, chips, sodas, etc). According to researchers at the Tulane University School of Public Health, we're at less of a risk of coming into contact with snacks at the checkout than anywhere else in the country. The NY Post points out that Manhattan's obesity rate is 16%, as compared to the rest of the country at 33%—which may be related. more ›

The Natural Resources Defense Council's New York Urban Program Director Eric Goldstein (that's a mouthful) has gone undercover to see what Manhattan retail stores are blasting their air conditioning with open doors to lure the customer inside. This is illegal, of course, and as Goldstein points out, while "the issue isn't tops on the national environmental agenda... it does serve as something of a symbol of shameless wasting of fossil fuels by some of our fellow citizens." more ›

The same disease that caused the Irish Potato Famine in the 1840s is spreading with an “explosive” rate of infection through Northeast tomato farms. Called "late blight" disease, the fungus causes white-mold-encircled gray spots on leaves, blackened stems, wilting and death. Organically grown crops are particularly vulnerable, and some farmers in Rhode Island have plowed tomato fields under at the first sign of blight. Vegetable pathologist Meg McGrath tells Newsday why everyone should probably be hoarding tomatoes: "People need to realize this is probably one of the worst diseases we have in the vegetable world." Yikes, this makes last year's Salmonella tomato scare seem like a leisurely Bloody Mary brunch! more ›

Guess that new location in the old Tower Records by Lincoln Center didn't work out. After closing 20% of its stores (including 3 in NYC) filing for Chapter 11 last fall, Circuit City has now hired four liquidators to help sell the inventory of its remaining 567 stores nationwide. Acting CEO James A. Marcum said, "We are extremely disappointed by this outcome. The company had been in continuous negotiations regarding a going-concern transaction. Regrettably for the more than 30,000 employees of Circuit City and our loyal customers, we were unable to reach an agreement with our creditors and lenders.” Bloomberg News reports that CC lost market share to Best Buy and Wal-Mart, plus Amazon.com and other online retailers undercut its prices. more ›

This weekend Sunnyside, Queens residents stood up for their local feline friends. NY1 reports that "Anita DiSarli organized a rally Saturday to alert the public to what she calls a problem of animal abuse by some area store managers. She says they house cats, but intentionally keep food away from them so they will be more eager to catch mice." The 99-cent store and National Liquidators on Queens Boulevard are allegedly slowly killing the cats via this neglect--some have been rescued and diagnosed with eye problems, jaundice and other ailments. Mickey, one of the rescued cats, has "doubled in weight, going from six to 12 pounds in just under a month," his new owner saying he's "Friendly as hell, sleeps next to my leg, climbs on my chest. He's been so starved for attention." [via Queens Crap] more ›

It was previously reported that Target would be opening their promotional "Bullseye Bodegas" at four temporary locations around Manhattan on September 11th. Now the opening date is September 12th, so either the reports were wrong or someone in marketing realized that 9/11 might not be the most ideal day to launch a campaign with the word "bullseye" in it. more ›

The tanking economy may be dragging retail businesses to a watery grave, but Target isn't going down without a fight. Though it is tough going; net earnings were down 7.6 percent in the quarter ending August 2nd. That's why the company is coming up with innovative new marketing strategies, like capitalizing on a previously unexploited synergy with September 11th patriotism! After all, the retailer's red and white logo is just one color away from Old Glory. So this year 9/11 won't just be a day to honor our fallen heroes, but also a day to check out Target's awesome new Go International private label collection at four pop-up stores around Manhattan. They're even calling them Bullseye Bodegas, though we'll probably never know the real truth behind the sales that day. [Jossip] more ›

Starbucks has released the full list [pdf] of 600 “underperforming” locations nationwide that will close between now and mid-2009; 10 of them are in New York City, with the majority clustered in midtown, two in Queens, one on Staten Island and one in Bay Ridge. Which means we’re left with a scant 225 Starbucks citywide – so get out and support your local neighborhood Starbucks! more ›

Starbucks has announced it's closing 600 stores in the U.S., bringing the total number down to approximately 9 gazillion, most of them located in Astor Place. Stocks have fallen 24% so far this year, and its second quarter was its weakest as a public company. The Seattle-based chain says it will try to relocate employees to other stores, but thousands of layoffs loom. Financial analyst Sharon Zackfia tells the Times, “I don’t think it’s overly surprising. These stores were in aggregate unprofitable.” No word yet on how many NYC Starbucks locations will close, but one hopes it’s kept to a minimum, because where else will we use the bathroom? more ›