Hey, it's a 5-10 minute walk from where I work - well, when I went to the office to work - so that's potentially dangerous, but they can say whatever they want - there's no way that it's going to in any way approximate what the Williamsburg store was. Until I see otherwise, I'm treating this as if a good store/venue in Williamsburg closed forever, but with the silver lining that another record store opened, which is pretty big news in NYC (they only close here; we don't get new ones). But I can't treat it like the Williamsburg store merely moved to a new location. I don't see how it's possible for the Williamsburg store and concept to just pack up and move to Rockerfeller Center and work. We'll see, I guess. But IMO, these kinds of places feed off each other, in terms of customers. There's a reason why a bunch of stores used to be on Bleecker St., and a cluster in the East Village, and near each other in other parts of town. There's nothing in Rockerfeller Center except tourists, office workers, and ticket scalpers (when something's at Radio City). I don't see it as an environment conducive to selling records. And the rent will be insanely expensive - though they possibly cut some kind of a COVID deal, as midtown rents are as low right now as ever. This seems like some act of desperation to grow awareness of the business to a new pool of people who maybe they hope will still want to buy records once they can't work at home. We'll see!
Are you familiar with Rockerfeller Center and the immediate neighborhood? Let's just say that there's no possible way for this to be primarily a record store any longer - let alone a store with a focus on independent music - unless rents have collapsed so completely that they can get a cheap five year lease and do enough to at least break even because of the other aspects of their business model. They're not going to sell any records here. The Barnes and Noble just a few blocks away on 5th ave has shrunk its vinyl footprint by at least 50% in the last 24 months. They do not have customers in this area. Tourists do not need to buy a record in NYC to take home that they could get identically and cheaper by ordering on Amazon. If an established store with lower vinyl prices and more mainstream titles couldn't do well with this product, how might we expect a store with more Sonic Youth and Stereolab records fare? Yeah. I'd be very excited if this store was opening somewhere below 23rd street, because it would indicate a real show of enthusiasm toward Manhattan and the prospects of continuing what they were doing in Williamsburg (I mean, hello, - Union Square? There are available spaces by Union Square). This Rockerfeller Center thing doesn't feel like that, at all.
Great analogy. I was going to say something like "it's like putting a Chinese restaurant in Little Italy," but in retrospect hat actually worked out OK...
a lot of the best record stores used to be north of 42nd street. people who only moved here after the hispterizing of Brooklyn probably don’t know that.
This is great news since the Brooklyn location was fantastic but also a bit of an effort for a bloody tourist like me. Since I'm currently hoping to - maybe, just maybe - be able to visit NYC in the fall, this is great. And probably will lead to more purchases....
I feel very fortunate that NYC still has a lot of great record stores and I can always go shoot the s*&@ with a fellow music dork and I STILL find awesome deals and cool stuff every time I go. Unfortunately, my credit card balance is the Super Ego to my obsessive vinyl Id.
this is sweet news for me as I can walk there, dangerous, but i can go to "to the record store and visit my friends" much easier now! i always had to take a train to shop for vinyl, now I wont have to.
Rumor has it, that one can sign up at Rough Trade's personnel office to play a Rough Trade customer at the new location. 1 hr browsing slots available: $50 gift card, or one 1 cd or Lp.
I think they did alright with the whole block before 9/11 and even a little after. Not having an online presence is what really did them in, well that and the fact that they had problems with employee relations and the ludicrous amount of money they could get from selling the real estate just became too good to turn down.
HMV closed in NY in 2004, Tower in 2006. Virgin I think around 2010, and J&R closed up shop in 2014. Since then NYC has been pretty much a wasteland if you are a dedicated music shopper
When HMV opened in NYC, they open massive locations on East 86th Street and West 72nd Street And Tower ha a big store on Broadway and 66th , as well as locations around E86th Street as well. Tower even had a small store in Trump Tower (!!) of all places for few years
I worked at the HMV on 72nd St. Part of their downfall was that the locations were scouted and signed by HMV UK and they paid way too much in rent...or so I was told. I loved that store though, good times. At least two of my friends and co workers from HMV later went to Virgin and then to Rough Trade.
Does anybody remember a store in the East Village called See Hear ? It didn't sell music, it was a store devoted to music magazines and books (and some other pop culture things). They were locate in a kinda grungy basement on 6th Street I think, then moved for awhile to a store on St. Marks , then back to the grungy basement befor closing. It was a good place to pick up fanzines, as well as some of the English music mags that didn't have widespread distribuition at that time (and for some bizarre reas seemed to have years worth of back issues of Screw magazine available as well(
Used to go there when they were on St. Marks, great place for obscure fanzines/mags with low print runs.
Possibly unpopular opinion: Rough Trade Williamsburg itself was for scene tourists who wanted to have a Brooklyn experience but have never heard of any of the bands they sell at Captured Tracks or the place that used to be Coop 87. In other words, they'll do fine at 30 Rock.
I only visited New York once, a couple of years ago, and spent a whole afternoon walking around Williamsburg. Loved that Rough Trade store and left with a bag full of records, books, little gifts in full on tourist mode. Some weird woman yelled at me on the pavement right outside and I’m still wondering why. One employee smoking a cigarette laughed and said don’t worry about it. But I remember the place was oddly empty.
I’ve made 40 plus trips to New York city since 1978 and in 2006 and 2007 lived there for two months each of those two years for work You have to have someone yell at you at least once during each visit. .