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small business

Chain Stores: Are Brooklynites Getting What They Deserve?

Monday, February 25, 2008, 04:54pm
Submitted by Jonathan Sills

So, it took the arrival (and success) of an IHOP (International House of Pancakes) in Downtown Brooklyn for the newspapers to notice that Brooklyn has steadily been growing more and more attractive to national and international chain retailers -- NY Post "B'klyn is Making Chain-ge", Feb. 25, 2008.

Forgive us if we've heard this one before - Ikea, Fairway in Red Hook; Target, Daffys, Circuit City etc. at Atlantic Center, anyone? And, what about the furore about the retail spaces in the proposed Atlantic Yards development that seemed to have been designed with large, big-box retailers in mind?

Of course, the point is that whereas years ago there were few, if any, chain stores in the borough, they are cropping up all over the place these days. Mostly, it seems, due to the fact that the chain stores in Brooklyn are among the most profitable anywhere in the country. The article goes on to say that Borough President Marty Markowitz is negotiating with Apple to bring a new Apple Store to Brooklyn, perhaps in the ground floor of the Wiliiamsburgh Savings Bank.

Campaigners for local retailers will, no doubt, be up in arms about the advance of chains into Brooklyn, and others will say that, actually, there are small, local businesses opening up all the time in the borough, especially in historic (and protected) Victorian neighborhoods, where storefront widths make spaces less attractive to chains and formula businesses.

So, what's the answer? Is the borough simply moving towards an ideal, diverse mixture of chains and locally-owned stores, or is one on the rise at the expense of the other? How is real estate development in the borough affecting the retail mix? Indeed, if chain stores are so profitable in Brooklyn, there must be a market for their goods, so is it just a case of supply and demand?

What do you think? Are Brooklynites getting the retail they want (and deserve)? And if so, will chain stores kill-off the borough's small retailers and enforce rigid uniformity with the rest of the country on consumers? Or, is a diverse, lively mix of retail sizes and types possible? How could this be developed and maintained? Your thoughts, please.

Potential Mayoral Candidate Speaks Out on Assisting Small Business

Wednesday, October 24, 2007, 05:25pm
Submitted by Jonathan Sills

At an Association for a Better New York breakfast meeting this morning, city comptroller and presumed mayoral candidate William C. Thompson, Jr., made several proposals aimed at improving the climate in the city for small businesses. As reported in the New York Times City Room he called for the city to look into taxes that "unfairly hamper the growth" of small businesses, and proposed that the city create a database of the largest companies and nonprofit entities to identify spaces that could house small businesses, in an incubator-like scheme.

Mr. Thompson said that, "A city that works is a city of hope," which is a pithy soundbite, but are governmental schemes and favorable legislation really going to be enough to help small businesses in New York? Many would say that helping small businesses find affordable accommodation would be a major step as chain stores seem to be the only businesses able to afford retail rents these days, and tax incentives, or tax breaks, would almost certainly benefit many small companies, but is that going to be enough? And should the city government even be playing this kind of role?

At the most recent Jane Jacobs and the Future of New York panel discussion, panelist Savitri D of the Church of Stop Shopping said that her organization was campaigning for legislation that would prevent chain stores from operating in certain areas of the city, suggesting this as an important first step in halting the relentless exodus of small businesses from the city. MAS recently testified at a hearing advocating for some kinds of controls on the operation of chain stores in the city also, but is city government and legislation the answer to this issue or should the consumer play a more significant role? After all, we have a choice over where we spend our dollars, and we can choose to spend them in small, local stores or at large, multinational chain stores. Perhaps a combination of consumer awareness and activism, and legislation in favor of small business is the answer? What do you think? Is small business in the city doomed without government intervention?