Forest Hills Still Lags In Chain Store Openings After Pandemic: Data

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — Retailers in New York were especially hampered after the pandemic’s toll on the economy, and a new report reveals Forest Hills is still stuck in pre-pandemic levels when it comes to chain store openings.

Forest Hills has 75 national chain retailers in 2022, the same amount of stores the neighborhood had when the pandemic shuttered businesses across the city, according to the report released Wednesday by the Center for an Urban Future.

Forest Hills had 85 national chain retailers in 2019, which is 10 more than the number of stores stationed in the neighborhood this year.

The top national chain retailers in Queens are Dunkin, Subway, T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile, Baskin Robbins and Duane Reade.

In Queens, Elmhurst was the top neighborhood for chain retailer locations with 128 stores, up from 125 in 2021, thanks largely to the Queens Center Mall.