Big Chain Stores Are Fleeing Manhattan, Study Finds

NEW YORK — With Marshall's opening next to Katz's Deli and Target dressing up like CBGB, some New Yorkers may feel like big retailers are taking over Manhattan. But the borough was actually the only one where the number of chain stores dropped this year, fueling the first citywide decline in more than a decade, a newly released study says.

The Center for an Urban Future counted 2,904 national retail locations in Manhattan this year, 2.3 percent fewer than the 2,971 recorded in 2017, according to the center's 11th annual "State of the Chains" report released Wednesday.

That loss of 67 stores drove the total number of chain locations across the city down 0.3 percent to 7,849, the report shows. That's the first year-to-year decrease since the center's first analysis, which has been released every year since 2008.

The citywide drop was recorded as 124 companies — more than a third of the 331 retailers the center analyzed — reduced their presence in the city, the research found. That reflects a 91 percent increase from last year, when just 65 retailers downsized.

"The pullback was most pronounced among merchandise retailers that are struggling to compete in an age of e-commerce, with broad-based declines among retailers selling clothing, shoes, accessories, jewelry, and cosmetics," the report says.

Every borough but Manhattan saw an increase in the overall presence of chain retailers, led by Staten Island, where the number of stores rose 3.2 percent from last year to 452, according to the report.

Chains still have a large presence in Manhattan despite the recent decline there, the report shows. The borough has the city's highest concentration of stores at 122 locations per square mile. It's also home to the three ZIP codes that added the most chain locations this year: 10007 in Tribeca, 10027 in Harlem and 10002 on the Lower East Side.

Dunkin Donuts remained the city's largest chain for the 10th straight year, adding 12 locations for a whopping total of 624 stores, the report says. It's the biggest chain retailer in Queens and Staten Island and No. 2 in Manhattan, Brooklyn and The Bronx.

The coffee and pastry giant is followed by Metro PCS, now known as Metro by T-Mobile, with with 472 stores, the report shows. Subway landed at No. 3 with 330 stores despite closing more than 100 shops this year. Starbucks ranks fourth with 327 locations — 227 of which are in Manhattan.

The figures come amid concern about the city's small businesses struggling to stay afloat. City Council lawmakers held a hearing in October on a bill that would establish protections for commercial tenants, including a right to 10-year renewed leases.

(Lead image: A closed retail store is seen in Manhattan in April 2015. Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)