Five Below Discount Store Plans Expansion To Upper East Side

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Looking to snag tech, beauty, toys and more for $5 or less?

Five Below, a Pennsylvania-based discount retailer advertising an array of merchandise for between $1 and $5, is slated to open a brand new location on the Upper East Side, according to property records.

Situated at East 69th Street and Third Avenue, the new Five Below store will occupy part of the space previously occupied by the former Food Emporium. The remaining space, approximately 23,000 square feet, will be dedicated to a new Whole Foods concept, Patch previously reported.

The Whole Foods Market Daily Shop is a new, smaller, convenience-forward concept that will offer basic foodstuffs like produce, meat, seafood, snacks, breads, alcohol and a range of prepared and pre-packed meals, including sandwiches.

Although rumors previously suggested that a Five Below store would occupy a section of the retail space within the property, it had not been confirmed until recently. Regency Centers, the real estate investment trust and shopping center developer managing the property, has since stated that they indeed leased the 13,000+ square foot space to Five Below.

Last year, the discount chain announced plans to open 200 new stores and convert 400 existing stores to a new Five Beyond model, enabling those locations to sell merchandise priced above $5, according to ChainStoreAge.com.

In 2022, Five Below opened 150 new stores and announced plans to increase its U.S. store potential from 2,500-plus to 3,500-plus sites, the outlet reported.

“Five Below remains an extreme value, high-growth retailer,” Five Below president and CEO Joel Anderson said in a news release. “We are excited to open approximately 230 new stores by the end of this year and bring Five Below to more neighborhoods, offering trend-right, WOW items at amazing value.”

According to their financial results for the first quarter of 2024, the retailer reported a net sales increase to $811.9 million, marking an 11.8 percent rise from a year earlier.

Patch has reached out regarding a potential opening date for the new Five Below store but has not received a response yet.

There are currently four Five Below locations in Manhattan. One of the closest stores to the Upper East Side is situated at 530 Fifth Avenue, positioned between E. 44th Street and E. 45th Street.