Good Bye Small Business Hello Wahlburgers
@TheConeyIslandBlog.com
It was a sad sight to see this afternoon. However, it’s been a common sight in today’s NYC. Brooklyn Rock, the small t-shirt business that started their company running out of their apartment kitchen has gotten the boot from their Coney Island location today. Their homemade colorful assortments of t-shirts were being loaded on to a truck on Stillwell ave. in front of their Thor Equities owned store.
National Celebrity chain Wahlburgers(Marky Mark/Donnie Wahlberg) will be taking over the space to add to an already larger store front and roof lounge.
Across the street on Surf ave. the Coney Island Blog reported a few weeks ago on January 20th that national chain IHOP will be taking over three store fronts, replacing decades old illegal furniture stores.
It looks like this is the trend that New Yorkers will need to get used to. A far cry from the NYC we remember of the 70’s and 80’s.
So what do residents of Coney Island think about their small businesses being replaced by franchises?
Let us know.
@TheConeyIslandBlog.com
Interesting. Too bad about Brooklyn Rock. I liked the store. They were unique. But Times Square by the Sea is coming. No doubt about it. And that means change. Witness Walhburgers and IHop. Many more chains on the way. Thanks for the info.
Why should I care whether a business is a “franchise” or not? I just care that Coney gets redeveloped. Mom&Pop shops open and close like house doors. When mom&pop shops ran Coney Island, Coney Island became a graffiti-filled, urine smelling dump, with empty rotting structures. Would one rather have that or Applebees? The answer is obvious.
When It’s Sugar opened, I had no idea whether there were others around the country. Why should I even care whether they exist in other cities or not? Of what relevance is that to anyone, besides interjecting their stubbornly close-minded, constant political opinion into the subject?
Or, consider this thought experiment. We all love Tom’s Diner on the boardwalk. Now, what if Tom suddenly opens 20 restaurants on the West Coast, or in Japan. Do you suddenly yell “it’s a franchise, we now hate it”? That shows how silly the “it’s a franchise” hysteria truly is. Whether the business exists elsewhere is meaningless. The important fact is that it is one more new business in Coney Island, one that belongs (food places and amusements only, please), and most importantly, ONE THAT WILL STAY MORE THAN ONE OR TWO YEARS.
Let me add that I too will miss Brooklyn Rocks, it was an interesting store. I would rather new businesses move into empty space, or rebuild the old crummy buildings around, than to displace existing businesses. But I have a feeling Brooklyn Rocks wasn’t going to be around that long anyway. If Williams Candy gets thrown out for a franchise, then you see me complaining!