We got this tip in The Shophound's inbox this morning:
You probably know this already, but I just found out that wonderful,
wonderful Robert Kree on Bleecker Street will be closing next month to
make way for a TOMMY HILFIGER. Apparently, the landlord has raised the
rent to $55,000 per month. Really sad. I am hoping that Biography
Bookstore and Eve Beauty Salon find a way to hold on and stay where they
are.
Why all the hate for Tommy Hilfiger? Is it just because he has built a multi-million dollar brand without ever having a single original or creative fashion idea of his own? While he may be a perfectly nice person himself, in his endless (and so far fruitless) quest to trade up, he is only contributing to the destruction of anything that would have made him want to open a store on Bleecker Street in the first place. As for Biography Bookstore and Eve, keep your fingers crossed but don't hold your breath. We haven't heard anything, but they sure look ripe for rent hikes. Let's hope they have long leases. The same goes for The Shophound's personal favorite Leo Design, which may be close enough to the end of the street to survive. There are now barely a handful of shops left on Bleecker north of Charles Street that predate the last five years or so. While we have never actually been inside Robert Kree, it always looked like a nice salon to us, and they clearly have a fiercely loyal clientele. We are sure they added more to the neighborhood than their replacement will, but we figured that the Bleecker coffin was nailed shut the day Clary & Co. got ousted in favor of a Coach store.
Tommy's just dancing on its grave in a red dress.
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