Spending and Saving

Signs of the Recession: A Retail Rant

“I just felt I’d had it and I wanted to say my piece,” says Rita Brookoff, owner of Legacy NYC, a designer clothing boutique in SoHo in New York City. “I’m trying to fight back. I’m sick of the doom and gloom. I know the stock market is down, but we don’t have to be.”

Brookoff, who has owned her store at 109 Thompson Street for thirty years, blew a gasket after yet another piece in the New York Times by Guy Trebay (whom she casts as the purveyor of doom) reporting on deep discounts at luxury retailers. So she wrote this manifesto and posted it in her window in the hopes of convincing New Yorkers to support their local retailers instead of turning to affordable chains like H&M.

“What would NYC be without its independent shops?” reads the sign.

Brookoff is organizing, too. She has formed S3 (Shop Small Stores) and says the group is 50 strong. Their aim is to make June “Shop Small Stores” month, and to maintain the local shop-owner flavor of New York. “This is how you keep cities vibrant,” she says.

But despite such efforts, sales remain slow. “So many people have read it and everyone is in agreement about it,” says Brookoff. “But it doesn’t translate in terms of shopping.” Plan B? Designer clothes at Legacy NYC are now 70 percent off.

Tags: economy, shopping, Small Business Resources from OPEN, spending