NEW YORK — The man dressed as Mrs. Claus and ringing a bell outside New York Costumes in lower Manhattan Wednesday afternoon was in the holiday spirit, but other downtown retailers and shoppers weren’t sharing his glee.
Even several of the Canal Street knockoff kings who normally are on their feet aggressively vying for customers sat slumped in their stalls, looking glum. Surrounded by Chloé, Birkin and Balenciaga copycats, one vendor said, “Nobody’s coming. It’s ruined the holidays.”
That sentiment came across loud and clear during a run from Midtown to lower Manhattan — one of the better ways to beat the gridlock during the transit strike. While the pair of Adidas sneakers were a given, a white Bogner vest proved to be an essential safety feature, while dodging cyclists, pedicabs and aggravated drivers determined not to acknowledge red lights.
At Century 21, signs on the front door notified shoppers that the store “could be subject to an early closing” because of the strike. In the women’s department, one sales associate said her morning commute lasted for three hours even though the company has hired private buses to shuttle its employees.
Others suffered fatigue of another kind. Two tourists from London, Sally Garland and her daughter, Lauren, headed for the escalator after checking out some Marc by Marc Jacobs jackets. “We walked from our hotel on 58th Street downtown for a helicopter ride,” Sally Garland said. “We’re normally shopaholics, but we’re so tired from that walk. This trip has been very hard on our feet.”
Nearby, in the coat department, shoppers who now find themselves walking to work eyed long down coats and fur-trimmed styles. “This is more about function so I’m not going to be so picky,” one woman said.
In SoHo, at Pearl River Trading, president Ching Yeh Chen said the tourists and day-trippers are nowhere to be found. “There’s nothing much we can do,” she sighed, adding that the retailer was closing early to ease the arduous commutes of staffers. Once the doors are closed for the day, about 20 workers jump on one of Pearl River’s delivery trucks to catch a ride to its Brooklyn warehouse, where many pick up their cars and drive home.
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“We have to give them enough time to go home,” Chen said. “It’s dark and cold.”
The strike didn’t deter some SoHo stores such as Old Navy, Atrium and the coincidentally named Transit from staying open. Buying a pair of camouflage cargo pants at Old Navy’s lower Broadway store during her lunch break, Rosemarie Falotico, manager at La Perla’s nearby outpost, explained, “They’re good commuting clothes. I’m walking back and forth from Brooklyn.”
In a few downtown stores like Bloomingdale’s, Scoop, Banana Republic, American Eagle Outfitters, Club Monaco and H&M’s two outposts, salespeople outnumbered shoppers.
While shopping at H&M, Tina Salerno reveled in the retail solitude, saying, “It’s kind of nice, actually.”
In Union Square Park, the Farmer’s Market drew a crowd, but Paragon Sporting Goods was calm.
Visitors to Anthropologie’s store at 85 Fifth Avenue were greeted with racks of velvet jackets, dainty sweaters, peasant skirts and tops — all on sale. Meghan O’Reagan, a teacher who works nearby, said she stopped in on her way home from work. She said she would probably buy something since “a lot of stuff is on sale. Probably because nobody is shopping.”