State Of The Chains

December 12, 2023

Every NYC borough saw a decline in chain stores over the past year

Nearly 250 chain stores in New York City have closed in the last year, the second-largest decrease since the pandemic began in 2020. The Center for an Urban Future (CUF) on Tuesday released its annual "State of the Chains" report, which found a 3.1 percent decrease in the number of chain stores across the five boroughs over the past year. This year's decline breaks a two-year streak of moderate growth of NYC chain stores.
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December 23, 2020

Over 1,000 NYC chain stores have closed this past year, the biggest drop in a decade

More than 1,000 chain stores in New York City have closed over the past year, the largest year-over-year decline in over a decade. According to the Center for an Urban Future's annual "State of the Chains" report, nearly one out of every seven chain retailers open at this time last year is now closed, due to the coronavirus pandemic coupled with the continued growth of e-commerce. Even Dunkin', the city's largest retailer, closed 18 locations in 2020, the first time the coffee chain experienced a decline since CUF began tracking chains 13 years ago.
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December 20, 2019

Dunkin’ and MetroPCS thrive in NYC despite overall drop in number of chain stores

The number of chain stores in New York City dropped for the second consecutive year, down 3.7 percent in 2019, according to a new report. Despite this decline in retailers, two stores continue to grow across the five boroughs: Dunkin' and Metro by T-Mobile. The Center for an Urban Future's annual "State of the Chains" report found that the coffee chain is the city's largest national retailer with 636 total stores, adding 12 locations since 2018, followed by the cell phone store, formerly called MetroPCS, which operates 468 stores citywide.
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December 23, 2014

NYC Saw a Spike in Chain Stores in 2014 with Queens Experiencing the Fastest Growth

Does it feel like there's either a Starbucks, Chase Bank, or Duane Reade on every corner? Well, that's actually quite a realistic feeling. According to the Center for an Urban Future's seventh annual State of the Chains report, national retailers in New York City experienced a 2.8 percent increase in 2014, the largest jump in four years and the sixth straight year to see a net increase. Queens is experiencing the fastest growth in new stores, and coffee king Dunkin Donuts maintains its top spot for the seventh year running with a total of 536 locations, 21 more than last year.
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