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Chains Check Out Brooklyn
By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 27, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Carlson
Published Nov 27, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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There are plenty of Starbucks in Manhattan (over 170), but if you head over to Brooklyn -- you'll see the streets are mostly void of discarded Venti cups and hardly anyone has heard Josh Groban's new Christmas album. But things are about to change, chain-haters beware.
A recent Brooklyn Real Estate Roundtable meeting revealed that retail giants such as Starbucks, Duane Reade pharmacies and Chase Bank are planning to double and in some cases triple their presence in the borough.
Brooklyn (which currently only has a smattering of the Seattle-based beanery) can expect 75 more Starbucks in the next three years, 20 more Chase banks (there are currently 46) and Duane Reade will double it's dosage with an expected 60 stores total in the next three years. Will the borough open up and say "ahhh" to expensive specialty coffee drinkacinnos, or stick to their mom and pop shop? The Daily News reports that "If you're sipping a $4 latte from Starbucks, chances are everything's rosy...analysts say if you got your cup of joe for 75 cents from the guy on the corner, times are likely hard - and New Yorkers seem to back them up." The company does say it's looking at areas with "good income demographics." We expect to see a lot more "Friends Don't Let Friends Drink Starbucks" graffiti around, and perhaps a Reverend Billy sighting. Read more about the good and the bad of the 'Bucks, and The Times article on a more corporate Brooklyn.
Photo of Starbucks-holding couple and the Brooklyn Bridge via Eisenberg's Flickr.
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Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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