Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
J&R Closes, May Reopen Someday As "Social Mecca"
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 10, 2014
Modified Apr 10, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Apr 10, 2014
Modified Apr 10, 2014
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The massive electronics retailer J&R Music and Computer World closed its Park Row location in Lower Manhattan yesterday after 43 years in business. In a statement on the company's website, owners Joe and Rachelle Friedman announced that they were closing in an attempt to "adapt to the technology, retailing and real-estate trends." Their plan is to "rebuild this location into what we hope will be an unprecedented retailing concept and social mecca."
J&R began in 1971 as a basement record shop and eventually expanded to its current location, at one point occupying eight buildings between Ann and Bleekman Streets. Business boomed in step with electronic advancements in communication and computers, but slowed in part due to the growth of online shopping and competition from big box retailers. The 9/11 attacks and the global recession were another factor, apparently.
In October, the Times reports, "the store scaled back its footprint between Ann and Bleekman Streets. Once occupying eight buildings on those blocks totaling 300,000 square feet, the business was resized to five floors each at 1 Park Row and 15 Park Row." All remaining employees were given pink slips yesterday.
"We would like to thank everyone for their patience and understanding during this transition period," the couple said in their statement. "We hope you look forward with us to a revitalized and bustling Park Row and Lower Manhattan." A rendering of a possible future design (see below) was posted on the J&R website with the date 2015, but a spokesperson for the store tells the Times "a date has not been set and a design has not been finalized."
Tagged
business
Jr.
j&r music and computer world
lower manhattan
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags
Prosecutors say the 22-year-old damaged property outside the Fresh Meadows shop twice in May.
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:07 p.m. ET
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
News
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial
By
David Brand
Mamdani launches new team to help NYers keep SNAP, Medicaid benefits
By
Caroline Lewis
Riders at 53rd St. station where man was fatally shot say they worry about gun violence
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .