With a Starbucks dotting nearly every corner, it may seem hard to believe but fewer chain stores are opening in the Big Apple for the first time in four years, according to a new report.
Many more chain stores are closing than opening in the city, according to the report, released yesterday by the Center for an Urban Future.
Borders and Hollywood Video, which both declared bankruptcy in 2010, shut down all their stores in the city. Blockbuster shuttered 20 stores and, for the first time in four years, Dunkin’ Donuts failed to boost store numbers in the five boroughs.
The sluggish economy may have finally caught up with national retailers, surmised the report. In 2010, 31 percent of all national chains with locations in New York closed some stores — a jump from 20 percent of chain stores that closed in 2009.
The number of chain retailers overall grew 1.6 percent, a slower rate than 4 percent growth between 2009 and 2010.
The borough with the most new chain outposts is Queens, with a 5 percent increase in new chain store openings. In Manhattan, the growth of new chain stores decreased 2 percent.
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