East Village vintage store shutterings continue: Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place is closing

Just one week after the Post's trends piece on East Village thrift stores hurting...Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue is closing this location...And after the sidewalk shed was finally removed from this corner last Wednesday.



...they have another store on Eight Street between Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue. Andy's was established in 1977. (And I remember that the store used to be on the other side of St. Mark's Place, closer to Trash and Vaudeville...)



Hard to believe a store like this can't make it on St. Mark's Place. Of course, the pricey Theatre Condos are upstairs...and the developer has been advertising commerical space for lease...

Update: Walked by tonight, and the store was cleared out...

So let's take a quick tally of some of the neighborhood's unique vintagey stores that have closed of late:

Love Saves the Day
Howdy Do
99X

Timi's Gelateria Classica™ opening in former Andy's Chee-Pees space on St. Mark's Place

After a little speculation this week, we have confirmation what's coming to the former Andy's Chee-Pee's space on St. Mark's near Second Avenue: Timi's Gelateria Classica™ — "a gelato franchise for the 21st century, with true Italian artisanal gelato made fresh daily."




This is the first U.S. location... per the website:

A unique blend of Italian recipes from Veneto's renowned gelato experts and local, farm-fresh ingredients, Timi's Gelateria Classica™ is a zero-mile concept that brings a high-tech gelato experience from Italy to NYC for the first time. More than your typical gelateria, it will highlight the sweet and savory sides of Italian dairies with the unique combination of a mozzarella bar, a café proudly serving Lavazza, Italy's favorite coffee, and frullati bar for all-season, daylong options. Timi's Gelateria Classica™ Italiana NYC will be the flagship location for the Italian mini-chain, which has successfully launched its stores throughout the world in countries such as China, Mexico, Romania, and of course, Italy.

The upstairs will feature an Internet cafe. Look for it to open next week.

Meanwhile! On the corner! Roastown has a new sign...

Personal Affairs closing on Seventh Street

Personal Affairs, the German-based boutique on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue, is closing after 11 years. Paper & String reports that the closing could come as early as Sunday.

And the tough times continue for vintage clothing stores and boutiques...

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Other closings:

The song remains the same: Physical Graffiti latest thrift store to shutter

Atomic Passion has closed

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Fab 208 is moving into a smaller space on Seventh Street


[Image via]

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

[East 7th Street this morning]

Avenue C business owners rebuilding (The Villager)

Sandy-related death toll rises in NYC (Runnin' Scared)

Volunteer relief efforts in the Rockaways this weekend (BoweryBoogie)

Getting and using insurance after the hurricane (Curbed)

Update on Knickerbocker Village (The Lo-Down)

Sandy, queen of darkness (The Gog Log)

Scenes from Sandy (Slum Goddess)

The new 84 E. 10th St. (Jeremiah's Vanishing New York)

Union Square holiday market returns (Gothamist)

Author of 'The Help' just bought James Iha's place on East 10th Street (The Observer)

Andy’s Chee-Pees closes on West Eighth Street (Flaming Pablum)

A quick look inside the latest dessertery on St. Mark's Place

The EV Grieve reader who sent us the details on the new dessert place at the former Andy's Chee-Pees returns with a quick look inside....



Everything looks to be first class inside...

Crucial corner of Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place now up for grabs, apparently

On May 4, 1988, the Gap opened shop on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place, paying a tidy little $33,000 in rent per month... the store closed in 2001... I can't remember what came next... but in recent years the corner has been home to Pizzanini... As East Village Feed reported, they've been closed since Friday... with paper up on the glass...



Can't be easy to make it work with high rents here... and given the $1 competition at 2 Bros...

Anyway, change is certainly coming to the corner... You have the Theatre Condos upstairs.... with the new gaming shop upstairs... Work is under way on the former Andy's Chee Pees location... A worker on the scene said it would be "another store." Hmmm....



Previously on EV Grieve:
Hello again: Revisiting the past of St. Mark's Place and Second Avenue

When the Gap moved into the East Village

For further reading:
St. Marks Cinema and Theatre Condos both via Jeremiah's Vanishing NY.

Argosy appears to be the latest East Village vintage clothing shop to close

We haven't seen much activity lately at Argosy, the vintage clothing store on East Ninth Street between First Avenue and Avenue A...

...and some important-looking court documents appeared on the gate this week...

...and the mail continues to collect inside the gate...

If this turns out to be a permanent closure, then Argosy is the latest East Village thrift store/boutique to shutter in the last 18 months or so, a list that includes:

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Physical Graffiti turns into a tea shop

Junk on St. Mark's Place

Personal Affairs on Seventh Street

Amon-Ra Showroom on East 10th Street

The Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue C

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

Beauty Crisis closing Friday

Beauty Crisis on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue is closing on Friday...



Looks as if the store will live online in the short term...

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Other closings:

Atomic Passion has closed

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Fab 208 is moving into a smaller space on Seventh Street

The song remains the same: Physical Graffiti latest thrift store to shutter

We've heard the rumors that Physical Graffiti was calling it quits on St. Mark's Place... We saw the owners packing up the vintage clothing store on Monday... The Local East Village has the scoop:

The clothing store is closing its doors after 16 years because of the bad economy, but will re-open in March as a loose leaf tea shop under a slightly different name – Physical Graffi-tea – and the same management.

“It’s so sad but there is just no market for the clothes,” said Ilana Malka, 45, the store’s owner.

I've head this from many people: The new generation moving into the East Village — in general! — isn't interested in unique, vintage clothing...

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Other closings:

Atomic Passion has closed

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Fab 208 is moving into a smaller space on Seventh Street

Timi's Gelateria Classica™ facing eviction on St. Mark's Place

We can't recall seeing Timi's Gelateria Classica™ — "a gelato franchise for the 21st century, with true Italian artisanal gelato made fresh daily" — open of late on St. Mark's Place near Second Avenue.

The place took over the Andy's Chee-Pee's space about this time last year.

Now, there are some legal-ly, eviction-y looking papers on the front door...

Per the website, "Timi's Gelateria Classica™ Italiana NYC is the flagship location for the Italian mini- chain, which has successfully launched stores around the world." Unfortunately, the website is on the fritz.

Try some pudding then instead?

Previously.

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Another thrift/vintage store is closing in the East Village...Beauty Crisis on Seventh Street between Avenue A and First Avenue is wrapping it up in the next two weeks...




[Many thanks to EV Grieve reader Blue Glass for the tip and photos.]

Meanwhile, the vintage carnage continues...among the closures this year:

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Fab 208 is moving into a smaller space on Seventh Street

Not to mention previous closings:
Love Saves the Day
Howdy Do
99X

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

Atomic Passion has closed

Even MORE dessert now for St. Mark's Place?

Crews have been working behind the plywood here on St. Mark's Place at the former Andy's Chee-Pees...



An EV Grieve reader caught a look inside yesterday... and, from the look of things, expect more dessert.

"Inside right now are some contractors installing counters and an ice-cream freezer. Two stories — interior lofted balcony with tables/seating set up already."

Meanwhile, just a doorway or so away, they'll be dessert and coffee (and booze?) at Roastown Coffee. When will this block of St. Mark's Place crumble under the weight of desserts?

No more Junk on St. Mark's Place, so to speak

Back in September, as we first reported, a thrift store-boutique called Junk took over the former De La Vega Museum on St. Mark's Place. (And despite the name, this location had nothing to do with the Junk outlets in Williamsburg.)

In any event, Junk has quickly called it a day... the shop is now empty...

Previously on EV Grieve:
East Village vintage stores doomed?

More vintage doom: Beauty Crisis is closing

Other closings:

The song remains the same: Physical Graffiti latest thrift store to shutter

Atomic Passion has closed

Monk Thrift Shop on Avenue B

Atomic Passion on Ninth Street

O Mistress Mine on 11th Street

Andy's Chee-Pees on St. Mark's Place

Fab 208 is moving into a smaller space on Seventh Street