[Image via Twitter]
Word is spreading that The Sock Man is closing on St. Mark's Place.
The shop has been peddling socks, tights, lingerie and other accessories on the block between Second Avenue and Third Avenue since 1983.
We'll share more details as they becomes available.
Updated 1/8
Jeremiah Moss has more on the closing at Vanishing New York.
Per a JVNY reader: Owner Marty Rosen is "being forced off St. Mark's Place forever due to Real Estate tyrannical fascism. It breaks my heart to help him pack up the store. He plans to look for a new space and to continue his online business, but this is so disturbing."
I love the sockman and have gotten all my socks there over the course of almost 20 years. I buy socks as gifts from him too. While he is a bit of a character, recently he lectured two tourists on the evil of American Express as he tried to pry $75 cash from them instead, that is what made the sock man the sock man. Every day I have come back to my apartment since mid-December there have been boxes of stuff from every delivery company you can imagine in the lobby of my building. A giant box of toilet paper from PeaPod sat there for several days. So if the new residents won't even buy TP from a local business do we really expect them to buy socks. We also have a group of new residents who have a cleaning lady, a cleaning lady to clean bedrooms that are the size of walk-in closets, in fact some are walk-in closets. If their precious lives are so busy do we really expect them to clean their own apartments, go to the laundry mat, or heaven forbid a local store. Unfortunately this is the result of driving out long-time residents, everyone suffers except the new transient residents and the landlords and developers, oh and the nightlife operators. You need real daytime retail to support daytime retail, not a bunch of restaurants and bars catering to people who won't even go to the store to get what they need to wipe their . . .you get the point. Hope this is not true and will make sure to stop by and buy a few socks, something those of us who actually walk to the store to buy things actually never have enough of.
ReplyDeleteWhenever I see a story like this, about some store closing, I write that I never bought anything from them (if it's true). This time, however, I am writing to say that I bought socks from this guy back in either 1983 or 1984.
ReplyDeleteI will miss him.
Beer store!
ReplyDeleteNooo! I've never had more fun buying socks than I did in this shop. Every time I went in, I had some great conversations and an over-all good time. Bought some great quality socks there as well. A sad loss - I hope Sock Man can continue in another location or online.
ReplyDeleteWell, that socks...
ReplyDeleteThis is too bad, if not entirely surprising.
ReplyDeleteI've gotten all my socks over there for 40 years and not only socks but fishnets, knee highs, and lederhosen. He used to lecture me about wearing no socks in the winter and told me a terrible story about a man who never wore socks in the winter until one day he lost two toes do to the frost bit and then I was sold on the concept of wearing socks in the winter. He was fantastic because he took not only dollar bills but sometimes rolls of quarters and pennies and one time even let me pay him with those little guppies you feed to turtles. He thought that was the funniest thing and I admit it was. Who else in this neighborhood will let you pay for things with guppies? Not CVS that's for sure. And now they are in the Death Star and it's another nail in the coffin for the East Village which no longer has butchers, bakers or sock men. I hope a new sock man will open up because I can't bring myself to shop at the Kmart or even the OMG which are over priced and play too much Rihana.
ReplyDeleteI knew it was a matter of time - love Sock Man - truly would be end of an era for that block...
ReplyDelete4:28 PM: You've been getting your socks there for 40 years eh? That's pretty impressive since it says right in the post that he opened in 1983!
ReplyDeleteHe sold them on the street for several years before opening the store.
DeleteWell, I've gotten my socks here since 1983, then—the year I returned to the city. I remember Wayne, Sam, and Kat—all of whom I still see around the neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteWayne even used to insist I should wear socks in the summer; I draw the line at wearing socks with sandals, though. Have no idea what I'm going to do now, though; this truly sucks.
The Sock Man said four stores have been on the block longer than him. Can you name them?
ReplyDeleteMy bf and I met while working there it's truly sad to hear it's closing it is and will always be a huge part of our lives together....
ReplyDeleteGuess it will be a coffee or nail bar or a cat cafe now
ReplyDeleteTo 11:45:
ReplyDeleteGem Spa
Grassroots Tavern
Royale/St. Marks Barber Shop
Trash & Vaudeville
Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo! The Sock Man is awesome; this SUCKS!!!!!
ReplyDelete@ Gojira- Ha ha that was funny! Yet sad...
ReplyDelete@6:46 PM Yes! 40 years! Most people think shopping takes place only on the earth plane but I've been buying socks from the sock man on the astral plane for quite some time!
ReplyDeleteI never met the sock man. I went to his store for the first time this Xmas. His assistant was there, I can't remember her name. She is a retired dancer - a ballerina I believe. We talked about the history of socks. She was awesome.
ReplyDeleteBummed out. I hate wearing socks, I prefer being barefoot but the Sock man made the exercise of sock-wearing fun. All of my socks are from him--the mermaid socks, the converse sneaker socks, gold stockings, rose-covered knee-highs. All of them.
ReplyDeleteDamn. I hope you can take over one of the stalls on the block.
ReplyDeleteToldedano Strikes again!
ReplyDeleteI'm actually sitting here in my GF's new construction bld with that awful every unit for yourself electric heat freezing my ass but my feet are warm in MY SOCK MAN WOOL SOCKS thank you very much. Can't NYC keep anything funky and cool ? I really like the owner. Total character. We are living in a draining tide pool folks. They won't be happy until it's snooty coffee, upscale everything, banks and chain stores.
ReplyDeleteThe city council could stop closings like this in a heartbeat if a vote were allowed on the Small Business Jobs Survival Act. Except the real estate lobby wouldn't like that. Google it. If Dan Garodnick is your city councilman, call him to tell him to join every other Manhattan city councilperson and co-sponsor the Small Business Jobs Survival Act now. Until it passes, stores like this continue to close because of rent-jacks.
ReplyDeleteLess cool, less fun, less original. Brick by brick, we're losing it!!! Squaresville, here we come. I mourn the old New York. But unlike Jeremiah Moss I am a laissez faire economist. I don't think we can #savenyc. Can only grieve over what is being lost. That's why EVG is such a vital resource. The city many of us loved is dying, and this site is the obituaries.
ReplyDelete