Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
Above: The three-block-long line for Harry Styles merchandise on Saturday.
The Together Together Store, the Harry Styles-themed pop-up at 22 E. Second St., has wrapped up its two-month East Village run.
Sunday was the final day for the temporary shop, which opened on Aug. 26.
Yesterday, we spotted workers dismantling the space.
The shop, open Wednesdays through Sundays, sold merchandise tied to Styles' tour, including his 30-night Madison Square Garden residency, which ended Saturday.
The pop-up brought plenty of Harry Styles fans to the block, along with controversy.
In an EVG exclusive, the shop made headlines in September when longtime East Village cookbook seller Bonnie Slotnick was arrested following a confrontation with a security worker outside the store.
The next court date for Slotnick (photographed below last evening) is tomorrow, Nov. 4.
Neighboring merchants spoke about the pop-up's impact on the block, including long lines, crowded sidewalks and access to their storefronts. While some expressed frustration with the disruptions, others said the pop-up's staff had been helpful and responsive to their concerns.
The post-pop-up experience wasn't entirely welcoming, either. A staff member yelled at me to leave when I entered through the open doors to take a photo late yesterday afternoon. After I retreated to the doorway and raised my camera, the staffer blocked my view of the mostly barren room with crates.
As the shop entered its final month in early October, a note (with flowers) was delivered to businesses on the block, thanking them for their hospitality:
"As we enter our last month here, we wanted to take a moment to say how grateful we are to have been welcomed into your community and to share this space with you."
Another correspondence with a gift basket arrived as the Styles shop prepped to close: a final thank you and a wish for a happy holiday season. One merchant tore up the card in disgust.
The shop also donated a bench to Albert's Garden, according to its Instagram account. The 50-year-old community garden is directly next door to the one-level space used for the pop-up.
And now, after more than two months of Harry Styles mania, Second Street is going in one direction again: back to normal.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Finally!!! Good riddance!! It will be a pleasure to be able to walk down 2nd Street and the Bowery without having to get past the long lines of young girls yakking away on their cell phones while waiting to purchase the overpriced junk that pop-up was selling.
ReplyDelete"long lines of young girls yakking away on their cell phones while waiting to purchase the overpriced junk". AKA The Trendies.
ReplyDelete"only want to be additive to your community"
ReplyDeleteLook, I get that not everyone is a vocabularian, but maybe let someone who is read these things before printing and sending them? History is full of terrible additives: lead to paint, asbestos to insulation, raisins to oatmeal cookies. Although I suppose a monthslong unasked-for celebrity pop-up on a quiet residential block IS "additive," so perhaps they’re more self-aware than they seem.
Is the torn note Bonnie's? lol it's very punk, please frame it for posterity
Punk?......maybe if you're a born frustrated punk.
DeleteBorn Frustrated is the name of my hardcore band
DeleteRaisins are acceptable if it's not a debased version of pain aux raisin. Otherwise it's cranberries all the way. Lead white is an exquisite color, just don't eat it, or snort it. Sounds like you pinched the name of your band after the song by the great Tim Armstrong of Rancid. That's what I call a punk move. If so, well done.
DeleteFlies in the ointment! Well said!
DeleteLooks like someone got shamed into retroactively trying to be a better neighbor. Now ask your employee/contractor(s) not to testify against Slotnick.
ReplyDeleteThank God
ReplyDeleteIf they don't already these sorts of events should require a permit and a hefty fee to offset the impact on the neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteI honestly cannot name a single song of his.
ReplyDeleteI agree about the use of “additive” in that note but will not sit idly by for raisin slander. RAISINS ARE GREAT.
ReplyDeleteNo way, keep those things out of the potato salad and Irish soda bread too! <3
DeletePotato salad?!?!? EW!
DeleteYeah, sure we don’t want massive lines but try to remember those people were mostly from out of town and it was a huge economic boost for NYC and yes, even for the neighborhood. The coffee shops, delis and restaurants received a lot of business too. Not only were the people on the line completely pleasant to deal with and not intrusive, the event production staff at the store were peak professional and worked to accommodate neighbors. The security people were hired by the venue, not the people who rent the venue.
ReplyDeleteWhat about poor Bonnie Slotnick who spent a night in jail because of the staff of that terrible pop-up shop and all the legal problems that arrest has caused her?
DeleteI truly hope that’s the case… because a lot of them got their coffee and snack fix at Starbucks on 3rd and 1st.
DeleteHave to admit the people waiting on that line were a lot easier to deal with than the ones who flood the neighborhood every weekend.
Delete"and it was a huge economic boost for NYC"
Delete🤣 🤣 🤣
Yeah sure it was. That's why the neighborhood needs, even more basic rich girls with bad taste.
I guess they paid to hire a crisis communications flack in NYC, too! Or are you posting from some random outsourced location?
DeleteFlack? That’s just plain funny. I live around the corner from this place, have for a longtime, post regularly on EVG and worked in production/events long enough to recognize a professional operation. If you paid attention the pop-up was for a guy who did 30 consecutive shows at MSG and brought a huge amount of jobs and tourists to NYC. And that’s who I saw on that line every Wednesday through Sunday for two months, happy tourists.
DeleteThank goodness that goon didn’t throw the crate at you Tracie! (I hear the last guy who tried that got hung upside down in a garbage bag). When will these types ever learn that trying to block a photographer’s view usually ends destroying any good will, and that the resulting shot makes them look like bullies or morons?
ReplyDeleteWhat about 'poor' Slotnick? Don't assault people.
ReplyDeleteOvernight in The Tombs for a 70 year old woman reacting to a strong, young ,threatening security guard?
ReplyDeleteThat is correct Carol you are right on point. That arrest was a farce I hope they dismiss the charges.
DeleteHappy Albert's Garden got a bench. But what were they gonna do with it, anyway? Very pathetic attempt, but too late. Gift basket? Unbelievable. Each Shop should've gotten a check for about $20,000.
ReplyDeleteRidiculous nonsense this pop-up.
ReplyDelete