Rawhide Replacement

In January I announced that adult erotic emporium the Blue Store would be moving into the former Rawhide space on 8th Avenue in Chelsea. It seemed, at first, like good news, a bit of old 8th Avenue smut and queerness expanding. Then it wasn't.

DNAInfo followed up on my story and was told, “It’s going to be like a high-end store with high-end lingerie. We’re trying to bring to the block a new concept.”

Here it is:


photo: Richie Cohen

It looks like every other Marc Jacobs Ralph Lauren Brooks Brothers, etc., etc., shop on Bleecker St., which it will probably become soon enough. Reader Richie Cohen tells us, "I've walked by multiple times at different times of day. Never ever a single customer."

The Rawhide occupied this space for 35 years. It survived the neighbors throwing bricks and eggs. It survived AIDS. But, like too many of our city's storied small businesses, it could not survive hyper-gentrification. The landlord reportedly hiked the rent from from $15,000 to $27,000 a month.

If we'd had the Small Business Jobs Survival Act in place at the time, the Rawhide might still be here. #SaveNYC.