New book 'Shop Cats of New York' showcases felines inside small businesses across the city
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- Dozens of felines are the focus of a new book showcasing cats in shops all across the five boroughs.
"We have a cat named Ralphie who's at Complete Sculpture, it's a 25,000 square-foot art supply store," said author Tamar Arslanian.
It's showcased in the newly released book, "Shop Cats of New York," written by Arslanian.
"It's such a love story to the city I think, and what's amazing is it's all small businesses which is super special too," Arslanian said.
Arslanian, and photographer Andrew Marttila, crisscrossed the five boroughs, documenting cats inside businesses. The majority of the cats were adopted for the shop, where 24-7, they live, lounge and love all the attention.
Georgie is a customer favorite at Mooshoes on Orchard Street on the Lower East Side.
The 11-year-old cat has a spread in the book, but it isn't her first closeup.
She made an appearance as a kitten back in the first edition of the book in 2016, which went out of print.
"There were three print runs, 24,000 copies sold, it was translated to Japanese and then we couldn't get it anymore, and we're like what's going on?" Arslanian said.
A new publisher loved the concept, so they added more cats. Georgie is the only one who appears in both books.
Heading into the project, Arslanian actually felt bad for the shop cats, but that changed over time.
"I actually felt like 'wow, they are pretty lucky,' they get 12-plus hours of interaction every day," Arslanian said.
One thing you won't see in the book... bodega cats. Arslanian told Eyewitness News that she wanted to focus on cats she could confirm were well taken care of.
"It's fun to have something tangible that you've created in the world," Arslanian said. "It's fun because it's bringing people so much joy."
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