"I grew up in the Strand": Iconic New York bookstore pens plea for help amid pandemic
Famed bookstore's revenue has dropped nearly 70% compared to last year
NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- A New York bookstore has survived the Great Depression and two World Wars, but are now in danger of going out of business due to the pandemic.
A personal plea from famed independent bookstore, "The Strand," about their draining financial reserves amid the pandemic - asking the public for their support, encouraging customers to buy their wares.
Friday afternoon Strand put out a letter from proprietor Nancy Bass Wyden, writing in her appeal - that their revenue "has dropped nearly 70% compared to last year."
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The shop has been an historic part of New York culture for decades. Now, Bass Wyden says, their survival is uncertain.
"We've survived just about everything for 93 years -- the Great Depression, two World Wars big box bookstores, e-book and online behemoths," Wyden said. "We are the last of the original 48 bookstores still standing from 4th Avenue's famous Book Row. Because of the impact of Covid-19, we cannot survive in the huge decline in foot-traffic, a near complete loss of tourism, and zero in-store events (compared to 400 events pre-pandemic.)"
It's yet another indicator of COVID-19's strain on small businesses. But for New Yorkers - and for bibliophiles the world over - this is an iconic & dearly loved shop, and a real emblem of the economic fallout felt by so many.
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Bass Wyden inherited the shop from her father, now in the family's hands for three generations (she is also the wife of Oregon Democratic Senator Ron Wyden.)
The Strand attached their plea for help in a Tweet on Friday.
