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Hobby Lobby coming to Tribeca
In the Huh?? department, Crain’s reports that Hobby Lobby, which I am just now learning is a massive crafts and home decor chain with more than 1000 stores across the country and a name that I don’t quite understand — is it lobby as in the foyer of an apartment building? or lobby as in influencing government? — is coming to the former Bed, Bath & Beyond space on Warren and Greenwich. The address is 270 Greenwich, but it is upstairs at 97 Warren.
Crain’s saw it in JLL’s Q2 retail report; JLL had it listed among the biggest leases of the quarter, but the company did not arrange the deal so they were unable to provide further info. Last I looked into this, when work was going on there in May, P. saw a listing on the leasing site that suggested a Nordstrom Rack was coming to the space. Nordstrom told me they were NOT, and here we are.
The entire two-story space is 236,000 square feet, including Whole Foods, which has 69,000 square feet downstairs. Crain’s says that Hobby Lobby has taken 70,000 square feet, leaving one of the two upstairs spaces up for grabs still. The leasing company’s listing says the space is 100 percent leased. Barnes & Noble left in January 2024; Bed Bath & Beyond left in March 2023.
Hobby Lobby has 27 stores in New York state, and when you look up the New York City locations, only one is listed — but under “S” for Staten Island. The company was founded in 1970 with a 300-square-foot store in Oklahoma City. It is the largest privately owned arts-and-crafts retailer in the world with over 46,000 employees and operating in forty-eight states, according to the company’s website, and the headquarters are still in Oklahoma City — in a 12-million-square-foot complex — plus offices in China.
Their affiliate company is Mardel Christian and Education Supply, which supplies books, Bibles, gifts, church and education supplies as well as homeschooling curriculum. In addition to offering exceptional selection and value, the company’s number one principle is “Honoring the Lord in all we do by operating the company in a manner consistent with Biblical principles.”
All Hobby Lobby stores are closed on Sunday.
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Hobby Lobby is the notorious company that filed a lawsuit back in 2013 that made it all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled in its favor in Burwell vs. Hobby Lobby. The ruling effectively undid a key piece of Obamacare that required employers to provide free contraception to female employees. The suit was decided 5-4, on “religious freedom” grounds.
The majority opinion was written by none other than Samuel Alito, who also wrote the majority opinion overturning Roe V Wade in 2022. Welcome to Tribeca, Hobby Lobby! Don’t think you will have many fans among our residents.
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby re: Birth Control
This corporation doesn’t belong here
Totally agree. I hope they’re doomed. Too bad Michaels closed their second location on Columbus and 100th Street. At least there’s still a Michaels on Sixth Avenue between 21st and 22nd. And Trader Joe’s!
Horrible addition to the neighborhood if true – look up their treatment of female employees
In the devastating Burwell v. Hobby Lobby ruling, on June 30, 2014, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed certain bosses to block their employees’ access to birth control. The decision on this Supreme Court birth control case applied to more than half of all U.S. workers
What a blow to the community there
while i understand differences of opinion, i welcome the company to come. The products seem wholesome and faith in God causes some to believe certain things. Trying to understand others’ views is hard but valuable.
Uhm, Immediately no.
Won’t be shopping there.
Will go to Micheals.
What a downgrade for TriBeCa – I understand money is money for the landlords, but this is a total miss
This company sells nothing but trinkets and cheap junk.
Landlords in our neighborhood and other ones truly don’t care. What a horrible disgusting addition to Tribeca.
I had to click through to the Crain’s article to see if the story is real.
Hopefully Tribecans know the backstory of the religious zealots behind this Christian craft store and will not spend their hard-earned money at this anti-LGBTQ+, anti-abortion storefront. For shame.
Well, this makes the closure of Barnes and Noble so much more confusing! I was sure that whole floor was going to be redone into something different.
Makes you wonder what will go into the old B&N space.
A Chick Fil-A perhaps, lol?
so very weird for this place to be in Tribeca a ” religious” arts and crafts what? Don’t belong here. We needed something everyone could go to. How I miss Bed and Bath.
This is a terrible addition to the neighborhood. A “religious” company that is anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQIA and that is responsible for allowing companies to block access to birth control.
I work with some LGBTQIA rights groups and I am planning to organize some protests against them, if they end up opening here.
I will keep everyone posted.
Are you ok? Stop creating chaos in our neighborhoods. We need peace and convenience. Not protests!
Are YOU ok? Letting people voice their concerns is not creating chaos.
which groups and religions are we accepting of, and which one are we not, is there a chart available?
Chaos in “our” neighborhood. Mercy and Clutch my pearls. Peace and convenience… for arts and crafts crap? Lol
Please stop with the protest, we don’t want ANTIFA movement down here. There is not more civil protest, there is only ananrchy and looting that comes with protesting. Here is the best way to protest, don’t shop or spend your money there. Eventually they will have no business and leave/move out. No more protest, we don’t want Tribeca to look like Union Square Park and then bring those Occupy Wall Street folks back.
I’m all for protests. Loved Occupy Wallstreet. and Black Lives Matter — meads people care what happens to others, the neighborhood and the world. (FWIW- there’s really no such thing as antifa)
Hobby Lobby will hopefully wither and die on Greenwich – if it takes protests to remind people of their anti-woman, anti-gay stances – so be it.
Oh Anne, you clearly are not from Tribeca. You must forget how those OWS folks took over City Hall and destroyed the facade to the government buildings. I am sure you are all for protest, with your mask covering your face. You protest, I’ll go there and protest you. Not for Lobby- Hobby, but for YOU to to not destroy our neighborhood. I rather have the Hobby Lobby out of vision way (tucked away in the old B&N spot) then have you and your OWS friends come physically destroy our neighborhood. And like other folks on this thread who are YOU and MARY to dictate what comes into this neighborhood. How dare YOU impose your ideals onto others, smly because you don’t like then we have to obide to YOUR standards. Seems dictatorish to me. . Annnnnneee
Darn – this is a huge downgrade. Makes Tribeca look cheap
Imagine owning a $4M apartment in that building, but you live above a Hobby Lobby. Yikes.
Yike? How will this impact the owner of a $4 million apartment?
Oh the horror! Their apartment will be above a store that carries goods for working class and middle class people!
[Sound of pearls being clutched so hard that they turn to dust.]
They will certainly have none of my money. I hope they will go ASAP.
Such a disappointing addition. Im going to be embarrassed to walk by it. They will never get my business.
This makes the loss of Barnes & Noble that much more painful. Sure the space will attract the curious for a while, but long term this store will not make money.
Tribeca is full of families and no one is gathering the family to go and spend time at Hobby Lobby.
I give it 2-5 years max and then the building will be looking for a new tenant.
For the future, I hope that Barnes & Noble finds it’s way back to the neighborhood.
Hobby Lobby should be boycotted.
When does it open? Want to be there with my protest sign. “If you believe in human rights, don’t shop here”
Will absolutely boycott this company given their history!
Everyone said the same thing about Chick-fil-A, and they are killing it on Fulton, with lines down the street waiting to order. I welcome any legal business willing to open in the community.
If someone doesn’t agree with their beliefs & policies, then don’t work for them or shop there. We couldn’t be happier they are coming to the neighborhood. They are not fascists but as Christians, we have certain beliefs and that’s our right. It’s the same as other companies doing the opposite which we don’t believe in. There’s room for everyone.
With respect, can someone point out to me where in the Bible it says anything about abortion or human autonomy over one’s own body?
The issue people have is that while anyone is free to worship who they like, people do not have the right to shove their religion – or lack thereof – down the throats of an entire country. Which is what the Supreme Court did and does repeatedly. Also maybe today’s so-called Christians should go back and read the New Testament. Because who Jesus was, if he existed, was very different than the regressive politically minded Christians of today.
They can believe in whatever they want, as can you; what people object to is their forcing their beliefs on others.
“I distrust people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.”
— Susan B Anthony
Bring back Barnes & Noble.
Amen to that!
Their despicable views on religions other than Protestant are sadly well known.
There are so many children in Tribeca that I’m sure this arts and crafts store is going to be packed. I’d rather have kids doing arts and craps then hanging out out on the street and getting in trouble.
Remember what they said about Chick-fil-A? That seemed to not hinder sales at all.
Remember New Yorkers this company is going to be paying taxes and that’s good for everyone.
I reported this to you a couple of weeks ago. You could have had the scoop, but you ignored it.
This is the WORST thing to happen to this neighborhood since the atrocities of 9/11. Blame Edward Minskoff properties (the owners of the lot) for this affront. I get it- they need retail to work. But not this retailer and not this neighborhood.
Sorry, did not get that from you!
All the comments complaining about their political views would rather a massive space in the neighborhood stays vacant? This is a great, cost effective, arts and crafts oriented option — especially for kids.
Who cares about their politics? Tribeca should be grateful for any tenant that can afford ridiculous rents.
I’m not grateful that 70,000 sq feet of garbage Made in China is moving in. Something more functional/useful/mass appeal/less niche in that space would have been a better choice and if the landlord weren’t so greedy and maybe thought of the neighborhood rather than his wallet, we wouldn’t be complaining. Also (FYI) not everyone has toddlers or is as kid centric as your comment implies, and even if we did have toddlers, 70,000 sq ft of craft crap isn’t really needed, even in Tribeca.
I’m finding this thread very entertaining…and enlightening. I didn’t realize Tribeca was populated by so many hateful people.
I guess some would rather have their opinion known and fight for what they believe is true, than sit back and judge others.
For those still in doubt, here is a link to an ad Hobby Lobby ran on July 4th in newspapers and social media (from the Hobby Lobby website archives): https://archive.ph/vFfPy
Support Micheals.
people go to craft stores as a refuge and to buy their crafty things, not to be harassed, gaslighted, assaulted, leave them alone. I will be there to make sure nobody gets hurt by the hatemongers. Their politics are not my politics, but im not going to turn into a shreeking, howling, mewling freak about it.