NY Eateries Invest in Takeout-Only Strategy

Coffee shops and fast-food chains, particularly in New York City, are leveraging smaller, takeout-focused formats—a trend that took off during the pandemic but persists through today, said The New York Times.

From 2019 to 2023, the average size of a retail lease in Manhattan shrunk 17 percent, to 2,585 square feet, according to the real estate firmCoStar Group. Gregory Zamfotiz, CEO of Gregorys Coffee, noted that the shrinkage is most visible in coffee shops, where Manhattanites have been left with fewer places to sit.

“In many locations, because of turnover or pivots other businesses have made in reducing seating, there’s just less options for folks to be able to have somewhere to stay,” said Zamfotis.

It is difficult to know how much smaller cafes and fast-food eateries have become; however, analysts agree that retailers are decreasing their footprint, according to the report.

“Smaller is better,” said Steven A. Soutendijk, an executive managing director at Cushman & Wakefield. “There are way more tenants looking for smaller stores than there are looking for bigger stores.”

This movement may be part of a larger shift toward smaller stores. Recently, Buffalo Wild Wings, Starbucks, Blank Street Coffee, and Whole Foods have all launched separate initiatives to slim down their locations.

“All the retailers that are trying this have both models,” said David Firestein, managing partner of the brokerage SCG Retail. “The brands that have 10, 20, 50 or 100 stores, they’re constantly looking at the model and they’re constantly changing and evaluating. That’s what good retailers do.” Full Story (Subscription Required)