NEW YORKS GREAT BRICK-AND-MORTAR SHOPPING REVIVAL

The clothes are glorious. The vibes are immaculate. And the options are endless. We visited five of the city's buzziest shops for a look at the summer's best new threads worn by their stylish staffs, and to find out what's driving the return of NYC street retail.

- MAX BERLINGER

THERE WAS SOME talk of late, albeit in hushed tones, that New York isn't a great city to shop in-or at least isn't as great as it used to be.

That the city's great shopping institutions like Barneys, Jeffrey, Opening Ceremony, and Totokaelo have been bulldozed in favor of chopped salad bars, bank chains, and jumbo-size drug stores. That the pandemic somehow sucked the wind out of the sails of a robust and lively retail scene, and that no boutique can compete with the reigning e-comm titans. But spend an afternoon shopping in New York this summer and you'll discover why this notion is flat-out wrong.

Now, is shopping in New York different today from what it once was, even just two or three years ago? Yes, absolutely. How could it not be? The city is in a constant state of reinvention, like a snake shedding its skin, and the way it shops is in a constant state of flux. Shopping in New York today is less about worshipping at the few great temples of retail, and more like visiting an archipelago of many small islands scattered across the city, each with its own particular language, customs, rhythms, and quirks. Indeed, its own culture. Walk through its front door and you'll be transported into a distinct world.

I thought of this recently as I stopped off at the earth-toned sliver of a shop, Colbo, to speak with Eldar Hadad; my mission was to discuss the store, which she runs with her business partner Tal Silberstein, but it was hard to pin her down as she worked the sales floor and greeted customers who were, as often as not, friends.