The interiors are industrial but polished, encouraging browsing rather than directing it. The premise is one of range rather than nostalgia-an interest in what happens when categories blur and discovery is left intact. In an era of single-lane retail, the emporium embraces multiplicity, inviting visitors to browse and maybe leave with something they didn't know they were looking for. Everything on view, including the furniture, can be bought straight off the floor.
NewsCopter 7 showed arrests taking place between Lafayette and Center streets in Chinatown, an area typically busy with merchants selling T-shirts, handbags, perfumes, and designer knockoffs, as New Yorkers faced off against federal agents. The scene grew chaotic as vendors packed up their tables and attempted to flee, with several people seen running and falling as authorities from multiple agencies, including Homeland Security, ICE, DEA and the FBI, pursued them.
"Mayor Adams and the DOT, shame on you for not fixing this yesterday," said Ron Gentile, a friend of 55-year-old cyclist Kevin Cruickshank who was killed by a driver at Canal Street over the weekend. "This is the fully predictable consequence of the design of this intersection, or park, or highway off ramp, or whatever you want to call it."