Olive and Bette’s Closes All NYC Stores

The city is primed to reopen in the coming weeks, but Columbus Avenue will look and feel different than before. With notable closings such as Papyrus at 209 Columbus Ave (between 69th and 70th Streets), Bistro Cassis at 225 Columbus Ave (between 70th and 71st Streets), Fresh Cosmetics at 159 Columbus Ave (at 67th Street), and Book Culture at 450 Columbus Ave (between 81st and 82nd Streets), it will interesting to see how Columbus Ave will take shape in the coming months.

Target will open a second Upper West Side location

Adding to the list of Columbus Avenue closures is Olive and Bette’s (thanks to ‘Upper West Sider’ for the tip). This women’s clothing store had a prominent location at 252 Columbus Ave (near 72nd Street). This closure adds to other recent closures nearby including AKC Canine Retreat at 105 West 72nd Street (between Amsterdam and Columbus) and Le Pain Quotidien at 50 West 72nd  Street (between Columbus and Central Park West).

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Olive and Bette’s has been in business for over 20 years and has shaped NYC’s fashion sense with their trendy clothing. Their personal stylists were known to make house calls around the UWS, and hand deliver gifts to clients around the holidays.

The Upper West Side store is completely vacated and will not be coming back after the pandemic. The other Olive and Bette’s locations around the city are also closed and not reopening. Dana Goldberg, speaking on behalf of the company, said that they will be coming back to NYC in the fall at a new and undetermined location. She was hoping to get the following sign up at the UWS location before they completely shut down, but was unable to. The company wants clients to know they can still shop online and set up virtual appointments with stylists. The full notice is below:

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Dear Neighbors,

As NYC remains on pause, we have decided to do the same in all of our retail locations in NYC “for the summer.” During the last few months, we’ve moved our selling platform to personalized virtual shopping appointments, sending out Stacey’s Box of style upon request, and have built a new website!  We are so exited about all of our new summer deliveries and love sharing them with you on our LIVE  Instagram and Facebook shows daily at 1PM. Make sure you watch us to view all the #freshmerchdaily.
We are so grateful for your continued support as we need it now more than ever, so we can see you back in NYC in the fall.
Stay safe, stay healthy and enjoy your summer. #NYCSTRONG
Contact Information:
Virtual appointments: Text Janey at 516-315-3645
Online – www.oliveandbettes.com
Instagram
Facebook
Customer Service – info@oliveandbettes.com
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We remain hopeful that Columbus Ave and surrounding streets will build up again. For example, The Strand Bookstore will be opening (eventually) at the old Book Culture location.

We received a tip from the same reader that the shuttered City Brows at 265 Columbus Ave (between 72nd and 73rd Street) has been leased to a laundromat. We reached out to the brokers and the landlord, but calls and emails have not yet been returned. Let’s hope that this is one small step to seeing new businesses come in to the old spaces.

Featured images c/o Google Street View