Thanks to the Numero Group’s NYC Pop-Up, Lower Manhattan Has Its Record Store
June 9, 2026
The Numero Group NYC Pop-Up is part of the Downtown Alliance’s RE:Store program, which is bringing six pop-ups to Lower Manhattan for the summer. Learn more about the program here.
The Numero Group has the pop-up hustle down to a science. The Chicago-based record label, which was founded in 2003, has been touring cities all around the world for more than a decade with its popular pop-ups, typically setting up shop for a few days before hitting the road again. But as selectees to the Downtown Alliance’s RE:Store program, they’ll be sticking around for a while this time and keeping their temporary storefront at 186 Front St. open through Labor Day. For the first time in years, we can finally say that Lower Manhattan has a record store.
With LPs, CDs, cassettes and merch (you’re going to want the tote bag they created for this shop), Numero has everything you’d want to find at a great record store. The difference here is that all the items offered are from the label’s own deep catalog. According to label co-founder Ken Shipley, who hand-assembled the mix of items in the shop, the pop-up represents the most complete collection of Numero releases that have ever been featured in one place.
So, what kind of music do they put out? Shipley describes Numero’s offerings as “the alternative history of popular music.” The Numero catalog is composed almost entirely of archival releases — numbering about 75 per year — from artists who may not have gotten the limelight in their day but who have gained newfound appreciation among the label’s discerning fans. “Everybody knows the hits, but we’re focused on what happened in the margins of popular music,” Shipley said. “We’re offering a different way of looking at the history of music.”
At the store, you’ll find everything from 90’s indie rock to new age releases and long lost re-issued folk albums, and seemingly everything in between. The label’s flagship Eccentric Soul releases are well represented at the shop as are releases and merch from slowcore icons Duster, who experienced viral fame through TikTok about five years ago. The album art from Duster’s “Stratosphere” is prominently displayed on the shop’s storefront.
Events will be a big part of Numero’s pop-up this summer. Already, the label brought over 200 people to Front St. for a free concert with the post-hardcore bands Frail and Rye Coalition, and there are plans for more concerts and different kinds of events in the weeks to come, although details are still being finalized. According to Shipley, he’s hoping the pop-up will be a magnet to draw people to the area and wants to present more opportunities for post-work entertainment.
The Numero Group NYC Pop-up is open Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
