Lower Manhattan Is the Premier Place To Shop This Holiday Season

04/01/2011
Lower Manhattan Is the Premier Place To Shop This Holiday Season

New York, NY (November 23, 2010)–-With more than 200 store and restaurant openings since 2005, Lower Manhattan has become a premier holiday destination with an impressive assortment of gifts for all tastes and budgets. “Lower Manhattan is one of the most dynamic and successful live-work communities in the world, as well as an upscale retail and dining district that offers workers, residents and visitors everything from indulgences to bargains,” said Elizabeth H. Berger, president of the Alliance for Downtown New York. “With all of these options available in one very walkable square mile, it’s time for everyone to discover this secret: Lower Manhattan is the place to shop and celebrate the holiday season!”

For the first time, the Downtown Alliance will use Scanbuy 2-D barcode technology todirect shoppers, diners and other visitors to their destination of choice. Posters around the district—as well at bus stops and on the Downtown Alliance’s free bus service, the Downtown Connection—will feature bar codes that can be scanned on smart phones by using the ScanLife code reader, available from app stores or by texting SCAN to 43588. The bar code will direct users to shopping and dining guides and a special holiday page featuring specials, event listings and more on the Downtown Alliance’s holiday Web page, www.downtownny.com/holiday. The Downtown Alliance is the first business improvement group in New York City to use 2-D bar code technology to reach holiday shoppers.

This bar code, courtesy of Scanbuy’s ScanLife app, will direct users to shopping and dining guides and a special holiday page featuring specials, event listings and more on the Downtown Alliance’s holiday Web page, www.downtownny.com/holiday. It can be scanned using the ScanLife smartphone app. Go ahead, try it.

“We want to reach our constituents in the way they are getting their information,” Berger said. “As technology changes, we change with it.”

“The Downtown Alliance is giving people direct access to digital information when they are on the go and need it most,” said Mike Wehrs, president of Scanbuy, Inc. “Mobile barcodes are a great way to give visitors and locals alike targeted information based on where they’re located and what they’re interested in. All they need to do is scan the code, and everything else is loaded on the phone’s browser in seconds.” With 12 subway lines, 30 local and express bus routes, the PATH train and six ferry terminals, Lower Manhattan is easy to reach, and to get around. Even so, shoppers weary from carrying bags or just looking to get out of the cold can enjoy free Downtown Alliance Downtown Connection bus service around Lower Manhattan seven days a week. Downtown Connections routes and schedules are available at www.downtownny.com/downtownconnection.

Lower Manhattan has added a diverse array of retailers over the last few years, including Tiffany & Co., Hermés, BMW, Tumi, Thomas Pink, Canali, Barnes & Noble, La Maison du Chocolat, Borders Books, and Bit’z Kids. They join world-famous retailers such as J&R Music & Computer World and Century 21 Department Store.

Others with historic Lower Manhattan roots include William Barthman Jewelers, which has been selling fine merchandise on lower Broadway since 1884 and Company Stationers, doing business Downtown since 1775.
This season, Downtown shoppers can also purchase the new “Downtown Culture Pass.” Available only until early 2011, the pass offers three-day unlimited access—with gift shop discounts—to the Museum of Jewish Heritage, National Museum of the American Indian, Fraunces Tavern Museum, Museum of American Finance, The Skyscraper Museum, The New York City Police Museum, 9/11 Memorial Preview Site and Tribute WTC Visitor Center, as well as special rates on historic walking tours by Wall Street Walks. Details are available at www.downtownculturepass.org.

Also new this season is “Small Business Saturday,” November 27. On that day, American Express cardholders who shop at independently owned small businesses can get $25 off their next credit card statement. For more information, and to register, go to smallbusinesssaturday.com. Many Lower Manhattan retailers are offering incomparable gifts for $100 or less, including Christopher Norman Chocolates, which hand-crafts their renowned treats at their New Street store; GameStop, which offers great prices on new and used video game and entertainment software; and Edible Arrangements, a twist on the usual floral bouquet, which offers beautiful and delicious fruit bouquets for all occasions. For the pets on your list, Petropolis on Washington Street and Spot on Murray Street offer affordable beds, designer pet carriers, and huge selections of pet toys and highquality,
all-natural treat baskets.

Lower Manhattan’s selection of markets and wine shops can help you throw the perfect dinner party. Try Whole Foods, Battery Place Market or Zeytuna for the freshest gourmet snacks and ingredients. Need the right bottle of wine to pair with the meal? Downtown Cellars and California Wine Merchants have you covered. And there’s no better place for last-minute champagne flutes than Bed Bath & Beyond. Cosmetics and fragrance retailer Sephora can beautify the holidays, while specialty paper shop Papyrus features stylish picture frames as part of its ever-expanding array of unique gift products, greeting cards, tote bags and organizers, stationery, writing
instruments, note cards and journals.

The Downtown Alliance's holiday Web page, www.downtownny.com/holiday, provides information and links to these and many other retailers, bars and restaurants, as well as a wide variety of holiday-related events, activities and venues throughout Lower Manhattan, including the annual New York Stock Exchange Tree Lighting ceremony.

To order a free copy of the holiday shopping brochure, go to www.downtownny.com.