Marc to Open West Village Bookstore

When Biography Book Shop on Bleecker closed after 20 years, locals were devastated. Now comes word that Marc Jacobs is opening a new store in the space ... and it's actually a book store.

This week, gold lettering went up in the windows at 400 Bleecker Street promising "a bookstore will be opening here--Winter 2010." It seems that Mr. Jacobs is expanding his five-store West Village empire to include an all-book boutique, tentatively called "Book Marc," directly across the street from Magnolia Bakery, according to Racked.

Opening on the former site of 20-year-old neighborhood favorite, "Biography Bookshop" -- displaced further down the street and recently reopened as the broader-interested "bookbook" -- speculation brewed that Marc's latest would likely be accessories-only storefront (in the mould of his men's accessories shop on West 4th).  West Village residents rankled by the purchase are likely to be even more incensed: As Racked put it, "If Marc Jacobs were deliberately trying to irritate West Villagers nostalgic for a time when the neighborhood was less glitzy and more literary, he couldn't have found a better way to do it."

It remains to be seen if Book Marc will actually be a bookstore (curated by Marc Jacobs?) or a fashion store disguised as a bookshop, but either way, Jacobs' Bleecker Street domination continues to expand.

Contact Us