Afternoon View - Dead Virgin

And After This, Chuck E. Cheese

For the last decade New Yorkers have bemoaned the Disneyfication of Times Square with its mall chain restaurants, its themed nightclubs, and its now well-scrubbed and well-fed middle American patrons. And with the below news, the Disneyfication of Times Square has become complete and literal.

Disney is going theme park with its new Times Square retail store. Perhaps trying to emulate the retail magic of Apple stores, Mickey Mouse & Co. will be transforming an old retail space in New York's Times Square into an interactive store with theme park attractions and children's exhibits. Hoping to attract young consumers and their parents, the store will conjure up an interactive princess castle and a kids' theater offering animation and storytelling for the younger crowd. Also on display will be specific activities for kids, special events, and even celebrity guest appearances timed with major Disney film releases. Much of the credit for the new store design, according to an October New York Times article, can actually be given to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who joined Disney's board in 2006, after the company bought Pixar Animation Studios. Just as he pushed for a certain design for the Apple stores, Jobs reportedly convinced Disney to fashion its own stores on a grand scale.

The Disney Store will be in the former Virgin Megastore, which was supposed to become a Forever 21 before it was supposed to become an indoor mini-mall. It will be right next to the Toys R Us, across from the Olive Garden, and diagonal from the M&M's Superstore.

Morning View - Virgin Union Square

The Farmboyz and I stopped by the Union Square Virgin Megastore this weekend, where they are in the last days of their closing sale. Lots of good stuff still to be had, mostly at 30-50% off. The fixtures are for sale too, in case you need a giant metal spinning 500-CD rack. (We passed on the item below.) And thus ends general music retailing in New York City.

No Wal-Mart For Union Square

The Virgin Megastore space in Union Square will not become a Wal-Mart after all, much to the relief of many New Yorkers. Via Gothamist:

While the shuttered Times Square Virgin Megastore transitions into a Forever 21, WWD is reporting that the Nordstrom folks might be taking over the Virgin Megastore space. The real deal high price Nordstrom department store you've seen in the mall isn't looking to move in, however, it's their discount shop called The Rack that would be unpacking there. A spokeswoman for Nordstrom told WWD, “We looked at Union Square and would like to have a Rack in Manhattan. Nothing is signed yet. We are talking to them.” But word is the lease is "very, very close" to being signed.

Nordstrom Rack? Nevah hoid of it.

The End Of Virgin

Virgin Megastore has announced that it will close its San Francisco location at the end of April. NYC's Times Square store closes then too, with the Union Square store following at the end of May. That leaves the chain with three remaining locations: Denver, Orlando, and Hollywood. However an industry insider tells me today that those three stores will shutter in May as well. Virgin just isn't saying so yet because they are trying to negotiate an exit with their landlords. Sad, sad, sad.