Big-box retailer Lowe’s debuts urban concept in Manhattan

The home improvement giant is opening two scaled-down city locations

Lowe's NYC
Lowe's on the UWS

Updated August 10, 10:15 a.m.: Things are only getting tougher for mom-and-pop hardware stores: the home improvement giant Lowe’s is making a big play in Manhattan, debuting two new high-tech stores in the city.

Lowe’s first location, on the Upper West Side, opens Monday at Broadway and 68th Street. But unlike its suburban stores, this one measures just 30,000 square feet.

Next month, Lowe’s will open a slightly larger 38,000-square-foot location, on Sixth Avenue and 19th Street in Chelsea, according to the New York Daily News.

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“It’s an urban-concept,” Lowe’s spokesman Michael Ricciardi told the Daily News. “We don’t need 120,000 square feet when we have a million square feet of product available (from) 10 surrounding stores through our selling system.”

Update: A Lowe’s spokesperson confirmed with TRD that the UWS location will not open for another week: “We hit an unexpected delay and the store will now open the week of August 17, not today.” [NYDN] Christopher Cameron