For years, Lester’s has been a place where families in the New York metro area shop for clothes from popular brands and complete the dreaded (or beloved, depending on your status in the parent-child hierarchy) tradition of back-to-school shopping. Now the childrens and young adult retailer has opened a new store focusing on boy’s and men’s clothes at the Rye Ridge Shopping Center in Rye Brook.
Lester’s first started back in 1948, when Lester and Lillian Kronfeld opened their first location in Brooklyn. They would soon expand to locations in Long Island, Manhattan, and Rye. A year ago, however, they decided to make the switch from Rye to the popular Rye Ridge Shopping Center in Rye Brook. According to Perry Schorr, owner and CEO of Lester’s, the store moved to Rye Brook for its better overall location and the increase in traffic from being in a shopping center.
After a successful experience in Rye Brook—sales have gone up 20 percent since the move from Rye—Lester’s has expanded once more to include a new boy’s and men’s specialty store, which is located adjacent to the original Rye Brook property. Schorr cites the ideal location and customer demand for the expansion. “We had an opportunity to add 2,000 square feet of selling space…and we are always being asked to expand our men’s department to specifically cater to the high school, college, and 20-somethings,” says Schorr. “It seems there are very few local boutiques that cater to this group of guys that like fashion, but don’t like to shop in the mall.”
Although Lester’s has stores in other locations, opening its first boy’s and men’s clothing store in Westchester was an obvious choice, Schorr says. Aside from the perfect location right next to the original store, Lester’s has long been a fan of the county.
“We love operating in Westchester because we cater to a clientele with needs that align well with our way of doing business,” explains Schorr. “They want a large selection of the most sought-after brands, a high level of service, and a friendly ‘boutique’ like setting, which is exactly what we provide.”
The new boy’s and men’s outpost, which is located at 18 Rye Ridge Plaza, had its “soft opening” on August 4 and will have its grand opening on August 20, just in time for back-to-school shopping. The opening will include a celebration featuring food, raffles, and entertainment.