Photos by Kate Beaudoin
Below 7th quietly opened its doors earlier this month on (where else?) East 7th Street. The gift shop, tucked away among restaurants and clothing stores, is the kind of place your mom would love: candles, bath soap, local jewelry and lots and lots of greeting cards line the walls of the quaint boutique.
Owner Bobby Leklerson is also the proprietor of a sister store in the West Village called Considerosity. “We carry some of my favorite vendors, and one of the things we do as a boutique is we edit and curate their collections,” Leklerson says. “But what I wanted to do with Below 7th was, instead of curating each artist’s collection, I’m curating the artist, and then bringing on a sizable amount of their collection.”
Below 7th carries brands like Rifle Paper Co., Lollia and Library of Flowers. Leklerson says his shop has also partnered with local jewelry designers to carry a substantial portion of their collections, exclusive to Below 7th.
“We wanted to expand into the East Village, which is where we get a lot of our customers at Considerosity,” Leklerson says. “We also happened to have that space before we opened the West Village shop.” Before Below 7th opened its doors, Leklerson sub-leased the space to Jula, a women’s clothing store that closed its doors last year.
Below 7th will host a grand-opening party in late September. Details have yet to be announced.
Below 7th, East Village, 63 East 7th St.