One of our favorite things about NYC is all the quirky, eclectic shops you can find while strolling the streets–like this cat-themed Japanese Stationery & Gift Shop! And this new Greenwich Village shop is a perfect one to add into the mix…especially if you love to shop local!
Founder Caroline Weaver recently opened The Locavore Variety Store in Greenwich Village. Aptly referred to as “a shop about shopping” by Weaver, the shop showcases local brands and an eclectic mix of products all made within 100 miles of NYC.
It’s pretty much an IRL manifestation of The Locavore Guide, NYC’s digital directory for 14,000+ local brick-and-mortars.
700+ products from 130+ brands are nestled within the shop’s four walls, and the eclectic product assortment is something out of a dream.
From homewares like beautiful brooms handmade in Brooklyn and table linens (because dinner parties are so in) to beauty and wellness items like artist-made body oil to even gourmet goods like dried fettuccine, they have everything you could ever hope and dream for.
The shop will also sell NYC guidebooks, such as The Locavore Guide to Shopping New York City, a printed guidebook publishing later this year.
As you can imagine, curating the most perfect selection was no easy feat–Weaver spent the last two years walking 30,000+ blocks through 170 neighborhoods across all five boroughs to build her catalog of small, local businesses. She stated:
So many products that are made locally aren’t easy to find in actual local stores, and my hope is to create an engaging environment for showcasing them. From old-school classics, to great new brands, my goal is to stock products with a keen eye on quality and good design for all categories of life. Locals can come in to stock up on Mabel’s contractor-developed, made-in-Harlem cleaning products, and visitors can take home a little piece of the city with them, like my favorite candy (Cannoli Bar) or gorgeous glassware made by Upstate.
Plus, the space itself is just as magical of an experience as browsing for goodies–Weaver designed the 600-square-foot store herself, creating a nostalgic and modern space inspired by NYC’s gourmet grocery stores of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The Locavore Variety Store is located at 434 Sixth Avenue in Greenwich Village. You can learn more here.