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Read the press release here.

Longtime Upper East Side Boutique to Close

By Victoria Bekiempis | September 5, 2013 6:56am
 Bokhee, located at 1077 Third Ave. at Eat 63rd Street, is shuttering later in September, the owner says.
UES Boutique Closes
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LENOX HILL — A fashionable boutique that has outfitted local women in fancy fur and jewelry for nearly two decades will close later this month, its owner said.

Bokhee, located at 1077 Third Ave. and East 63rd Street, is slated to shutter after 14 years at that address and nearly 20 years in the neighborhood, owner Bokhee Lee said.

The shop — which sells high-end items including fur and semiprecious jewelry — had previously occupied other spaces on the Upper East Side.

Lee said she was closing the store because her rent was increasing by $4,000 per month, but she declined to say how much she was currently paying for the 1,200-square-foot space.

The owner said she plans on reopening in another location, and she's already eyeing retail space on Lexington Avenue, she said.

"It's more expensive, but there's more foot traffic," Lee said of her possible future home. "I want a smaller space."

One Bokhee customer recently told Lee she was sorry to see the store go, saying at the cash register that she had "bought beautiful stuff" there over the years.

Lee said this customer's attitude gave her hope for the future, saying she thought patrons would stay loyal if the store reopens.

"They're all sad," she said, but "they're always following me."

The real estate agent handling the store's lease declined comment on the closure, and also did not comment on what would replace Bokhee.

The landlord could not be reached for comment.