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Amarcord Vintage Closes SoHo Location Due to Rent Increase, Reports Say

 Amarcord Vintage's shop at 252 Lafayette St. has closed for good.
Amarcord Vintage's shop at 252 Lafayette St. has closed for good.
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DNAinfo/Allegra Hobbs

SOHO — A dramatic rent hike has forced Amarcord Vintage to permanently shutter its Manhattan storefront at 252 Lafayette St.

The vintage outpost closed its doors on April 26 after the building's new landlord raised the shop's rent by roughly 400 percent, according to the creative director.

"We're really sad because we love the neighborhood, but it's impossible for a company like us to stay in business with the rent that high," said Veronica Norris.

The thrift store occupied the building’s ground-floor space for over a decade, where it hawked coveted vintage designer pieces.

But when Javeri Capital bought the building last year for $25 million, the new management raised the rent of the ground-floor shop far above what Amarcord could pay, Bowery Boogie reported.

Norris said Amarcord made the decision to shut up shop when Javeri Capital told them the rent would be around $40 thousand a month going forward.

The storefront between Prince and Spring streets is currently available for rent.

Javeri Capital could not be immediately reached for comment.

Shop owners left signs on the shuttered windows notifying customers they have left the space, but can still be found at their Williamsburg location at 223 Bedford Ave.

“This was hard for us,” read the sign. “It has been a great run and we will miss it deeply.”

Amarcord is taking the closure as an opportunity to reinvigorate the Brooklyn outpost, said Norris. The Williamsburg location is currently closed for upgrades, and will re-open the weekend of May 14 with a spruced up interior and a new selection of high-end vintage ares from the Soho shop, she said.

"We're fusing the best of what was already there with the Soho store to give it a stronger presence in the neighborhood," said Norris.

The closure is part of a larger exodus of beloved mainstays from the neighborhood due to skyrocketing rents, the shop’s owner first told Racked.

“These beautiful stores just have to give up because of the crazy rent these people are asking,” said Patti Borden. “New York is becoming less intriguing and interesting.”