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Gracious Home has permanently shuttered its Upper East Side storefront – its original location and last in New York.
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According to an employee interviewed by Patch, the houseware shop closed earlier this month after considering a possible relocation, which no longer appears to be on the table.
The store at 1210 Third Avenue (at 70th Street) first opened in 1963. Brothers David Weck and Natan Weskelbaum, Jewish immigrants from Cuba and initially the only employees, grew the shop from 2,000 square feet to more than 4,000, according to Gracious Home’s website.
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Eventually, the company opened multiple locations, including stores on both sides of Third Ave. and several other Manhattan outlets. At one point, the business employed over 500 people, according to the New York Times.
Weck moved to Florida and sold his stake in the business to his brother in 1984. The original owners sold the business in 2010.
In 2016, the Third Avenue store downsized and Gracious Home’s other stores closed.
The final New York location has been taken off the company’s website. The loan brick and mortar location is listed in Franklin, Tennessee and the business continues to sell its products online.
Natan died in 2018 from kidney failure.
“Though never known as a haven for bargains, the store became a magnet for shoppers searching for — and willing to pay top dollar for — elusive vacuum cleaner bags, replacement glass coffee decanters, light switch plates in scores of colors, specialty stain removers, hard-to-find bulbs, decorative lighting fixtures and pictures frames, designer dinnerware and bedding, and a cornucopia of other items,” a New York Times obituary for Natan said.
The space at 1210 Third Avenue is on the market (here’s a flyer) for an undisclosed price.
I know persons who called the business Gracious Ripoff.