Paragon Sports may not look like it's open from the outside, since it is totally boarded up on the Broadway and 18th Street sides. But the 112-year-old sporting goods institution near Union Square is back in business.
"We are very grateful that we have come this far, and we're still fighting," says Zachary Blank, chief operating officer of the company.
Blank's great-grandfather started the business out of a pushcart on the Lower East Side in 1908.
On March 17, the store and its website for online sales shut down, with more than 200 people losing their jobs.
"Unfortunately, we had to do a significant layoff," says Blank, who added it was one of the hardest things the company has ever had to do.
Three weeks ago, Paragon moved its bicycles and other wheeled transport, like skateboards and in-line skates, from the second floor to a street-level section where there is a side entrance, officially making that department a bike shop, an essential business that allowed it to reopen.
Last week, though, Paragon suffered another setback when the store was looted.
"We lost a lot of bikes, as well as a variety of other merchandise. However, our team was resilient," says Blank.
A core group of staff members brought in to run the shop swept up the glass and boarded up the windows, and was back to work at 10 am the next day.
Paragon is now accepting orders online for all of its merchandise like team jerseys and sneakers. Folks can pick it up curbside on 18th Street.
"We are getting a lot of inquiries over the last couple of weeks as customers have noticed we opened our bike shop," says Marcin Rojek, buyer and services manager for Paragon.
"They ask when are we going to be selling the Yankees jerseys again, when are we going to be selling the Mets jerseys," he added.
The fourth-generation family business is just one of those in the Union Square area trying to bounce back. The neighborhood wsa thrown for a loop by both coronavirus and last week's looting.
"There's been a lot of sacrifice that everyone's been making by social distancing and adhering to all of the governor and mayor's directives, but we are really ready to get back to business and welcome shoppers and New Yorkers back to Union Square", says Jennifer Falk, executive director of the Union Square Partnership.
The folks at Paragon don't have a full plan for when they will open the entire store to customers. For now, they will proceed department by department, with the hopes of one day having the whole place back in business.