An up-and-coming retail chain is attempting to find its niche among Brooklynites. Five Below, the Philadelphia based-company which appeals to pre-teens, teens and beyond, featuring all the latest trends and styles, opened its first location in Brooklyn at the Gateway Center on Friday August 29.
“We’ve been busy surrounding the borough of Brooklyn, and now we’re ready to open in one of its busiest areas,” said Five Below’s CEO and co-founder Thomas Vellios.
The store will focus on the company’s fall fashion including lace-up canvas sneakers, head wraps, leggings and back-to school items like backpacks, pens and organizational materials. In addition, the 7,500-foot store will sell licensed merchandise from the hit animated film “Frozen” along with an assortment of tech, beauty and sporting goods.
The store’s merchandise will all be priced at $5 or below. These goods will be offered in one of the store’s various categories: Style, Sports, Tech, Crafts, Party, Candy and Now.
The store offered five-cent hot dogs for the first two days of its opening, as well as giving a mystery ticket to the first 100 customers in the store Friday worth up to “100 Five Below Bucks.”
The chain which now has over 350 locations in 20 states, hopes to expand and open more locations in Brooklyn over the next few years. It first came to New York four years ago, opening a store in Staten Island, before opening another store there in May. Earlier this year, Five Below opened its first store in Long Island City. The Gateway location will be open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“This opening is a homecoming of sorts, as I grew up a few miles from what’s now Gateway Plaza, and I’m proud to call Brooklyn home again,” Vellios concluded.
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