Jeffrey Robinson

 Doctoral Candidate (ABD)
 Columbia Business School 
 Management of Organizations Division 
 Uris Hall, Room 311, New York, New York 10027

An Economic Sociology of Entry Barriers:  Business Entry and the Inner City Market

Prologue

INNER CITIES: PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE

May 24, 2001; 4:30 PM
Harlem, New York
 

As I sit in the Starbuck’s coffee at the corner of 125th street and Lenox Avenue in Harlem, it is the end of the workday.  People are making their way to the subway station on the corner.  Others are on their way to the shopping spots of 125th street.  A number are tourists interested in Harlem as a historical landmark.  Children taking the long way home from school are crossing the street recklessly.  Local residents are walking home or making their way to their evening jobs.

More than 80% of the faces are of people of color:  Hispanic, Caribbean, and African.  Some are recent immigrants sporting their native apparel in defiance of popular culture.  Most are U.S. citizens by birth or by naturalization.  Five languages are clearly heard over the din of the street:  English, Spanish, French, Wolof, and Patois (Creole or other).

When I turn my attention back to the coffee shop I notice that every seat of the Starbuck’s is full.  Some are reading books or are reading papers.  Others are meeting friends after work.  A few are conducting business meetings or on their mobile phone.  I know from recent discussions I have had with those involved in local economic development that this Starbuck’s Coffee is one of the sales leaders for Manhattan.  It rivals the Wall Street location.

Back to the street corner:  in a span of 10 minutes four tour buses full of international tourists hailing from Japan, Germany and France have rode past.  Because of its historical significance, Harlem has become a tourist destination for those visiting New York Cities. Several tour companies take tourists on Harlem jazz tours, gospel tours, architectural tours, and literary tours.  To capitalize on the rise of tourism, new shops have emerged in this community specifically targeting the tourists.
But there is more to see at this corner.  As I survey the business activity at this corner, I make the following observations.

•  A large billboard advertising oldnavy.com and a new shopping mall known as Harlem USA.
•  Five new shops opened in the last three years:  Sterling Optical, Starbucks (where I’m seated), a Slice of Harlem (a pizza restaurant), Bayou (a Cajun restaurant) and Avenue (a clothing store).
• On one corner, one of Harlem’s most colorful characters plays music, dances, and bounces a small rubber ball.  He is there every day.  Most of the local people are used to his antics.
• Several “business” men and women pass the window to the Starbucks selling watches, jewelry or other items.
• Seven abandoned storefronts can be seen from here on Lenox Avenue, south of 125th street.  They are graffiti vandalized and trash is strewn in front of them.
• The offices of the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) and BRISC (a UMEZ sponsored business center) overlook this corner above the Sterling optical.

Journalists and politicians are calling all of the new activity in this area the  “New Harlem Renaissance.”  As I sit and take in the view at this corner, I wonder if this is part of a rebirth so long awaited for this and other inner cities.
 

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Created January 10, 2002            Contact jeffrey.robinson@columbia.edu                     Back to  DISSERTATION    RESEARCH      HOME