‘The Turf’ Pop-Up Hits the Bowery for Weeklong Residency

When Chair Up was forced from its seventeen-year perch on the Bowery, an enormous space was liberated for the taking. The first suitor to do so was Spanish kicks company, Camper, which opened a branded “Lab” here last April. The other half of 219-221 Bowery, however, remained dormant until now.

In comes something called The Turf @ in Support of. Not quite optimized for search. The temporary boutique – dubbed a “collaborative showroom concept” – will spend the next week on the Bowery. Featured designers in the pop-up include Arc Jewelry, Christine Alcalay, Dama, and Lucia Pearl.

Here’s the requisite babble to explain what could otherwise be summed up in a few words:

The market we encounter is a difficult one so we want to rethink how we do things. Since 2010, we’ve operated as a showroom focusing on the traditional method of obtaining sales for emerging designers. As a reaction to seeing the market shift we feel the need to create an accessible and curated space that gives an opportunity to young designers. This announces our shifted focus from the standard showroom model to a collaborative space.

THE TURF @ In Support Of is a new way of thinking of a showroom – we will now be a curated space for talent to showcase their work to interested parties. We will be a creative and business minded space that fosters meaningful placement between creators and consumers. We will aim to foster growth of young and emerging brands while understanding the burden that this growth entails.

The shop will be here through September 19.

Chair Up, the restaurant supply company, relocated around the corner to 48 Delancey Street two summers ago after an approximate 600% rent hike. That’s landlord Joseph Betesh for ya. (But not before a WWII-era hand grenade was found in the basement and sealed off the block for hours.) They had been on the Bowery since 1999.