Bluestockings Cooperative, the radical bookstore and mutual aid hub on the Lower East Side since 1999, has closed its doors and will cease all operations by the end of the year, according to a statement posted to its website and social media.
“Our doors are closed for business,” reads the collective’s statement, posted Monday. “The daily operations are unfortunately no longer sustainable on multiple fronts.”
“The bookstore has been fighting a losing battle against debt for over two years now,” co-owner Raquel Espasande said in a text message. “Unfortunately, we frankly hit the wall.”
The closure comes after years of financial strain and mounting public controversy. In late 2023, the store’s landlord issued warnings citing what it described as unauthorized medical activity and unsafe conditions, and by January of this year, Bluestockings workers said the cooperative was nearly $100,000 in debt to publishers and book distributors.
A GoFundMe launched over the summer raised close to $65,000 from nearly 1,000 donors, but by then the store had stopped buying new inventory and was relying on donated books to fill its shelves.
The announcement marks the end of a 26-year run for the collectively run space, which began as a feminist bookstore on Allen Street before relocating to Suffolk Street in 2021.
Over the years, Bluestockings evolved into a volunteer-supported cafe, activist meeting ground and community resource center that gave out Narcan kits, offered public bathrooms open to homeless people and hosted events promoting collective care.
Bluestockings’ harm reduction work drew criticism from many neighbors, who blamed the store for an increase in street-level drug use and public safety issues. Supporters argued the store was being scapegoated for citywide failures in housing and public health.
“We haven’t been able to buy books since late September,” Jay Gandhi, one of four worker-owners who run the store, told Gothamist this summer.
In its public statement, the collective cited burnout, disability and a lack of internal consensus as driving factors behind the decision.
“This closure was our absolute last resort,” the statement read, adding that remaining workers were “at the limits of what they can manage” and that it would be irresponsible to remain open while unprepared for future crises.
But the decision is now the subject of a dispute within the co-op itself.
Jay Gandhi, who had been helping to run day-to-day operations and described themself as a “worker/owner,” said they were shocked to see the closure announcement. Gandhi said they and other staffers were not consulted ahead of time and lost access to the store’s physical space and digital accounts without warning.
“This was not a consensus,” Gandhi said. “If you’re a cooperative and if you’re worker-owned, the people who were actually working had not contributed to this decision.”
Espasande, who helped author the public statement, said she and the other legal owner of Bluestockings tried unsuccessfully to hand off the business to active staff, but that the workers delayed taking on formal ownership due to concerns about inheriting its debt and liabilities.
Gandhi said they and the other workers were working in good faith to transition the business, and were hiring a bookkeeper and legal adviser to sort through the finances. Gandhi said they were unaware that closure was on the table and believed the store was slowly stabilizing.
Bluestockings plans to fulfill outstanding book orders and membership perks through the end of the year, according to the statement. The store will not host further programming, as the physical storefront is already closed. Remaining funds from its recent crowdfunding campaigns will go toward repaying vendors, settling debts, and compensating workers involved in the closure process.
“We’ve made a lot of mistakes,” the statement read, “but the lack of political and business-operations alignment … has directly led to many of the setbacks we’ve faced the last two years.”
