Ever since I moved to the border between Brooklyn Heights and Boerum Hill, I’ve used a private mailbox service. When I moved in, it took the landlord 6 months to get a new mailbox key installed in the lobby, and I had to have some way to get mail. I found a Mailbox Etc. store that had just opened. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise, because having the service was like having a doorman – someone’s always there to receive packages, and you don’t have to worry about random things being left in hallways. In addition, the staff there gets to know you and they look out for your stuff. They’ve also let my 1 minute before closing (or even 15 minutes after closing) appearances slide, too. It also was my plan “B” if P and I had to make a quick move or were going to be travelling for a while.
The other thing that was great about the location was that it gave me an excuse to go down in the Atlantic Avenue/Carroll Gardens direction, which I almost never did during law school, but now know pretty well. Some lazy Saturdays would just consist of picking up the mail, and then going to the local pizzeria for lunch and reading the mail, and then reading at Barnes and Noble.
So after eight years, and a name change later, on Saturday I had a notice in my box that they were closing down at the end of the month. It wasn’t clear whether they weren’t making enough money or that the landlord was forcing them out. The company that owned the franchise got bought out by another company, and the new overlords thought that they needed to simplify the side businesses and use the space for something else. All I know they were so busy that I could barely step foot in the place between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. They directed us to the other store that is a couple of blocks farther away, but on the main strip.
It’s an end of an era, and I hope that all of the staff are able to find new gigs. Rob, Sam and Artie, I’m going to really miss you guys. You did good.