Illegal peddlers who clog Manhattan’s sidewalks with their cheap, counterfeit goods are getting hit with a double-whammy this holiday season – extra attention from cops and plummeting sales.
That’s great news for legitimate shop owners, who argue that the fly-by-night peddlers should be tossed in jail for routinely breaking the law by hawking knockoff handbags, watches, perfumes and the like.
“This holiday season looks really bad,” moaned John Blattle, 52, who sells watches off a folding table on West 34th Street. “A lot of people were looking, but nobody was buying. It’s really disappointing because all my money is tied up in this.”
He pocketed just $200 this past Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, compared to the $800 he said he made on the same day last year.
Even as Blattle and his fellow lawbreakers are getting less looks from potential customers, they are getting more glances from cops.
The 10 police precincts that constitute the Manhattan South command and a special Theater District task force all have assigned extra officers to keep tabs on peddlers this season.
Four areas that have massive foot traffic have been targeted for extra vigilance – Times Square, Fifth Avenue, Rockefeller Center and Herald Square.
Police are particularly vigilant for crooks looking to rip off tourists.
“If they see three-card monte [games], often these people are criminals, we watch people in the fringes to see if they try to pick pockets or rob people,” a source said, noting that undercover officers will blend in with the crowd surrounding a table.
But even vendors just trying to make a quick buck off of a fake purse face arrest for selling without a proper license, the source said. And if they create bottlenecks on the sidewalk or force passers-by to walk in the street, vendors will face a visit from a cop.
Arrests of the vendors are exactly what is needed, said Khalid Shaik, owner of Ideal Gifts, a souvenir shop on West 34th Street and Seventh Avenue. He said vendors set up tables right in front of his store to hawk for less money the very the same shirts and caps that he sells.
“They do not pay rent, they do not pay taxes, and they don’t need to pay their employees,” Shaik fumed.
“They are not supposed to sell here. We cannot compete. I am upset because my business is suffering.”
Omar Khan, owner of the Grand Slam store on Broadway and West 47th Street, said repeated calls to the police and Times Square Alliance have done little to stem the problem.
“I’d tell the mayor, get rid of these people. They are disturbing my businesses,” Khan said. “It’s not good for us. We don’t want them here.”
Still, economics, not law enforcement, is the big worry of the street vendors.
“Look at all this new merchandise that I haven’t even sold. The bags are getting more expensive, but we make less money,” said peddler Ronnie Lambert, 48, who sells handbags for $5 and $10 in Midtown.
“People aren’t buying as much because the economy is bad, and it’s hurting us.”