Blue & Cream Thrives During, And Post- Pandemic; Operates 5 Stores, More Planned

It figures that Jeffrey Goldstein, founder and CEO of the independent boutique Blue & Cream, would land on Hip Daddy, as Spotlight 43, which called him “a very charismatic entrepreneur, entertainment marketer, and East Hampton fashion magnet.” Goldstein himself would have to agree.

“Last summer I had two stores open, in East Hampton and the Bowery,” Goldstein told me. “We have such a good celebrity business. What’s really interesting is that after 20 years of business, and this burgeoning world of NFTs and apps, that’s not what our business is about. It’s more about our return customers.

“I dressed a four year girl in an Aviation hoodie and I know in 10 years she’s going to come in for a prom dress. We show up every day in East Hampton. The Hamptons has been a huge business of its own. Every one from Jeffrey Zucker to CEOs from Goldman Sach want to know how the business is doing. People are attracted to work for us. It’s like a CAA network,” Goldstein said, referring to the iconic Hollywood talent agency.

“There was a huge real estate boom during the pandemic,” Goldstein added. “It subsided just as quickly. It allowed me to focus on the launch of my new stores. We had our most successful July in our history.”

The top 1 percent of Hamptons dwellers went to Saint Barths, Goldstein said. “Everyone has been concerned with the art galleries and restaurants. They’re saying it’s quiet and the real New Yorkers haven’t returned yet. You have outsiders jumping into the market looking for staff. There isn’t a pool of great, smart young people to work in their stores and restaurants.”

The labor shortage has flummoxed retailers and restaurants, which have been forced to cut hours, among other solutions. “On any given night there’s no night life,” Goldstein said. “It’s more like a suburban night life culture. A Duke kid will have all the Duke kids at his parents’ home. Now you have NordstromJWN
and Net-a-porter wrapping the jitneys with promotional billboards.

“It’s Chanel, Gucci, Cartier, Balenciaga and Prada,” Goldstein said. “The luxury consumer of the Hamptons is very low key. They’re coming from their pool in their flip flops. If I smell perfume and see someone wearing diamonds, I know that’s a day tripper.”

From his perches on the Bowery and East Hampton, Goldstein has witnessed more than his fair share of trends. “In 2020, there was a lot of unrest in New York,” he said. “We had to board up our Bowery store. The Bowery has changed with restaurateurs from Daniel Bouloud to Keith McNally.

“I want to be where they recognize us in New York,” Goldstein said. “We’re doing commercial capsules, which entails collaborating creatively with businesses or brands. We’re making it in New York and selling it as unique drops. We have our own brand, which we make with our own Korean designer. It’s all about quality. We avoided the whole logo thing.

“How do you grow from one store to five stores,” Goldstein asked rhetorically, then answered his own question. “The clothing is such a high quality, consumers start coming back for it. We were a very successful men’s brand that turned into a women’s brand.

Goldstein’s formula for success includes the Bowery and East Hampton stores as showcases for the brand, and building name recognition. “We launched everyone from Alexander Wang to 3.1 Phillip Lim in the Hamptons,” he said. “When we launched on Bleecker Street, Marc Jacobs was my inspiration.” At one point Jacobs had multiple stores on the thoroughfare.

“In 2021, we had another wave, when we opened on Madison Avenue. It was the first time I followed my customer. They said, ‘Why don’t you open where we live.’ I said I wanted to be a destination,” Goldstein said. “To be sustainable, I had to have that clothing line and have that ongoing experience.

Independent businesses such as Jeffrey New York and Kirna Zabete used private equity money to scale, he said. “Certain things become institutions. I’ve taken over the kids who shopped at Ralph Lauren, getting all their cable knit sweaters from Blue & Cream.”

Goldstein opened a store on Madison Avenue, however it was North of 86th Street, which is not considered the prime shopping boulevard. “The entire northern corridor was all vacant,” he said. “North of 86th there were more neighborhood stores. I’m talking about rolling out of bed in your sweat pants and coming into Blue and Cream.

“It gave me the confidence for the next store. I went after Bleecker Street. It was all bought up by Brookfield Properties,” Goldstein continued. “Family-style shopping inside it’s very high energy, graffitti, books, all these Nineties cultural references, the convergence of that is what the brand has evolved into. It changed with multi-label women’s wear. The customers are maturing. I want to hold onto the 15 years. Everybody wants to shop with their kids. Disposable income for kids is high.”

Westport, Conn. was a logical transition from East Hampton. “We trained my Conn. manager who came from N.Y. People who left the city couldn’t believe a piece of the city was coming up to them,” he said.

“I’m looking inside the mall and maybe in Las Vegas,” Goldstein added. “I’m pursuing markets in Las Vegas. In each market, we’re unique to the market. Each different store will be more unique. What’s in the DNA to maintain the Blue & Cream ethos? On Bleecker Street, I’m trying to have direct-to-consumer themes. Westport is similar to the Hamptons. I wouldn’t want to replicate the template, but I want to keep it family-oriented. Young girls are discovering the trends.”

Goldstein sees Washington, D.C. as possibly the next location on his roster, after Las Vegas. “There’s New York kids that go to college there, international tourists and government workers. Everyone drives around listening to our mix tapes in their cars. I used to stay at work until 8 pm. Now, I leave at 6 or 6:30 to be with my kids. I needed to scale to make our business sustainable.”

Resale is also an interest of Goldstein’s. “Everybody has sneakers and you can buy them online. What are the key brands. NikeNKE
and Yeezy, Chanel and Balenciaga. The same people who used to seek out sneakers, are the same demographic as the young kids who want Chanel jewelry. They’re buying it and wearing it with a hoodie and Nikes. We search all the third party marketplaces to find the most unique pieces that can complete the head-to-toe oufit. What we are is a multi-label retailer with this resale element adjacent to new contemporary.”