Harlem Lanes, a bowling alley started by a Columbia Business School graduate, has been touted as one of the school’s local success stories. Now, the economic downturn has put its future in jeopardy.
The bowling alley, one of the few in Upper Manhattan, was founded five years ago by Sharon Joseph, Business ’97, with assistance from former President Bill Clinton’s Urban Initiative Foundation. It thrived on Adam Clayton Powell Boulevard and 126th Street, and the Business School even chose Joseph’s site to host the announcement ceremony for a $100 million gift to the Business School last year.
However, it is now proving to be an increasingly trying time for Joseph and her employees, as customers feel less and less inclined to spend their money on entertainment.
“It’s a challenging time for us,” Joseph said. “We’re trying to figure out how to keep it open.”
Like many small business owners, Joseph is trying to adapt to the increasingly difficult economic conditions with creative marketing and new products. As a result, Harlem Lanes has sought to reinvent itself not only as a bowling alley, but also as a sports bar showing football, baseball, and basketball games.
The sports bar, located one floor above Harlem Lanes, is “an independent entity” but still a way to bring in more revenue to prop the alley up financially, Joseph said.
“That’s a difference in branding,” Joseph said. “Before, we were promoting bowling—now we’re promoting sports.”
The bowling alley is also now seeking to establish itself as a neighborhood center, emphasizing corporate and community functions.
“We’re trying to give people a reason to come out, to find ways of saying that we understand what the community’s going through,” Joseph said.
David Weltman, the president of Columbia’s bowling club, has been using Harlem Lanes since 2009. His club has had discounts with the alley since then—a reward for customer loyalty—and he said the staff has always been welcoming, with special event nights such as “cosmic bowling” on Sundays.
“I’d be surprised if it did close—it would be very disappointing,” Weltman said. “What’s nice about Harlem Lanes is that it’s in walking distance.”
If Harlem Lanes closed, the bowling club would have to travel down to Chelsea Piers for the nearest alley. But even Weltman has begun to notice some signs of economic strain on Harlem Lanes.
“I know prices have been going up—if anything that’s an indicator,” he said.
For the time being, Harlem Lanes’ doors are open, and the alley is still looking to hire new staff. Yet, like many local small businesses, the situation remains precarious.
“We’ve done a lot of work with nonprofits, but we’re at the point where now we need people to help us out,” Joseph said.
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