Owner Of Closing 80-Year-Old Hoboken Shop Makes Poignant Plea

HOBOKEN, NJ — An iconic shop that has provided Hoboken's athletes with uniforms and trophies for 80 years will soon close, the owners said Monday. They will still have a presence online.

"Everyone was calling last night," Danny De Congelio told Patch from inside Stan's Sports Center on Tuesday. "It's really an institution."

The store opened in 1946 after two brothers-in-law who had just served in World War II decided to open a business together.

One of them, Peter Stanich, gave the store its name.

De Congelio worked in the store while attending Hoboken High School in the 1970s, then went to college to become an accountant. But he eventually came back to work at the shop, asking if he might become an owner.

He said the store will continue to work with teams, schools, and many other clients, but he didn't find it fruitful to continue operating the storefront.

Timeline

De Congelio doesn't have a closing date. He said he announced the closing on social media on Monday because the storefront will be available for rent, and he wanted people to know the facts before seeing the listing.

De Congelio's family owns the building, and his son, Daniel, took over the business as of January of this year, he said.

"This is a hard one to write," wrote the owners on social media on Monday "After 80 years, we have made the decision to close the Stan’s Sport Center retail storefront in Hoboken.

"Generations of families have walked through these doors. The city has changed. The sporting goods industry has changed. The way people shop has changed. And over the years, our business has had to change with it. We’ve held onto our retail storefront for as long as we could."

A Poignant Plea

"We’re incredibly fortunate to be able to write the next chapter," the owners wrote. "We also know that many small businesses never get that opportunity. So if there is one thing we hope people take from this, it is to support the local businesses you love while they are still there."

Fans of the store were surprised by the announcement.

"Sad to see it go," wrote a social media commenter. "80 years is a great long run."

De Congelio said that one of the calls he got Monday night was from Mayor Emily Jabbour, who said she'll miss seeing the store on Washington Street, the city's main street.

But De Congelio told her he'll still be involved.

"I said, 'I'm a Hoboken kid,' " he told Patch. "You can't take me out of here."

"Hoboken will always be where our story began," the owners wrote on social media. "Thank you for 80 incredible years. The storefront is closing. Stan’s is moving forward."

Stan's is located at 528 Washington St. Find the website here.

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