Translation from English

Sunday, July 28, 2013

Paragon Sports Equipment North of Union Square on Broadway

I was brought to Paragon decades ago by a friend who had methodically researched different stores in Manhattan and decided Paragon had the best array of items and the most knowledgeable sales people.

Of course, this was before the internet and online shopping, much less long before you could so easily look up reviews on Yelp or some other site.

It was also before Modell's began their aggressive marketing and sales campaigns..

So , let's see what Yelp says now...well, I would say very good reviews with some naysayers as usual


Paragon Sports

3.5 star rating
255 reviews Rating Details
867 Broadway
(between W Union Sq & 18th St)
New York, NY 10003
Neighborhoods: Union Square, Flatiron
(212) 255-8889
Photo by Kelli J.
2nd Floor Outwear, Cycling
7 of 33
Nearest Transit Station:
14 St - Union Sq (N, Q, R)
Union Sq - 14 St (L)
14 St - Union Sq (4, 5, 6, 6X)
Hours:
Mon-Fri 10 am - 8:30 pm
Sat 10 am - 8 pm
Sun 11 am - 7 pm
Price Range:
$$$
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Garage, Street
Wheelchair Accessible:
Yes
Dogs Allowed:
Yes

Review Highlights   What's this?

  • "i also love looking through your tennis racquets." In 26 reviews
  • "Make sure you look out for their sales." In 47 reviews
  • "I poked around to look at rock climbing equipment and shoes." In 29 reviews
Rating Distribution | Trend
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255 reviews in English

  • Review from

    7/18/2013 1 check-in here
    In the Union Square area this is a well stocked in Manhattan Outdoor items and sports good store. You'll find everything from A - Z. Easy and convenient to get to but a bit pricey. It's for convenience i head here to buy my outdoor items.

    Great camping, biking, and outdoor clothing section. Staff are friendly and definitely well stocked.
  • Review from

    7/24/2013 1 check-in here
    Maybe we should call this place Venus*, because she's got it, yeah baby she's got it.

    Seriously, if you want something sporty or outdoorsy, you can find just about anything here.  They have a good selection and while prices aren't the cheapest, it's not always outrageous and you can catch a sale sometimes.

    My biggest gripe is that the store is generally pretty crowded (though they do keep the checkout moving) and sometimes help is hard to find.  I've had challenging service experiences when buying shoes, racquetball equipment and gym bags (twice).

    If you know what you want and you can make a beeline for it, then grab somebody to get it for you from the stockroom, you'll be in good shape.  If you need to talk to someone and ask question, it will be a bit more of a challenge.

    However, you can't touch any other store in Manhattan for the breadth of products.  Yeah baby, she's got it.

    ________________
    * man, I used to love Bananarama, and I can't believe during the recent heat wave in NYC I didn't hear "Cruel Summer" about a bazillion times.  Here's the video for "Venus"  http://youtu.be/26q1BNZJ…
  • Review from

    7/11/2013
    I walked by the store and had to stop in. Three floors of sportswear and sports equipment to browse. They have a large selection of sneakers - ASICS, Mizunos, Salomons, Adidas etc.

    They sell Coobie bras! (but not all colors)

    One thing, I think Paragon Sports has a 30 day return policy (w/ receipt and tags). It's less generous than stores like REI.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 2 reviews
    7/21/2013
    Five star for its comprehensive baseball gloves I could ever found in Manhattan.
  • Review from

    6/28/2013
    It's simply impossible for me to find work out clothes that i like. I'm not a big fan of work out shorts, i think the majority are ill fitting. BUT, I had to find some shorts for a mud run. SO, i came here to paragon and they have a very large selection of everything you need. They also have a sale rack that actually has quality stuff in all sizes for half off. they have winter stuff on sale so stock up! Anyway, I found the perfect shorts and running shirt for the run and I'm ready to get muddy!!!!
    The sale associate was extremely helpful and patient while i went back and forth into the dressing room with 10+ items each time. They only let you bring in 4 items but there's a little hook you can hang stuff on right next to the dressing room so it's convenient.

    SO GO! for your sporty needs.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 72 reviews
    7/2/2013 1 check-in here
    Great salesperson named Betsy helped us, very knowledgeable salespeople in every dept. A very well organized store. If you can't find what you want for the great outdoors here they probably don't make it because they have EVERYTHING!
  • Review from

    4/8/2013 1 check-in here
    The longest winter I ever experienced was springtime in NYC this year (2013).

    So when the temperature climbed into the 70s today, I had to make the trek to my favorite sporting goods store to inspire me to get back into my favorite outdoor activity, tennis.

    Paragon Sports is unassuming on the outside, but once inside you'll appreciate their difference from the myriad of sporting good chain stores in the area. The place is pristinely clean. And the inventory caters to everyone in the family.

    I appreciate that they have a tennis counter that sells season, or daily permits for all of the NYC courts. Much easier than navigating each park's individual websites.

    As a resident of Astoria, I can attest that the permits are readily accepted at our beautiful locale, located under the RFK Bridge.

    I am also looking forward to a match in Central Park, in a swanky outfit I will buy from this place.
  • Review from

    • 34 friends
    • 77 reviews
    6/16/2013
    HUGE SELECTION of sporting goods!  I came here looking for a pair of ear plugs for swimming and they had a huge selection of brands to choose from.  The pair I bought was reasonably priced, however the store in general is kind of pricey.  They are pricey because compared to the other sporting goods stores, they rarely charge less than MSRP.  The customer service is on point though.  It is totally worth it for the variety and selection!
  • Review from

    4/2/2013 1 check-in here
    What I love about Paragon Sports: They have EVERYTHING you need for every sport or outdoor activity possible. Everything is divided into sections so you don't ever have to wander off far from what you initially went there for. Quite a few times I've search in other stores for new running gear. I'm extremely picky with my coldgear, heatgear, and the level of looseness the shirts are for my own comfort. But I found myself back here picking out my bright Nike coldgear shirts. Paragon is overly expensive (sometimes unreasonable for the type of gear, brand, and quality) and hardly have real sales. The sales they do have on the name brand lines are insignificant to even crack a smirk on your face for a good deal you just found.

    Customer service here varies from great to poor. You can have staff with great customer service who will have the patience to walk and show you a variety of selections that fit the descriptions of what you're looking for .... and not hungry to tag your item with a sticker for their commission. With that being said, you can also have the counterpart staff who will either do 1 of 2 things: 1) look at you and not offer to help and when you do approach them, they sound hesitant to help; or 2) Approach you with a pseudo smile and will get everything you need but turn cold immediately after they tag you.

    So if you come to Paragon know what you want, go to your item and get it before you get tagged !
  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 10 reviews
    3/21/2013
    Bought new skies, ski boots and bindings.
    Very nice customers service! Will was very patient with helping me to find best ski boots fit. Great prices! They also matched and beat online stores where I found lower  prices than theirs.
  • Review from

    • 55 friends
    • 101 reviews
    4/5/2013
    Pros: Locally owned and operated with a big selection.
    Cons: Hit and miss expertise with the sales staff. If you know what you like, you can find it on your own but if you need help, some of their staff know their stuff and others are lackluster. I went for Vibram shoes, mumbly shoe sales guy told me they didn't make my size, and so I bought guys shoes that were a mediocre fit. He didn't offer to let me try them on the treadmill or know much about their fit in general. Luckily I looked up Vibram's website when I got home, they DO make my size and ordered them online. To Paragon's credit, returning the wrong shoes was easy.
  • Review from

    3/24/2013
    My review is based on finding a surprisingly large selection of warm running clothes toward the end of March. I wasn't feeling optimistic and figured I'd have one or two pairs of long pants to choose from, but they had pretty much every brand available (and most were on sale). I was able to get a North Face hoodie for 20% off, a long pair of Brooks running pants for $79, and a Nike thermal head band for $12. I was quite happy, because I really thought it would be slim pickings.

    Everything else seems over priced (yikes, yoga mats), but I was very pleased with their running section.
  • Review from

    7/8/2013
    I just came from spending $200 at this place, but I have to write a review on how happy I was with the service. Each section had their own salesperson who was knowledgeable about where to find everything and about the quality of their gear- and they never insisted on a purchase. I simply bought sales items and in the end the cashier even argued for a greater discount for me for one of my sales items which seemed particularly weathered.
  • Review from

    • 17 friends
    • 28 reviews
    3/27/2013
    I love the immensity and the variety of this store. Filled to the brim with everything you may possibly need to fulfill your athletic needs. Although their triathlon equipment is a bit lacking (my sport) overall this store is well stocked.

    The staff is incredibly friendly and knowledgeable; they all show their passion quite clearly. If you happen to be in the area I highly recommend stopping by and checking this place out, you'd be surprised what you could come out buying.

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