The streets of New York have provided generations of entrepreneurs with the means to pursue the American dream. For an industry that is also a characteristic of life in New York City, we have, until now, known surprisingly little about the vendors that provide the economic activity that ignites so many city streets. Today, Immigration Research Initiative is releasing a report that changes that.
The new report, “Street Vendors of New York” takes advantage of a unique opportunity. In 2021, the Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center (SVP) conducted, by far, the largest survey of vendors to date. We now have an empirically grounded, large-scale survey that gives detailed insight into who vendors are and how they work and live. This survey of 2,060 respondents, combined with statistical analysis by Immigration Research Initiative, and with key input from statistics professor Jonathan Auerbach of George Mason University, gives us the first detailed data about how many street vendors there are in the city and their characteristics.
Key Findings:
- There are an estimated 23,000 street vendors working throughout the five boroughs, the overwhelming majority of whom work as mobile food vendors, 20,500. An additional 2,400 are general merchandise vendors. See: “Estimating the Number of Street Vendors in New York City.” by Jonathan Auerbach, George Mason University”
- Nearly all —96 percent— street vendors who are not military veterans are immigrants. Only 4 out of every 100 street vendors were born in the United States.
- The top five countries of origin for all street vendors are Mexico (30 percent), Ecuador (24 percent), Egypt (20 percent), Senegal (7 percent), and the United States (4 percent).
- Having a license/permit makes a huge difference in profitability for street vendors. For mobile food vendors during the summer, 62 percent of those with a permit show a profit of over $500 per month, compared to 43 percent of those without a permit. During that same season, for general merchandise vendors, 73 percent of those with a license show a profit of over $500, compared to just 36 percent of those who do not have a license.
- In most cases, street vending is a longtime profession and primary source of income. 81 percent of all vendors see vending as their primary source of income;
- Women play a big role as vendors but are less likely to have licenses or permits – only 27 percent of mobile food vendor permit holders are women. This is higher than the findings for women who are general merchandise vendors. Of general merchandise vendors only 14 percent of those who are licensed are women;
- Of the military veterans who are vendors, 59 percent are Black, and 25 percent are Latino/a/x. 70 percent are U.S.-born and 30 percent are immigrants, and 87 percent are men. Military veterans are considered separately because they are subject to different rules and conditions than other vendors.
This report provides the first compressive data on New York City’s iconic Street Vendors. “Despite being a quintessential component of New York City streetscapes and daily life, before this report, little was known about the details about who street vendors are. Now, we can show, empirically, what native New Yorkers, tourists, commuters, and vendors, already know to be true while also shedding light on other aspects of what it’s like to be a street vendor in New York” said Shamier Settle, senior policy analyst at Immigration Research Initiative.
“Street vending has been an economic platform for thousands of immigrants to survive and thrive in New York City for centuries. From the Bronx to Queens, street vendors ensure under-resourced communities have access to fresh, affordable food, commercial corridors have diversity of business, and tourists get the iconic New York City experience. For the first time, thanks to the Immigration Research Initiative and Professor Auerbach, we have the first comprehensive, detailed analysis of who the street vendors are, where they are from, and what challenges they face. The impact of having empirical data for this often-overlooked community cannot be understated” said Mohamed Attia, managing director at the Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center.
“Analysis of the survey data collected by the Street Vendor Project suggests there are approximately 23,000 street vendors in New York City,” said George Mason University statistician Jonathan Auerbach, who released an accompanying report “Estimating the Number of Street Vendors in New York City.” “Ninety percent are food vendors, and ten percent are merchandise vendors. The count excludes the approximately 400 concessions that operate within NYC Parks, as well as First Amendment vendors who sell free speech items like newspapers and books.
For the full report, please visit Street Vendors of New York.
