A surprise to me, if there ever was one. Ritmo Latino is closed. The music, book and DVD store closed yesterday. By late last night all the merchandise was gone and the shelving and fixtures were being removed. If you can't see in the photo, the handwritten sign says "Out of Business." I have no idea why they closed, but the easy answer is probably 'the economy?' Apparently they've closed nearly 20 stores across the U.S. this year. Ritmo Latino was located at 1775 Columbia Rd NW.I've shopped there on occasion and profiled them a while back with some other music stores (Why the 42 Bus is Music to Your Ears). Columbia Rd has been wrecked with closures over the last year, but three of those storefronts were recently filled with the new CVS space and another with a cellular phone outlet.
Ritmo still maintains a website, but it has little relation to the Columbia Road store. It is a web front for the other remaining Ritmo stores nation wide. So, maybe they'll live on as a web only business. If I find our more, I will report. Sad to lose a storefront along the 42 bus route though, for sure.
