A Nokia spokesperson just told us that the NY and Chicago flagship stores are closing in early 2010. The official decision was made to “create clear alignment with our local market strategy and in addition, as part of a global realignment of Nokia’s retail strategy.” The Flagship stores opened their doors in 2006. Read on for the statement.

Here’s the official word from Nokia,

The Flagship stores, opened in 2006 in the U.S., were conceived to inspire and educate consumers to the benefits of mobility through an innovative retail experience, and broaden the appeal of the Nokia brand.

The decision to close the two Nokia Flagship Stores in the U.S., located in New York City and Chicago, was made to create clear alignment with our local market strategy and in addition, as part of a global realignment of Nokia’s retail strategy.

Nokia remains committed to providing the best consumer and retail experience around the world – the Flagship Stores are only part of Nokia’s retail experience and marketplace strategy. Nokia’s retail strategy includes retail and operator partners and their more than 600,000 retail outlets globally. All of these customer outlets will remain essential to Nokia’s ongoing success and continue to be a primary sales channels in the future.

I’m going to be a little disappointed because the New York flagship store is only a half hour bus ride away to play and try out Nokia’s latest gadgets. We’ve been having our monthly mobile meetups there as well. Nevertheless, the stores weren’t really the best places to buy Nokia’s devices because they were usually sold cheaper by other retailers like Amazon or Dell.