L+M signs “What Not to Wear” star to Brooklyn retail lease

L+M Development Partners signed a new lease with Arrojo Studio at the firm’s mixed-use Brooklyn residential property at 11 Broadway, marking the second retail salon from celebrity hairstylist Nick Arrojo.

Manhattan-based L+M developed the building, which has 160 market and affordable-rate apartments, plus 35,000 square feet of commercial space and parking, along with the Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group. The property is located in South Williamsburg, one of the hotter development areas in the city.

Arrojo, who was a regular on TLC Network’s long-running “What Not to Wear,” has operated the flagship Arrojo Studio at 180 Varick Street in Soho since 2001. He said the firm looked for a second location in the area for about two years before reaching a deal to lease at this location.

“Williamsburg suits progressive businesses full of creative energy and inspiration and these qualities are integral to our brand’s identity,” Arrojo said.

Diana Boutross, senior managing director and executive vice president of Winick Realty Group, represented both L&M and Arrojo in the deal. 

L+M did not release terms of the agreement, but asking rents in the area have reached $175 per square foot or more in some locations. Arrojo is taking 3,400 square feet in the building.

In December 2013, L+M opened the area’s first full-service grocery store, a 16,000 square foot Urban Market of Williamsburg, at the same location.

Representatives said the new Arrojo studio will open in early 2015, while the original Arrojo studio, which includes Arrojo Education, an in-house cosmetology school, will remain at the Soho address.

L+M has been expanding its development in recent months. In May it acquired a 12-story mixed-use retail site at 79-89 Avenue D for $12.5 million from the Fried family.

The firm also picked up a 19-building affordable housing portfolio in West Harlem that is valued at around $40 million.