Gianfranco Ferre sells UES lease to Dior

 
The Italian fashion house Gianfranco Ferre sold the lease to its shuttered flagship store at 870 Madison Avenue for $3 million to fashion house Christian Dior.

The 3,000-square-foot location at East 71st Street opened in 2004 and closed at the end of July. The sale of the lease by Gianfranco Ferre S.p.A.’s American affiliate IT USA was finalized August 1, according to public records.

Gianfranco Ferre, who died in June, 2007, worked for Christian Dior as stylistic director from 1989 until 1997.

At the time of the store’s closing, the company said the move was not related to sales, which grew by 17.6 percent in 2007. It said the store closed so that a new store could open with a repositioned line at another location.

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A new location has not yet been selected, an official with the company said today.

In June, Gianfranco Ferre’s company made a move into real estate, signing a multi-billion-dollar joint venture agreement with developer GIO Developements to develop “couture architecture” worldwide, with the first project slated for Dubai.

A spokeswoman for Christian Dior could not be reached for comment.