A Milan-based fashion school with locations in Florence, Paris, London and Shanghai will soon open its first school in the United States in Miami’s Design District, The Real Deal has learned.
Istituto Marangoni signed a $13.5 million, 10-year lease for the Design District’s tallest building at 3701 Northeast Second Avenue.
Developer Alex Karakhanian of LNDMRK Development completed the building in December, and signed the lease about two months ago. Metro 1’s Tony Arellano and Andres Nava, along with Devlin Marinoff of Whitehall Realty Advisors, brokered the 22,000-square-foot lease for the seven-story Mason building, Arellano told TRD.
Metro 1 and Karakhanian declined to name the tenant, saying only that it is “high-profile, multi-national design institution,” and that this location marks the first in the U.S. for the tenant.
A rendering posted inside the building on Tuesday names the project as “Istituto Marangoni Miami.” In an Italian news article published last year, Marangoni’s managing director Roberto Riccio said Miami and Mumbai were the next locations. The Istituto Marangoni Advisory Committee also held its annual conference in Miami in January, according to the school’s website.
Marangoni, founded in 1935, is part of the Galileo Global Education group, which is owned by Providence, Rhode Island-based Providence Equity Partners. The private equity firm’s post-secondary education group includes brands Instituto de Estudios Universitarios, L’Institut Supérieur des Arts Appliqués (LISAA), l’Atelier de Sèvres and Macromedia University of Applied Sciences, according to its website. The schools offer programs in fine art, animation, game, graphic and motion design, interior design, fashion, communication, film and TV, gastronomy, tourism, education, law and business administration.
Marangoni could not immediately be reached for comment.
Arellano told TRD the tenant’s lease is for a blended rate of “around $60 triple net” for the multi-use space, including retail.
“They chose Miami and the Design District as one of their flagship markets, which I think is a huge testament to the neighborhood,” Arellano said.
The building, designed by Shulman + Associates, sits near the southeast entrance to the Design District, where tenants include Hermes, Tiffany & Co., Tom Ford, Louis Vuitton and Cartier. Developer Craig Robins has led the area’s transformation and plans to bring in the next wave of luxury tenants and restaurants, including Gucci, Alexander Wang and Warby Parker and Estefan Kitchen, a Cuban restaurant led by Gloria and Emilio Estefan.
Robins, president and CEO of Dacra, confirmed the school’s opening to TRD. “Bringing another great school to the Miami Design District is inspiring to all of us in the neighborhood,” he said. “This will be an important addition to the neighborhood.”