Cosmetics giant Estée Lauder is considering a move from its perch at the General Motors Building, and is in the market for a new headquarters as large as 500,000 square feet, sources told The Real Deal.
The 70-year-old company is scouting locations for new home that could see it consolidate the nearly 300,000 square feet it has at the GM Building [TRDataCustom], as well as roughly 150,000 square feet nearby at Jack Resnick & Sons’ 110 East 59th Street. Estée’s leases in those buildings expire in 2020 and 2018, respectively, according to CoStar.
Early last year, the company signed a 100,000-square-foot lease in Midtown South for its Aramis and Designer Fragrance division and digital/social media workers at 28-40 West 23rd Street, bringing its total there to 166,000 square feet. Those offices would stay put if the company does decide to relocate one or both of its Midtown offices, sources told TRD.
In December, the Commercial Observer reported that Estée had brought on CBRE to help explore the possibility of relocating from its longtime home at the GM Building. CBRE’s Stephen Siegel is now bringing the tenant to market, sources said, though the search is still in the early stages and has not yet zeroed in on particular buildings.
Siegel declined to comment. Any search is likely to swing through new buildings on the Far West Side and Downtown, where rents are significantly lower compared to the GM Building, located at 767 Fifth Avenue.
The 1.8 million-square-foot GM Building – owned by a partnership between Boston Properties, Soho China and the family of Brazilian investor Moise Safra – saw three leases inked last year north of $200 per square foot.