High-end fashion brands, a popular Taiwanese restaurant chain and a cannabis museum were among the tenants who inked Manhattan’s 10 largest retail leases last year.
French retailer Printemps topped the list with a splashy 54,000-square-foot lease at Harry Macklowe’s 1 Wall Street, followed by a pair of fashion brands who signed major deals in Lower Manhattan and Midtown.
Manhattan’s retail market showed signs of recovery in the latter half of the year, although leasing activity and average asking rents remain lower than they were before the pandemic. Across 16 “prime” retail corridors in the borough tracked by CBRE, asking rents rose 2.2 percent from the second quarter to the third — the first quarterly increase since 2016.
Ground-floor vacancies across those same 16 corridors have decreased for five consecutive quarters, with retailers taking advantage of concessions to pounce on once-unaffordable spaces on Madison Avenue and in Soho.
Below is more information on each of Manhattan’s top 10 retail leases of 2022, ranked by square footage:
1. Printemps | 1 Wall Street, Financial District | 54,000 square feet
Printemps snapped up 54,000 square feet in September for its first permanent U.S. location at 1 Wall Street, Harry Macklowe’s massive office-to-condo conversion project in the Financial District. The French luxury department store chain is expected to open at the 51-story tower in the spring of next year.
2. Alexander Wang | 11 Fulton Street. South Street Seaport | 46,000 square feet
Fashion brand Alexander Wang inked a 15-year lease in July for the entire 46,000-square-foot top floor of Howard Hughes’ Fulton Market Building at 11 Fulton Street in the South Street Seaport district. The space will be both as a showroom and as the brand’s headquarters.
A CBRE team including Mary Ann Tighe and Gerry Miovski represented Howard Hughes while BlackRE’s Sean Black represented Alexander Wang in the deal.
3. Aritzia | 608 Fifth Avenue, Midtown | 33,000 square feet
Canadian women’s fashion brand Aritzia signed a 12-year lease in June for 33,000 square feet formerly occupied by Topshop at 608 Fifth Avenue, where it’s relocating from a 13,000-square-foot space on the same block at 600 Fifth Avenue. The asking rent was $700 per square foot.
CBRE’s Andrew Goldberg and Jared Lack represented the landlord, Omnispective, while Newmark’s Ariel Schuster and Jason Wecker represented Aritzia in the deal.
4. Michaels | 675 Sixth Avenue, Chelsea | 32,000 square feet
National chain Michaels reupped for 32,000 square feet in August on the ground floor at 675 Sixth Avenue in Chelsea, where the arts and crafts retailer has been since 2014. Its landlord, GFP Real Estate’s Jeffrey Gural, represented both sides of the deal.
5. Adidas | 610 Broadway, Noho | 30,600 square feet
Global sportswear brand Adidas renewed the 30,600-square-foot lease on its three-story flagship store at 610 Broadway in Noho for another 10 years in December. A JLL team including Erin Grace and Patrick Smith represented landlord LaSalle Investment Management, while Adidas was represented in-house.
6. House of Cannabis | 427 Broadway, Soho | 30,000 square feet
Las Vegas nightclub owner Robert Frey signed a 10-year lease in August on 30,000 square feet for an immersive experience called the House of Cannabis at Chetrit Group’s 427 Broadway in Soho. The space will include rotating art exhibitions showcasing the cultural influence of the plant, though the buds will not be available for sale.
7. Five Iron Golf | 101 Park Avenue, Murray Hill | 30,000 square feet
Five Iron Golf inked a 15-year agreement in September for 30,000 square feet at 101 Park Avenue near Grand Central Terminal. The indoor virtual golf links experience’s third-floor setup is expected to open this fall.
Cushman & Wakefield’s John Cefaly and Nicholas Dysenchuk represented the landlord, HJ Kalikow & Company, while CBRE’s Anthony Dattoma and Compass’ Jason Goode represented Five Iron Golf in the deal.
8. LAZ Parking | 310 West 39th Street, Garment District | 27,000 square feet
Garage operator LAZ Parking agreed to a 10-year lease for 27,000 square feet in August at 310 West 39th Street in the Garment District. Newmark’s Brian Ezratty represented both the landlord, GFP Real Estate, and the parking garage in the deal. GFP’s Allen Gurevich also represented the landlord.
9. Din Tai Fung | 1633 Broadway, Midtown | 26,400 square feet
Taiwanese restaurant chain Din Tai Fung signed a 15-year lease on 26,400 square feet for its first New York City location at Paramount Group’s 1633 Broadway in Midtown in February. It’s expected to open at the base of the 48-story tower this year.
10. Museum of Women | 480 Broadway, Soho | 25,400 square feet
Another former Topshop outpost, KPG Funds’ 480 Broadway in Soho, became home to the Museum of Women, which signed on for 25,400 square feet across three levels in April.
Norman Bobrow’s Josh Berger represented the museum in the deal, while a RIPCO team including Richard Skulnik and Lindsay Zegans represented KPG Funds.
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