Star Chef, Brick & Timber Join Up on SF Jackson Square Buy

Storefronts in historic Jackson Square are hot — and a luxury alternative to Union Square.

While Ralph Lauren has returned to San Francisco with a new store at 441 Jackson Street, restaurateur Peter Hemsley and the Brick & Timber Collective have paid $32.4 million for a 15,600-square-foot store and building at 530 Jackson Street, the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Francisco Business Times reported.

The tony district that harkens back to the Gold Rush has seen an influx of luxury retailers like Paul Smith, Isabel Marant and Zimmermann. At the same time, many retailers have left nearby Union Square, with an exit planned by Macy’s.

New York-based Ralph Lauren had a store at 2040 Fillmore Street, which closed in 2020. It also had a location in the Crocker Galleria that shuttered in 2013.

Its new store, which replaces a Senreve apparel shop, was designed to reflect the rich history of Jackson Square, with a contemporary twist, an unidentified Ralph Lauren spokesperson told the Chronicle. It’s dark green, with hand-painted gold leaf and brass signs, along with stained oak floors and white-painted brick walls.

Terms of the lease, as well as the owner of the building, were not disclosed.

“The opening of Polo Ralph Lauren in Jackson Square is a testament to the neighborhood’s growing appeal as a premier destination for retail,” Robbie Silver, CEO of the Downtown SF Partnership, said in a statement.

It was Hemsley who announced last year he would shut down the Michelin-starred Aphotic, pointing the blame squarely to its location in South of Market.

“There are few left in San Francisco that aspire to provide services like we do at Aphotic, and the smart and lucky ones in the pack are located in the right storefront, on the right block, and in the right part of town,” he wrote on Instagram.

Now Hemsley seems to have found that right location.

In a deal that closed last week, he and the locally based Brick & Timber bought the Jackson Street storefront a block from the Ralph Lauren shop for $2,075 per square foot, the Business Times reported, citing public records and unidentified sources.

The seller of the four-story office and retail building was the McAleese family, which has run the former Kells Irish Pub and Restaurant and occupied its ground floor for more than two decades.

Brick & Timber plans to revamp the building, and keep it for the long haul, according to founder Glenn Gilmore.

Partner Jesse Feldman described Hemsley as “a world-class culinary talent,” and said the pair mutually felt the building would serve as “a special location for the next chapter in his story,” according to a statement.

It’s not clear whether the chef intends to revive Aphotic, or launch a new restaurant.

Jackson Square has emerged as a bright spot in Downtown San Francisco. Former Apple designer Jony Ive has spent almost $100 million buying up buildings in the area. There’s also Michael Shvo’s $1 billion bet on the Transamerica Pyramid.

Brick & Timber, founded in 2013 by Glenn Gilmore, developed its chops turning Gold Rush-era warehouses into offices for venture capitalists along the North Waterfront. With nine buildings in Jackson Square, the Jackson Square-based collective is “arguably the predominant real estate investor” in the North Waterfront, partner Jesse Feldman told The Real Deal last month.

In December, the firm bought an eight-story 115,600-square-foot building at 500 Washington Street for $32.7 million, or $282 per square foot, TRD reported.

— Dana Bartholomew