According to Cresa Partners/New York principal Marcus Rayner, who worked on Asprey's behalf in arranging 28,000-sf long-term lease, the deal marks one of the largest retail transactions on Fifth Avenue to date. The four-level American flagship on the corner of 56th Street will have a new address, 723 Fifth Ave (its current street number is 737 Fifth Ave). A new façade will encompass the entire corner of the building with 70 feet of avenue frontage rising up 40 feet. No details of the lease have been disclosed. The new space includes the 9,000 sf Asprey currently occupies in the 68-story bronze mirror tower plus an additional 19,000 additional sf.
While Asprey's space search has been one of the retail sector's worst kept secrets for more than a year, the word on the street last summer was that Trump Tower would get the nod. "When you're building a brand you have to be very careful and really test what size space you want and what location you need," Rayner tells GlobeSt.com. "It took a long time to finish because we were out in the market testing what the locations might be.
"Opportunities to secure retail sties of this size and importance are rare," notes Asprey US CEO Philip Warner. "This deal marks the first significant step for the development of the Asprey brand in the US." The new space will be designed by architect Sir Norman Foster and English interior designer David Mlinaric, both of whom were heavily involved in the renovation of Asprey's London flagship, set to open in Fall 2003.
Rayner adds that while Sept. 11 "caused everybody to rethink what they were doing," in the end it didn't affect the decision. "We always considered this particular space. It's such a prime position for luxury goods retailing." But it wasn't until the Ferragamo decided to unite its men's and women's stores under one roof at its 661 Fifth Ave. headquarters in September that the Asprey deal turned the corner. Ferragamo is expected to pick up stakes in September.
"The availability of the Ferragamo store allowed Asprey the opportunity to build the presence it wanted, and negotiating a deal at Trump Tower then became a very attractive option," Rayner notes. "The entire store will be rebuilt. They're expanding northwards on the ground floor and second floor and then going up on the third floor." The build out is expected to be finished by October 2003.
According to Rayner, many high-end Fifth Avenue retailers were setting their sights on Madison Avenue or East 57th Street locations in the late '90s when "Fifth Avenue became famous for a variety of theme retailers. It looked as though they had taken over the avenue. There was a feeling among the luxury brands that 57th Street or Madison Avenue might be better for luxury goods."
Prices in those areas began to rise but "it turned out not to be the case." Retailers such as Escada, Hugo Boss, Dunhill and now Asprey "recognized that Fifth Avenue is a better location for luxury brands, both in terms of recognition and pedestrian traffic."
Founded in 1781, Asprey is in the process of expanding its jewelry, silver and leather lines to include watches, writing instruments and fashion accessories.
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