NEW YORK | 1 East 57th St (Louis Vuitton) | 485 FT | 25 FLOORS

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https://nypost.com/2023/04/27/louis-vuitton-luxury-brands-double-down-on-manhattan-retail/

Louis Vuitton to build new flagship as luxury retail booms in NYC





By Lois Weiss
April 27, 2023

The opening of the new Tiffany flagship this month at 727 Fifth Ave., and the upcoming new Rolex tower at 645 Fifth Ave., are part of a Manhattan retail revival.

Leading the way, LVMH is planning an entirely new building for the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and East 57th Street, which will become a glamorous new Louis Vuitton flagship.

Multiple sources tell The Post that LVMH has been hosting a “beauty contest” and interviewing “starchitects” to figure out who will design the next generation flagship offices and retail store for Louis Vuitton.

That’s one reason it signed a seven-year lease with Donald Trump to lease the 65,000-square-foot former Nike spot at 6 E. 57th St., which its own Tiffany’s brand is vacating right now as it moves back into its redeveloped flagship at The Landmark at 727 Fifth Ave.

LVMH intends to completely demolish both Louis Vuitton’s current and narrow 19-story structure, once home to the loopy Warner Bros. store, along with the smaller adjacent building to the north at 743 Fifth Ave., now occupied by its watch brand, Hublot

Louis Vuitton’s corner site does not have a height limit, experts say, and could be developed as-of-right with at least 122,700 square feet and perhaps nearly twice as much.

According to air rights consultant Brian Strout of TRIZ Advisory: “Any potential new larger building would just need to comply with the light and air setback requirements as you go higher.”

LVMH could also obtain transferable air rights from other properties, including the adjacent landmark at 5 E. 57th St. leased by its Kering-owned competitor, Yves Saint Laurent.

To come up with a project of around 230,000 square feet, M. Myers Mermel of Tenantwise, who also consults on air rights, suggests that along with a store and offices, LVMH could add a Soho House-like club, a restaurant and luxury spa to replace others that have closed nearby.

“A tower floorplate of an isosceles triangle could offer straight-on views of Central Park for the restaurant, spa, and hotel since the northern neighbor sets back above the 14th floor,” Mermel added of a new project with a potential height of roughly 34 stories. “The easiest path forward is just another stone blob to contain a block of retail alone, the solution which has been favored in that locale over the past century,” Mermel continued. “Let’s hope LVMH chooses to move us forward into the 21st century.”

One of the largest retail transactions this year was Louis Vuitton’s lease with Trump to take over the 65,000-square-foot former Nike space at 4-6 E. 57 St. for seven years — at what sources told The Post was a rent of $20 million — while the Louis Vuitton and Hublot buildings are demolished and rebuilt as one tower.

The fashion house’s sister LVMH company, Tiffany, has been subleasing the space connected to Trump Tower while the redevelopment of its own store on the southeast corner of Fifth Avenue is completed. Its grand opening is now scheduled for April 28.