Juicy Couture is closing its Madison avenue store, citing high rents and falling sales. The flagship Juicy Couture store on 5th Avenue and 52nd Street, which continues to perform well, will be the main New York store now.
The division of Liz Claiborne Inc. has been paying $2 million in annual rent for its two-level, 3,300-square-foot store at Madison and 70th Street.
"It's been a lot to pay," said Edgar Huber, Juicy Couture's president. "The lease was signed at the height of commercial real estate in New York. Landlords will have to bring down prices. Nobody will be willing to pay them."
Madison Avenue is already blotted with vacancies and retailers ready to pack up and leave. There are 49 locations available from 59th to 79th streets, including 20 vacancies and 29 sites where retailers want out, according to Robert K. Futterman & Associates, retail real estate brokers.
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"People prefer the big store on Fifth Avenue, which is doing extremely well," Huber said. "The Madison location became a neighborhood store, not a high-traffic store. It was never extremely strong for us. It's important to have a store on Madison. It's prestigious, but $2 million [in rent] is too high. Our average transaction is not as high as our neighbors."
Huber said the Madison Avenue closing is "an exception" to the company's strategy of opening stores. The location is being marketed by Juicy Couture and its brokers.
According to the Real Estate Board of New York, rents on Madison Avenue have declined 8%, going from $1,066 in 2008 to $979 per square foot. It's still a very pricy area.
