Apparel

Are landlords on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue shooting themselves in the foot by demanding record new rents for the famed shopping address?    The availability rate on Fifth Avenue increased to 15.9% in the third quarter, up from about 10% from a year earlier, according to Cushman & Wakefield Inc., Bloomberg reported.    

Amid “sluggish retail conditions,” VF Corp.’s Under Armour division posted gains for the third quarter.   Under Armour’s net revenues increased 22% in third quarter 2016 ended Sept. 30, 2016, to $1.47 billion compared $1.20 billion for the same period last year. Net income increased 28% to $128 million, compared with $100 million for third quarter last year.  

Metropica, a 65-acre community planned for Sunrise, Florida, will begin building 370,000 sq. ft. of retail, dining, and entertainment space after getting the go-ahead from the town’s Planning and Zoning Committee.   Tenants waiting to fill the space include iPic Theaters, Anthropologie, Fogo de Chao, Kings Bowl, and Kona Grill. Also approved as part of this first phase of construction phase were a 345-unit apartment building, a 240-room hotel, and 140,000 sq. ft. of office space.  

Amazon is poised to become the biggest clothing retailer in the United States in 2017.   That’s according to a report by Cowen & Co., which sees the Internet giant’s clothing/accessories sales increasing some 30% next year to $28 billion, Geekwire.com reported, and to $62 billion in 2021.   Click here to read more.

Journeys’ new gifting program is primed to personalize the shopping experience among its young customer base.   While this segment is too young to carry credit cards, teens are digitally savvy and increasingly mobile-driven. Leveraging these factors, Journeys is launching an online and digital gift card program across three of its brands.   

Current retail thinking that the high and the low ends are driving the industry has gotten a boost from CBRE Group.   High street rents are off the charts worldwide, according to company’s just-released Global Retail Rents report. Rents in prime shopping locations during the second quarter were up 30% in Rome, 24%, 20% in Milan, and 14% in Sydney and New York.  

In an age when mall owners’ overriding challenge is what to do with the space left by departed department stores, one 50-year-old center in California landed a new one.   Penney last week opened a 119,000-sq.-ft. location at Inland Center in San Bernardino, joining co-anchors Macy’s, Sears, and Forever 21. The fully renovated space it occupies was last home to Gottshalks.   

Spence Diamonds is dropping anchor in the United States with an innovative store concept and unique product offering.    The diamond retailer will open a store in Austin, Texas, on Nov. 7, followed by a location in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 10. A store in Scottsdale, Arizona is planned for first quarter 2017, with additional markets to be announced soon.