Among the hardest hit by Covid were retail businesses across the country, including in once-coveted, well known shopping areas like New York City’s Fifth Avenue.
What used to be a shoppers paradise has now simply turned into a “battleground between landlords and tenants seeking a way out of pricey leases”, Bloomberg reported this week. In addition to a huge drop off in tourists, shops have also been hard hit by a lack of working citizens passing by to and from their daily commute to work.
Well known tenants like the National Basketball Association, Valentino and Marc Fisher are all in the midst of legal battles over unpaid rent. Landlords along a 20 block radius of Fifth Avenue, in sum, are owned about $200 million.
The NBA has kept its store at 545 Fifth Avenue closed and owes $8 million in back rent, the report says. Valentino simply walked away from its property at 693 Fifth Avenue and is now battling its landlord in court over the rest of its 8 year lease. Marc Fisher is currently in the midst of a lawsuit with its landlord, the Trump Organization, over $1 million in missed rent that dates back to November.
Armani may not retain its real estate near 56th Street after its lease runs out in two years and Abercrombie and Fitch, across the street, says it hasn’t decided on its future. – READ MORE
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