La Brea Is L.A.’s Newest Retail Destination

The stretch of La Brea between 1^st Street and 2^nd Street is becoming L.A.’s newest retail destination for boutique retailers. The block now has 18 boutique shops, according to research from JLL, and 10 of those shops are exclusive to the California market. This retail demand is driven by new residential activity, especially from young professionals who are moving to the area in response to rising rents in West Hollywood. To find out more about the retail growth, we sat down with Greg Briest, an associate at JLL, for an exclusive interview.

GlobeSt.com: Why is La Brea becoming a growing hub for retail boutiques?

Greg Briest: American Rag, Stussy, and Union have long been the institutions on the street since the early 90’s. Eddie Cruz of Stussy and Union was a pioneer on the street, eventually opening sneaker head paradise Undefeated in the early 2000’s. When Madison Marquette came along and developed their District La Brea project spanning 80,000 square feet of retail, they did a tremendous job curating their project with retailers including Bonobos, Garrett Leight, Aether, Steven Alan, A+R, Gant and bringing Undefeated over to their project to double their size. Over the years, this helped to influence new retailers to come to the street, including OVO, Fjallraven, SENE Studio, Arc’Teryx, Best Made, Stone Island, Trading Post, STAMPD, Reigning Champ, Champion, Schott NYC and Y-3.

GlobeSt.com: What types of retail tenants are heading to this area?

Briest: There’s been a tremendous focus on urban streetwear brands as well as outdoor gear companies that have come to the street. When Undefeated opened, it really impacted the culture of the street in a tremendous way to help bring a new and diverse clientele. La Brea is also home though to some of top restaurants in Los Angeles, including Republique, Odys & Penelope, Sycamore Kitchen, Sugarfish, and the addition of Bluestone Lane and Sweetgreen to add some more casual dining.

GlobeSt.com: How has the demand impacted rental rates and leasing negotiations?

Briest: The demand to be on the prime block of La Brea between 1st and 2nd Street has driven rent rates on the street to as high as $7-$8 per square foot. I think in the long run, this high demand will start to force some great tenants to look just North of 1st Street as OVO did and really help La Brea to grow its walkable footprint towards Beverly.

GlobeSt.com: What is availability of space like in this area, and what is your advice to tenants looking to lease space here?

Briest: This portion of the street really only features one vacancy at the moment. The advice that I try to give clients who want to come to La Brea is to try to find a common balancing act. If you have to be on the prime block between 1st and 2nd, you’ll need to be patient as most of the current tenants in place have recently signed long term deals and there probably will not be a tremendous amount of movement for a while, and if there is, there will be competition willing to pay the higher rates. If you are comfortable going just outside of the block, you’ll find better deals and better opportunities. The beautiful thing about La Brea is that it doesn’t stop here. Rick Owens opened his flagship location North of Melrose on an island near Jet Rag because he ultimately knew that the people would come to him. If you go south of 3rd and North of Beverly, you’ll find some of the best fitness operators who really cater more to the local residents including Modo Yoga L.A., The Den, Urban Exhale, Fit Mix, Barre Belle, and Orange Theory Fitness. Even South of Wilshire you’ll find QSR standouts Top Round and L.A.’s first Trejo’s Tacos.

GlobeSt.com: What is you outlook for this area over the next three years?

Briest: The outlook is beyond bright. There is a tremendous amount of residential and retail development occurring on La Brea spanning from Pico to Santa Monica Blvd. that will only help to grow the prime shopping district at the heart of it all. As the CIM group finishes their major developments on both La Brea and Sycamore, a new mixed-use renovation being finalized adjacent to Sycamore Kitchen, as well as the entry of One Up Fitness north of Melrose, we’ll see the area not only continue to thrive, but to grow into one of L.A.’s most exciting and prominent corridors.