Seeing Double: Eyeglasses Company Almost Doubles Industry City Space
M Factory, the Brooklyn eyewear maker, has expanded its production facility at the six million-square-foot, mixed-use, Sunset Park, Brooklyn waterfront complex.
NEW YORK CITY—M Factory is nearly doubling the size of its production facility at 147 41st St. at Industry City in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. The eyewear manufacturer is expanding on the building’s fifth floor from 12,500 square feet to approximately 20,000 square feet.
Asking rents were not disclosed. However, a spokesperson from a leading commercial real estate analytics firm CoStar Group tells GlobeSt.com that across all of Industry City, industrial asking rents average about $19 per square foot and for office space average asking rents are estimated at around $35 per square foot.
Since arriving at Industry City in October 2016, M Factory has more than tripled its square footage, adding more than 50 employees.
“M Factory has found the partnership with Industry City to be of immense value as we grow at such a rapid pace,” says Tara Montoneri, managing director at M Factory. “We find talented local employees from the Innovation Lab and the consistent growth of the tenant community has allowed us to maintain the feeling of being in a family of makers that are striving to keep Brooklyn Made products thriving.”
The majority of M Factory’s full-time employees live in Brooklyn and approximately one quarter are from Sunset Park. The company continues to grow its workforce and is currently hiring for five to 10 new positions. The majority of M Factory’s workforce has been placed through Industry City’s Innovation Lab, an on-site workforce development center.
“Companies start with a small space and expand within the complex as they grow their business. We’re one of the only places in New York City able to provide tenants with this kind of flexibility,” says Andrew Kimball, CEO of Industry City. “For startups and small businesses, that flexibility is a huge amenity.”
Kathe Chase and Jeff Fein of Industry City’s in-house leasing team served as the brokers for the M Factory lease expansion.
Other companies and manufacturers at Industry City include footwear design and production company ESTAS BRANDS; swimwear manufacturer Malia Mills; fashion jewelry company Alexis Bittar; three lighting manufacturing companies, Roll & Hill, Juniper and Rich Brilliant Willing, and a wide range of food manufacturers.
The companies based at Industry City lease more than 1 million square feet of space and support more than 3,000 jobs, according to the developers.
Belvedere Capital, Jamestown and Angelo Gordon & Co. are continuing to redevelop the complex, which comprises 16 buildings and six million square feet of space. Over the past five years, Industry City has invested over $400 million into the property and leased more than three million square feet of space. Industry City states during this time period businesses at the property have grown an average of 100 jobs per month, more than tripling from 1,900 jobs since its launch in 2013 to 7,500 jobs today.