W&H Pushes Big Block of Herald Square Retail

NEW YORK CITY-The opportunity for a big block of retail at one of the world's most heavily trafficked intersections doesn't come along every day, and that's why W&H Properties is launching a global push for just such a block. It's the three-level space at 112 W. 34th St., directly opposite Macy's in Herald Square, encompassing nearly 90,000 square feet and currently occupied mainly by Foot Locker, which will vacate it in 2015. Joanne Podell, vice chairman at Cushman & Wakefield, is marketing the space on behalf of W&H.

“This is a worldwide outreach because no other space availability in recent memory offers a comparable scope of opportunity for an international retailer,” says Anthony Malkin, president of Malkin Holdings, which supervises the W&H portfolio. “In terms of visibility, pedestrian traffic, easy access to multiple transit lines and proximity to the world's largest department store, there is nothing like it.”

It's estimated that 100 million pedestrians traverse the 34th Street shopping corridor each year, to say nothing of the 20 million who shop at Macy's or the 233 million who come in and out of Penn Station each year. Nor does a potential shopper have to be there in person: the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade draws an estimated 50 million television viewers nationwide.

The available retail block encompasses 28,651 square feet on the second floor, 23,888 square feet on the ground floor and 36,990 square feet on the lower level. It offers unusually high slab-to-slab clear heights and a dedicated loading dock.

Foot Locker, which has other locations along 34th Street, recently leased an entire building at 142 W. 34th St. for a Kids Foot Locker store. It's also headquartered at 112 W. 34th.

“The street's strength and the versatility of consumers it attracts appeals to global tenants of all sizes,” Malkin adds.  “For example, Swatch Group recently opened an 'Hour Passion' concept store at the building, in a space leased at $1,000 per square foot.” Rents along the corridor are in the range of $500 to $600 per square foot.