Fashion designer Yigal Azrouël is bringing his eponymous women’s wear brand to Madison Avenue. The new boutique, set to open in the fall, will be located at 1011 Madison Avenue, on the corner of East 78th Street.
The boutique will be relocating from its flagship store at 408 West 14th Street in the Meatpacking District, where it has been a retail presence since 2003.
The corner retail space at 1011 Madison Avenue was previously home to women’s fashion retailer Luca Luca.
“It is always my goal in retail leasing to find the perfect location and tenant match. Working with Yigal posed an even greater challenge as retail opportunities that match his refined sensibilities and taste are few and far between,” said Winick Realty Group LLC Executive Vice President Lori Shabtai, who worked with Associate Director Kelly Gedinsky for two years to find the ideal location for Azrouël’s boutique.
Shaun Moamem of Plaza Realty represented landlord Dr. Soufer in the lease.
“Fashion has moved to the north end of Madison Avenue,” said Gedinsky, citing neighboring tenants like Missoni, Intermix, Sandro, and J. Crew, who opened men’s and women’s stores on the Northwest and Northeast corners of East 79th Street. “The Madison Avenue clientele is a perfect fit for Yigal’s brand.”
The clothier will occupy 900 square feet of ground-floor space, as well as 900 square feet in the basement. Azrouël collaborated closely with NY-based design artist Dror Benshetrit on the creative concept.
“A modern, modular and scalable concept was what I envisioned for the Madison store; an aesthetic that is sleek yet with warmth. I have been looking for some time on Madison and this store was what I was waiting for,” said Azrouël, who serves as president and creative director of the company.
“When we saw this jewel box corner store, we knew it was perfect for our retail strategy,” said Donata Minelli Yirmiyahu, CEO of Yigal Azrouël Inc. “The store, which will bear the new design concept for shop-in-shops and international retail opportunities, will offer a tightly-edited, ‘best of the best’ assortment including exclusives in a handful of product ranges.”
“Yigal’s patience and superb ability to execute made this two-year mission a success and allowed us to find an incredible Madison Avenue location that is perfect for his brand,” added Shabtai. “We look forward to the opening of the new Yigal Azrouël Boutique in fall 2012, along with the many other seasons and collections to come.”
Born and raised in Israel of French–Moroccan descent and having traveled to locations metropolitan and remote, Yigal Azrouël draws inspiration from everything and everywhere: art, culture, architecture, nature and his hometown, New York City.
