By Linda O’Flanagan
Foot Locker is set to open its third store on 34th Street.
The specialist in sports-related footwear leased the entire building at 142 West 34th Street for a new Kids Foot Locker.
The retailer was so eager to secure the space, it will leave three of the building’s five floors empty, selling from built out space on the first and second floors when it takes occupancy in August.
“That’s the way the building came,” said Jason Pruger, managing director at Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, who represented the landlord with colleague Kenji Ota. “They had to take the upper floors.
“Foot Locker already has other locations on the block, which is hugely popular with shoe retailers because of the high traffic,” added Pruger, noting that asking rents for retail space on the Herald Square block range from $500 to $600 psf.
Mark Finkelstein, of Retail Strategies, represented Foot Locker in the 15-year lease for the space, which was previously occupied by gadget seller, Brookstone.
Finkelstein said, “Foot Locker does have a big presence on 34th Street and they want to maintain it. It has proven to be a terffic location for them with its combination of shopping among tourists, locals and office workers.ˮ
Loeb & Loeb LLP real estate partner Michael B. Kinney represented the landlord, a privately-owned company, in the transaction.
Headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, Foot Locker, Inc. is the successor corporation to Woolworth’s and many of its freestanding stores are former Woolworth’s locations, according to Wikepeida.
The retail chain operates some 3,921 primarily mall-based stores across the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
