The French luxury goods group Kering SA has secured a prestigious address.
On Monday evening, the group of companies, which includes the fashion houses Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta, announced the purchase of the commercial building at 715-717 Fifth Avenue in the heart of the US metropolis of New York. According to its own information, the group paid $963 million (885 million euros) for the property, which offers a total of around 10,700 square meters of usable space on several levels.
With the transaction, Kering said it acquired “an outstanding retail location on one of the most famous streets in the world.” The purchase was made as part of the group’s strategy to “secure particularly desirable locations for its fashion houses”. The group had recently purchased several properties in Paris and Tokyo.
Kering is not alone in the luxury segment with this approach. Shortly before the turn of the year, the Italian fashion group Prada SpA acquired an office and commercial building on Fifth Avenue for 425 million US dollars (388 million euros), which has housed a flagship store for the main Prada brand since 1997.