HOME TO HOG HOUSES no more, the meatpacking district is gaining ground as an edgy fashion hub. As Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week celebrates its last season at Bryant Park this Thursday, and designers look for fresh spaces to host their runway shows, the meatpacking district is becoming a likely tiffany bracelets.
Indeed, event space Milk Studios, located at 450 W. 15th St., is hosting 32 fashion shows next week, up from 30 last September.
“As the tents move farther uptown, we feel it’s our duty not to alienate the designers, showrooms and people that are downtown,” says Mazdack Rassi, Milk’s founder and creative director.
The meatpacking district, which has become a magnet for fashion stalwarts like Diane von Furstenberg and trendsetters like Alexander McQueen, was in danger of losing its edge as it became a touristy spot filled with revelers looking for nightlife kicks. But the arrival of the High Line elevated park and the Standard Hotel and plans for a Whitney Museum outpost have helped revitalize the area and attract new visitors and tenants.
“Two to three years ago, the neighborhood had become a bridge and tunnel tiffany cufflinks,” says Jared Epstein, a vice president at Aurora Capital Associates. “Luckily, that all changed with the Standard Hotel and the High Line. They brought the cool factor back.”
M.A.C. attack
THE AREA’S STANDING AS one of the Big Apple’s fashion bases was reinforced last September when M.A.C. Cosmetics, formerly the official cosmetics sponsor of the IMG-produced shows at Bryant Park, instead partnered for Fashion Week with Milk Studios, which provides free venues for designers.
In addition, while IMG has Mercedes-Benz as a title sponsor, Milk now has rival BMW. This fall, Milk, along with the Meatpacking District Initiative, will hold various promotional events with restaurants and retailers in the neighborhood to celebrate Fashion Week and draw in traffic just as the IMG tents move uptown to Lincoln Center.
“We’ll take on the downtown fashion efforts as a community,” says Annie Washburn, executive director of the seven-year-old neighborhood group, which has an annual operating budget of about $500,000.
More designers moving in
WHILE THE AREA already houses boutiques belonging to the likes of Tory Burch, Rag & Bone and Vince, brokers say still more fashion firms are sniffing out retail and design space. Menswear house Canali, Anthropologie’s Leifsdottir label and Diesel’s Viktor & Rolf are rumored to be looking in the area, and Levi’s recently signed for over 2,000 square feet on West 14th Street.
“We’ve seen many tenants look at the meatpacking district because they like the vibe and the energy it sends,” says Robin Abrams, executive vice president at the Lansco Corp.
To meet the growing demand for space in an area that has few high-rises and office-ready buildings, developers are stepping up. Romanoff Equities was approved in November to begin construction of a 10-story tower at 860 Washington St., which will be one of the tallest in the neighborhood. Aurora Capital just received landmark approval to redevelop 20,000-square-foot 21-27 Ninth Ave., at 13th Street, which was once a hog-cutting plant and will house tenants by January. The acquisition and redevelopment total about $150 million, Mr. tiffany earrings says.
All the action means that designers seeking space will still have to contend with high rents, despite a punishing recession that has driven prices down in other Manhattan areas. While asking rents for the upper floors designers use as showrooms in midtown are around $30 a square foot, showroom space in the meatpacking district ranges from $50 to $70 a square foot. Ground floor retail rents for the area have also stayed strong, at a hefty $300 to $400 a square foot.
Worth the extra dough
“IT’S NOT FOR EVERY TENANT,” says David Falk, president of the New York Tri-state region at Newmark Knight Frank Retail, who is marketing a new space at 15 Little West 12th St. “It’s for those with a strong balance sheet who want to make their business all about the brand.”
Gaby Basora, a fashion designer who makes blouses under the Tucker label selling at stores including Barneys New York, decided the rent increase was worth it for her $3 million business.
She moved her design studio from midtown to West 14th Street 18 months ago, and now pays about $10 more a square foot for her 1,800-square-foot space, which also acts as her headquarters. Similarly, Alice & Olivia and Helmut Lang have each recently signed leases for office space in the neighborhood.
“The place where you’re walking to take your coffee break every day or to meet someone for a tiffany key lunch that all plays into what feeds you and drives you and inspires you,” says Ms. Basora.