This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
GLOBAL fashion brand Forever 21 has opened its first Sydney CBD store at the Investa Office's Sydney Arcade at 400 George St.
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:”;
mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0cm;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”;
mso-fareast-language:EN-US;}
Forever 21 signed a 10-year lease over 2,656 sqm in September last year. The space spans three interconnected levels from lower ground to level 1, with prime St-level frontage to Pitt St Mall.
The space was previously occupied by Adidas, Glue and Billabong and has been amalgamated with an additional 1,200 sqm of lower ground storage space activated for retail use.
The new store is Forever 21’s third and largest Australian venture following Brisbane and Sydney’s Macquarie Centre.
Investa`s general manager Sydney CBD portfolio Greg Long said the opening of Forever 21’s Australian flagship store marks the completion of the first phase of the retail strategy at 400 George St and Sydney Arcade.
400 George St is a 51,034 sqm office tower and retail arcade jointly owned by Investa Property Trust, Investa Commercial Property Fund and M&G Asia Property Fund. The Sydney Arcade incorporates over 5,000 sqm of prime retail space.
“Our ability to capitalise on the activation of more than 1,000 sqm of basement storage to create the three level space with escalators directly off Pitt St Mall has enabled the owners to capture significant capital value uplift,” he added.
Forever 21 vice president of merchandising Linda Chang said Pitt St is a prime location for its third store in Australia and the retailer`s growth in Australia has been rewarding.
Investa`s group executive of commercial development and leasing Michael Cook said 400 George St continues to go from strength to strength following the leasing of 30,000 sqm to Telstra.
“As a result of Telstra occupying the office tower, they have undertaken substantial upgrades to their office space and completed the first Discovery Store on the corner of George and King Sts, in the space formerly occupied by Darrell Lea.
“In addition, landlord works have included a ground floor lobby refurbishment incorporating oversized dynamic screens, a café and espresso bar, connectivity to the Discovery Store, and community-based art displays in the King St entrance,” Cook concluded.
Australian Property Journal
