Neiman Marcus is closing its massive flagship store at Hudson Yards just weeks after filing for bankruptcy in May and a little over a year after first opening at the development. The retailer will also permanently close three other locations, two stores in Florida and one in Washington, according to the Dallas Morning News. Hudson Yards developers Related Companies and Oxford Properties have already started marketing the 190,000-square-foot space as office space.
“We have carefully analyzed all of the changes that have occurred in the retail environment as a result of COVID-19,” Amber Seikaly, vice president of Neiman Marcus, told the Real Deal in a statement. “Customers are and will continue to shop differently than they did prior to the pandemic.”
“A physical location in Hudson Yards is no longer an ideal space for us given the preponderance of restaurants and future office space in that mall.”
As 6sqft previously reported, the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed by Neiman Marcus allows them to end the lease at the Hudson Yards mall without penalty. Related spent about $80 million on the nearly 200,000-square-foot space, which anchored the seven-story shopping mall.
WWD reported in June that Facebook is in talks to take over the vacated Neiman Marcus space, but no deal has been made public yet. Last year, Facebook leased 1.5 million square feet of office space across 30 Hudson Yards, 55 Hudson Yards, and 50 Hudson Yards. Most of the space, about 1.2 million square feet, is at 50 Hudson Yards, which is expected to open in 2022.
Related is marketing other retail spaces on the top floors of the mall as well, according to The Real Deal. This totals 380,000 square feet or roughly 40 percent of the entire shopping center.
“It is unfortunate that Neiman Marcus was unable to achieve the success that other retailers have found at Hudson Yards and we look forward to welcoming the designer brands who drove Neiman Marcus’ sales to their own stores in the retail center,” a Related spokesman told CNBC in a statement.
“This opens up a great opportunity to create incredibly attractive office space with the largest floor plates available in New York City, a private ground floor entrance, and 18 foot high ceilings at 20 Hudson Yards.”