New York & Tri-State + Retail | April 12, 2021

Manhattan Retail Seeing Signs for Optimism

Manhattan’s retail market is finally seeing the light at end of the tunnel with the reopening of  indoor dining, malls, arts and entertainment and sporting events, along with the rapid acceleration of vaccinations, CBRE reported.

 “After facing many challenges for over a year due to the global pandemic, retailers and consumers are finally seeing signs for optimism,” said Nicole LaRusso, CBRE senior director, Research & Analysis. “The acceleration in vaccinations as well as the additional federal stimulus should reinvigorate in-store spending in Manhattan in the months ahead.”

 That being said, leasing velocity in Manhattan decelerated again during the first quarter of 2021, marking seven consecutive quarters of decline and increasing the number of available spaces in Manhattan’s 16 prime retail corridors from 264 to 275. As a result, the average asking rent in these retail corridors dropped 13.4% year-over-year and 5.1% quarter-over-quarter to $618 per square foot. 

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 13-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 15-20 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).

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