Amid the dismal “For Rent” signs on store facades in downtown White Plains, there are signs of life.
Sisters-in-law and entrepreneurs Anny Martinez and Jessica Martinez recently opened Coquette New York, a specialty boutique at 207 E. Post Road.
In an area where many had shuttered, they saw opportunity.
“It”™s like the second New York City,” Jessica said. “You do see a lot of ”˜For Rent”™ signs, but I see a lot of growth in the area.”
Anny worked for several years as an advertising sales executive in White Plains and said she witnessed the marked growth of the city, namely the Ritz-Carlton and Trump Tower.
Jessica had worked as a business manager for MAC Cosmetics at Nordstrom.
They said they saw a void in specialty boutiques in the area and wanted to fill the niche.
“We custom make a lot of our stuff and have an in-store designer,” Anny said. “We carry a lot of stuff from Los Angeles and bring in brands that people don”™t recognize in New York.”
Coquette, meaning “flirt” in French, offers women”™s apparel but the owners say they are exploring the idea of filling basement space with a Coquette Shoes.
The duo plan to host private events in-store and offer makeup application services.
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The boutique”™s location should heighten business, Jessica said, because of the number of salons on East Post Road ”“ about four, she said.
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They are already working to partner with salons for prom season and wedding packages.
As for cost of construction, Anny said “we got really lucky.” The lighting and floors were already finished, she said, so the Martinezes”™ costs were less than $50,000.
Realtor Gerry Houlihan of Houlihan & O”™Malley Real Estate Services and owner of Houlihan Business Brokers Inc., both in Bronxville, brokered the deal.
Months before Coquette opened, the spot had been slated for a sushi restaurant but the deal fell through.
“We put it back on the market in April 2009 and negotiated in August,” Houlihan said. “The landlord did a little work for them. They brought it down to $32 per square foot. Before, we were at $40.”
Curves for Women fitness center was a previous tenant.
Anny said they first looked on Mamaroneck Avenue, but the rent was about “double.”
Houlihan said some spots on Mamaroneck are fetching up to $50 a square foot, but on some side streets, “rents are down and there are still a lot (of spaces) on the market.”
Houlihan predicts continued activity downtown if landlords are reasonable.
Ron Blacks, a restaurant and bar, recently opened directly next to The Brazen Fox, which is owned too by Rory Dolan and Declan Rainsford; other establishments that recently opened include: Eau De Luxe, Texas-based Beal Bank, Panera Bread, Full Moon Asian Thai Restaurant and Haiku Asian Bistro.
“It really depends on what block you”™re on,” Houlihan said of vacancies and price per square foot in rent. “In my opinion, the best place to be on Mamaroneck Avenue is between Old Post Road and Maple Avenue. There really are no empty stores there.”
