Greenwich Avenue lets go of past

A woman walks by a fur-wearing mannequin in the window of Saks Fifth Avenue on Greenwich Avenue in downtown Greenwich. Over the years, many local businesses on the street have been replaced by super high-end stores, changing the look and feel of the downtown area. Photo by Tyler Sizemore

BY MAGGIE GORDON
Hearst Connecticut Media

Like everything else in the world, Greenwich Avenue grew from the dirt.

It has been centuries since the Avenue began its life as a small cow path called Piping Lane. In that time, it has evolved from the home of two livery stables that housed about 50 horses each to a buzzing business center for local shopkeepers ”“ and then a showcase of high-end retailers, redefining itself at every turn.

The Avenue now seems to be at yet another tipping point.

“When Hermes came in, that set a new standard for Greenwich Avenue because it’s really a very high-end, exclusive shop,” said Ron Brien, of Allied Property, who handles fistfuls of leases on the Avenue. “We were always evolving into a place for high-end national stores, but in the last 12 months, there’s been interest from the highest-end retail around.”

Right now, Brien said, about a dozen luxury stores are seeking out a spot on Greenwich Avenue. While he said he couldn’t divulge who was in the mix, there were rumors earlier this year of interest from Louis Vuitton, and Brien did say he has heard from “stores typically on Madison Avenue ”“ European designers.”

Rodeo Drive?

Days after opening the doors at 125 Greenwich Ave., Brad Walker, of luxury jewelry store Shreve, Crump & Low, described the street as one of the premiere spots to expand a luxury brand in all of the country.

“The Avenue, being what it is now, it’s almost like a mini Rodeo Drive here,” Walker said as he showcased an 11.3-carat diamond ring priced at $1.6 million. “This is one of the premiere spots to come shop for jewelry in all the country.”

These days, it seems that stores like Shreve, Crump & Low or Hermes are the only ones that can afford to find a space for themselves on the street. Back in 2001, just a few short months after Tiffany & Co. joined the Avenue, and five years after Saks Fifth Avenue replaced Woolworth’s at 205 Greenwich Ave., rents hovered between around $75 per square foot, with prime corner spots going for closer to $90 ”“ a huge increase from the $20-per-foot expected in the 1980s, with prime locations going for $35 a foot.

Shoppers walk along Greenwich Avenue. Photo by Tyler Sizemore

It was enough to push out Al Franklin’s Musical World, a record and CD shop that had stood tall at 163 Greenwich Ave. for more than two decades, even though the store’s business had increased by more than 250 percent in the previous five years.

“We met our goals, but the real estate prices are unrealistic now,” owner Bruce Franklin told the Greenwich Time back then. “We didn’t expect this real estate frenzy.”

And 13 years later, the frenzy is back.

Now, Brien said rents range between about $80 and $150 a foot. Hot blocks, like the section between Lewis Street and Havemeyer Lane, called the 200 block or the Ave.’s “50-yard line” depending on who you talk to, commands prices in the upper reaches of that spectrum, beginning at about $110 per foot.

History repeating itself

It’s been enough to push out local retailers over and over again. The historic Finch’s pharmacy, which sat on the corner of Greenwich Avenue and Havemeyer Lane for generations, now houses a Starbucks that sold out of sterling-silver holiday gift cards earlier this month. And the Baccarat shop replaced a T-shirt store in the 1990s. The New York Times reported in 1997 that Baccarat paid $81 per square foot for its 730-square-foot space (a total of $59,130) at 238 Greenwich Ave., up from the T-shirt company’s rate in the $50 range.

While there are still a few mom-and-pop shops around ”“ like Greenwich Hardware, which has lived on the Avenue since 1904 ”“ it is getting harder and harder for these small operations to keep their footing. And as leases come up for renewal, the likelihood is many will fold, creating more room for the Rodeo Drive set.

“It’s a sore spot for a lot of the old-time residents who really prefer the old Greenwich Avenue, when it was more local and not national,” said Brien. “A lot of residents wish it was that way still, but it’s about demand and supply, and there seems to be a greater demand over the years for the high-end national tenants.”

These big names are attracted by the wealth that surrounds Greenwich, and many are willing to shell out for the high rents, with the promise of one of the nation’s most affluent communities flooding the streets with open pocketbooks (possibly purchased at Longchamp, 272 Greenwich Ave., Tory Burch, 255 Greenwich Ave., or Kate Spade, 271 Greenwich Ave.).

The most recent figures from the U.S. Census Bureau list Greenwich’s average household income as $244,666 ”“ more than three times the national average of $72,897.

Even still, there are ways high-end brands might hit stumbling blocks on the street. Hermes, after all, replaced Susie Hilfiger’s Best & Co. children’s store, which she opened on the Avenue in 1997.

“Just because you’re a high-end retailer doesn’t mean you’re going to make it,” said Brien. “Look at Coach. That’s an example of a high-end store ”“ a big name store ”“ that had a beautiful shop and very nice accessories for women and it didn’t make it.”

But while Coach is known for its American-made quality, it’s no Louis Vuitton.

“Greenwich Avenue has a lot of history, and it’s future is very bright,” said Brien. “It will also be successful, even as the stores come and go.”

Hearst Connecticut Media includes four daily newspapers: Connecticut Post, Greenwich Time, The Advocate (Stamford) and The News Times (Danbury). See greenwichtime.com for more from this reporter.