The U.S. is becoming a retail wasteland. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that retailing executives fear the once-buoyant American consumer has entered a state of permanent frugality. The mall vacancy rate is at an 11-year high. With each passing month, a larger chunk of retail sales goes online. American retailers are increasingly staking their future overseas.
Uniqlo's Fifth Avenue Flagship
Somebody forgot to tell Uniqlo. The Japanese apparel retailer this week is opening a three-story, 89,000-square-foot flagship store on the corner of 5th Avenue and 53rd St. in Manhattan. The chain, which opened its first U.S. store in lower Manhattan in 2006, last year signed a $300 million, 15-year lease for the space, formerly the location of a Brooks Brothers store. It was reported to be the most expensive retail lease in New York's history.
And Uniqlo is likely coming to a mall near you in the near future. "We are looking at real estate in different cities throughout the United
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