With Whole Foods and Apple anchoring Williamsburg’s Bedford Avenue, smaller, quirkier and more experimental shops have shifted toward North Sixth Street. The roughly east-west drag, which bisects Kent Avenue and the area’s East River ferry stop, has become a favorite for brands making inroads in Brooklyn.
“Bedford and North Sixth are strong, and Kent is getting more development,” notes Robin Abrams of Compass. Over the last year, North Sixth Street has emerged from graffiti-covered dilapidation to a charming thoroughfare, dotted with shops from Rituals to Urban Outfitters’ Space Ninety 8.
“It’s more like 34th Street than Fifth Avenue” in its eclectic collection of stores, observes Cushman & Wakefield’s Steven Soutendijk.
Williamsburg has velocity despite a soft retail market. “There is a diverse mix of tenants, food, e-commerce, fitness, restaurants, traditional high-end goods and banks,” Soutendijk explains.
It’s also appealing to international clothing and accessories companies such as Paris-based Maje and Sandro. South Korean Åland now has a 10,000-square-foot triplex at 92 N. Sixth St., joining Japanese powerhouse Muji at nearby 200 Wythe Ave.
In the past, international brands only wanted Manhattan. According to Abrams, they now tour the Meatpacking District and Soho but also want to see Williamsburg because of hipster spending.
A perfumery established in New York in 2006 and now owned by Estée Lauder, Le Labo, opened its global flagship at 120 N. Sixth St. on the corner of Berry Street. In addition to creating bespoke perfumes, it brings in foot traffic via French press coffee served in a sweet café.
Across the street is button-down behemoth Gant, which shares a block with Madewell’s slouchy denims and performance wear emporium Lululemon.
Once-online-only apparel shop Everlane also landed in 11,349 square feet at No. 104 between Narcisse’s lingerie and sex toys emporium at No. 110 and The General by Vans kicks and skateboard wear at No. 102. Across the street, beauty store Credo sells cruelty-free cosmetics.
Cushman & Wakefield counted about 70,000 square feet of retail space coming up on North Sixth Street between Bedford and Kent.
Small buildings are also turning over at brag-worthy pricing. The 10,000-square-foot No. 60 sold last year for $19.8 million. And in 2018, Asana Partners bought No. 93 for $10.12 million.
One block west, between Wythe and Kent avenues, Stu Morden and Rafe Evans of Walker & Malloy Co. are pitching a 2,600-square-foot space at 76 N. Sixth for $175 per foot. The edgy spot has ground-floor retail with 25-foot ceilings plus another 800 square feet upstairs.
Nearby, No. 80 is the home of National Sawdust, a recording studio, while the Music Hall of Williamsburg, an indie-rock venue, is at No. 66, driving foot traffic to the block’s retail shops.
In the fall of 2015, a Real Estate Board of New York survey found average asking rents on North Sixth Street between Driggs and Kent avenues were $208 per square foot. While rents around the country have retreated as retailers get battered by online sales, the numbers have held steady on North Sixth. Currently, they range from $100 to $350 per foot, with an average of $225.
But starting in April 2019, the expected 15-month shutdown of the L train stop at Bedford and North Seventh looms. “There has to be a discount [on rents],” says Jason Pruger of Newmark Knight Frank. Brokers expect the area to boom once the project is over.
Meanwhile, market experts believe that, without the L, more locals will give up on going to Manhattan and simply shop and dine in Williamsburg. The suspension of the L train likely won’t stop tourist traffic either, says Adelaide Polsinelli of Compass. Because of the hipster haven’s worldwide buzz, visitors will simply opt to take ferries to the North Williamsburg pier. “They’re small and fast,” Polsinelli says. And, at only $2.75 a ride, another Brooklyn bargain.
