Crate & Barrel To Say Farewell To Manhattan

This summer, furnishing giant Crate & Barrel is closing the doors to its more than 20-year-old Manhattan flagship store as the company faces growing rents in the area.

The 62,000-square-foot store located at 650 Madison Ave., which stretches from East 57th to East 72nd streets, saw an 8 percent surge in prices, compared to Q1 2014. The surge pushed the store’s average rent to $1,584 a square foot in the first quarter of 2015, according to The Wall Street Journal.

While the company has another store location in SoHo, it said it doesn’t plan on relocating the flagship store, which is scheduled to shut down on Aug. 2. The store’s lease was originally set to expire in late 2019 or early 2020, but foreseeing the rapid rise in rents, the company negotiated an early exit, an undisclosed source told The Wall Street Journal.

“This was a difficult decision and we are grateful to our departing associates for their hard work and service,” the company said. “We remain well positioned to serve the New York market through our SoHo store, as well as stores in the surrounding area and through our website.”

As the company closes its doors, it plans on laying off the bulk of the store’s 100 employees.

To check out what else is HOT in the world of payments, click here.