Zara opens doors to SoHo flagship store

Zara has opened its new 47,361 sqft flagship store on 503-511 Broadway in New York’s South of Houston Street.

The retailer, which opened its doors on Thursday, replaces Old Navy, which moved out in early 2015.

Having selected the most glitzy street of the late-19th century retail architecture in the city, the retailer is going to make the most of the world’s best-known shopping districts — located on the block between Broome and Spring Streets.

Chairman of Inditex, the parent company of Zara that bought the location for a whopping $280 million back in January, Pablo Isla, has underscored the importance of this store launch, stressing, “It is particularly relevant for several reasons: the quality and size of its location, the environmental component that promotes the goals of our eco-efficient store project, its design, and its technological proposal. From today forward this new flagship will undoubtedly be a global benchmark.”

The latest Zara store boasts of three floors of retail space and an ample space for showcasing everything the brand has to offer women, men and kids for Spring/Summer 2016.

The store is being designed entirely by Zara’s architecture team that faced the challenge of maintaining the building’s landmark features. It was originally built in 1878 by architect John B Snook and happens to be one of the emblematic buildings of this area, popularly known as the SoHo Cast Iron Historic District. The store has been constructed in keeping with the building’s cast iron façade, interior and brick wall, and blends it with an airy interior that features beauty, clarity, functionality and sustainability, which are Zara’s guiding principles. The company has also applied for the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for its SoHo store.

For its opening, Zara had collaborated with renowned floral artist Mark Colle for the flowery, green explosion that greeted visitors on Day 1.

Zara now operates eight stores in Manhattan, where the brand opened its first store outside of the Iberian Peninsula in 1989, after opening shop in the city’s most popular shopping destinations, which include Fifth Avenue, Lexington Avenue, and 34th Street. Zara also opened a new store at 222 Broadway in late 2015, taking over a new space in the heart of the city’s Financial District.